Research Ops

---
name: research-ops
description: Evidence-first current-state research workflow for ECC. Use when the user wants fresh facts, comparisons, enrichment, or a recommendation built from current public evidence and any supplied local context.
metadata:
  origin: ECC
---

# Research Ops

Use this when the user asks to research something current, compare options, enrich people or companies, or turn repeated lookups into a monitored workflow.

This is the operator wrapper around the repo's research stack. It is not a replacement for `deep-research`, `exa-search`, or `market-research`; it tells you when and how to use them together.

## Skill Stack

Pull these ECC-native skills into the workflow when relevant:

- `exa-search` for fast current-web discovery
- `deep-research` for multi-source synthesis with citations
- `market-research` when the end result should be a recommendation or ranked decision
- `lead-intelligence` when the task is people/company targeting instead of generic research
- `knowledge-ops` when the result should be stored in durable context afterward

## When to Use

- user says "research", "look up", "compare", "who should I talk to", or "what's the latest"
- the answer depends on current public information
- the user already supplied evidence and wants it factored into a fresh recommendation
- the task may be recurring enough that it should become a monitor instead of a one-off lookup

## Guardrails

- do not answer current questions from stale memory when fresh search is cheap
- separate:
  - sourced fact
  - user-provided evidence
  - inference
  - recommendation
- do not spin up a heavyweight research pass if the answer is already in local code or docs

## Workflow

### 1. Start from what the user already gave you

Normalize any supplied material into:

- already-evidenced facts
- needs verification
- open questions

Do not restart the analysis from zero if the user already built part of the model.

### 2. Classify the ask

Choose the right lane before searching:

- quick factual answer
- comparison or decision memo
- lead/enrichment pass
- recurring monitoring candidate

### 3. Take the lightest useful evidence path first

- use `exa-search` for fast discovery
- escalate to `deep-research` when synthesis or multiple sources matter

## Exemplo

```text
"Compara ferramenta A vs B hoje": exa-search (descoberta) → deep-research (síntese citada)
→ market-research se vira recomendação ranqueada → knowledge-ops p/ guardar
Separa: fato com fonte / evidência do usuário / inferência / recomendação
Nunca: responder do cache quando busca fresca é barata
```