VN Strategic Communications
 Logo of VN Strategic Communications | |
| Type | Private Company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Data Mining, Data Analysis, Political Consulting, Private Intelligence |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Founders | Erik Valter and Hans Norbert |
| Headquarters | Leidenstad , |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
|
| Revenue | >10 million SHD (2015) |
Number of employees | >100 (2015) |
| Parent | Arna Group Holdings |
VN Strategic Communications (Also known as Valter-Norbert Strategic Communications or VNSC) is a private Cryrian data mining and consulting company. It was originally formed in 1992 by retired Ambassador Erik Valter and former CID officer Hans Norbert. VNSC initially served corporate clients by gathering data and intelligence in high-risk markets, and did not rise to prominence in the public eye until the 2010s when the rise of social media and its purchase by Cryrian aristocrat Saga Tynam allowed the company to significantly expand its operations. VNSC describes itself as a "Public Relations Consultant," though its detractors labeled it as a private intelligence agency after it gained publicity during the Lindström-Rahar Scandal. It is believed to have developed close ties with the Cryrian Conservative Party as well as governing institutions like the Royal Family, military, and security forces.
History
In 1987, Erik Valter retired from his position at the Cryrian Foreign Ministry and opened a private consulting firm called General Image Solutions. GIS was later hired as a political advisor for Gazny Chīrén, who was at the time the Governor of the Gazny Autonomy in Älemsi Negdel. GIS ultimately dissolved in 1990 after a failure to comply with Cryrian lobbying and foreign agent regulations led to crippling fines and lawsuits. Valter ultimately avoided criminal prosecution and retired to his Honningfjord estate.
About three years later, Valter was contacted by a former colleague who had later transferred to the Cryrian Intelligence Directorate, Hans Norbert. Norbert himself had been hired by Ellesborg Mining Cooperative, which sought to secure rights to newly discovered lithium deposits in Älemsi Negdel. Norbert's task was to navigate the highly complex and decentralized Älemsi political system and ascertain its stability and commitment to foreign property rights. To that end, he invited Valter as well as several other regional specialists from the Cryrian Foreign Ministry and intelligence agencies.
Norbert further recognized a rising corporate interest in mineral rich Älemsi Negdel, which was growing increasingly open to foreign investment in the decades following the First Yeralik Crisis. He proposed a reformation of Valter's old business venture, but one which would cater to multinationals seeking assurances and information before entering these risky markets, rather than to local governments themselves. This resulted in the formation of VN Strategic Communications, which proposed itself as a go-between and consultant for foreign business interests looking to expand in the region. In its early years, VNSC would heavily rely on retired Cryrian government personnel who had gained considerable experience and contacts in the country due to Leidenstad's long history with and close proximity to Amrakh Gazarv. Over the subsequent decade however, VNSC expanded beyond its initially niche area and greatly broadened its geographic portfolio, particularly after the Ellesborg Emergency in 2010.
Beginning in the 2010s, VNSC began to contract with the Cryrian Conservative Party. At this time, the company was still relatively unknown outside of security and intelligence circles, and it was billed primarily as a communications consultant for what was expected to be a hotly contested general election in 2012. The company had previously pioneered techniques in data gathering and media campaigning utilizing social media for the EMC during the Ellesborg Emergency, and it is believed to have proposed a similar strategy for the election.
The precise impacts of VNSC in Cryrian politics remains difficult to measure, but the company's role was ultimately thrust into the public spotlight after Lindström-Rahar Scandal. Though the company was largely uninvolved in the Scandal itself, a series of documents obtained by investigative journalists at the Cryrian News Network served to shed light on its activities, as well as the fact that it had been purchased by Duchess Saga of Tynam in 2010 shortly after her own departure from the CDF. Heavy investment from had subsequently allowed VNSC to immensely expand its global operations and also marked the beginning of its role within Cryrian politics. The revelations around the company were largely overshadowed by the wider Scandal which served to unseat the Conservative government in 2020, but they nonetheless caused some controversy and led to a tightening of data protection laws within the Kingdom. The Conservative Party stated that it was no longer retaining VNSC's services as of 2020, but later contacted the company again in 2022 in anticipation of the 2024 General Elections.
In 2021, VNSC came under the umbrella of Arna Group Holdings, an Älemsi-based security contractor.
Structure and Operations
Due to its private ownership, VNSC's financial statements are not publicly available.
Products
VNSC bills itself as a "Public Relations Consultant" that acts as a go-between between multinational corporate entities and local governments and stakeholders. The company primarily operates as a private intelligence platform and derives revenue in part from subscriptions to its regularly published online reports, and in part from direct consulting with corporations, governments, and other entities. The company further publishes analysis in the form of physical and electronic books. It most notably purchased the Viktor's War Machines publishing line, which has released annually since 1897 and seeks to catalogue all types of warships, armored vehicles, and aircraft utilized by the world's militaries.
Over the past decade VNSC has also expanded into the role of a political and media consultant which offers a broad array of data collection and analytic services.
Today, VNSC remains headquartered in Leidenstad but has opened overseas offices in the Free Pax States and the Oan Isles. VNSC also maintains several partnerships with local firms in Packilvania and operates a special consulting branch dedicated to assisting foreign corporations in navigating complex Packilvanian regulations in order to access its lucrative markets, and vice-versa.
Clients
VNSC clients include political parties, academic institutions, investment firms, large corporations, and government agencies.