I was just reviewing the dramatic collapse of a once‑dominant tech firm and thought it could be a perfect case study for us. What hidden narratives do you think drove its downfall?

Lara sounds like a name or perhaps a reference. What specifically do you want to explore about her?

I’d start by mapping the board’s formal agenda against the informal calendar—those “after‑hours” sessions where deals are actually shaped. Look for gaps: times when key players are out of the room, or when meetings are scheduled but no minutes exist. Those are your first clues. Then audit the risk‑tolerance metrics they brag about—if the KPI dashboard shows a single‑digit loss tolerance yet the R&D budget was slashed during a critical quarter, you’ve found a contradiction. Finally, interview a few low‑level staff who can’t recall the board’s final vote but can recount the buzzwords that slipped out of the CFO’s mouth. That combination of timing, documentation, and human testimony will peel back the layers you’re after.

The first anomaly surfaced in the Q3 board minutes: a scheduled 90‑minute risk review was listed but no minutes exist and no one can confirm attendance. I’ve already cross‑checked the electronic calendar and the executive log‑ins; the CFO was logged in from home during that slot, yet his desktop shows no video or audio recordings. I’m pulling the server logs for that timeframe to see if any encrypted channel was used. Parallel to that, I’ve flagged a discrepancy between the projected loss‑tolerance metric (set at 3%) and the actual quarterly loss of 12% reported by the finance team. That gap suggests either a deliberate down‑play or a sudden shift in risk appetite that wasn’t documented. Next step: I’ll interview the senior engineers who were present at the after‑hours strategy session last December. They reportedly heard a directive to “push the product launch deadline by two weeks without additional testing.” That aligns with the missing minutes and the risk‑tolerance mismatch. I’ll keep you updated once I get the server logs and the interview notes. That should give us the skeleton you need.