# Associate and Employer Mapping

- **URL:** https://hackindex.io/platforms/osint/identity-and-people-intelligence/relationship-and-network-mapping/associate-and-employer-mapping
- **Path:** OSINT > Identity & People Intelligence > Relationship and Network Mapping
- **Up:** [Relationship and Network Mapping](https://hackindex.io/platforms/osint/identity-and-people-intelligence/relationship-and-network-mapping.md)
- **Published:** 2026-04-11
- **Updated:** 2026-04-11

## Overview

Associate and employer mapping identifies the professional network surrounding a subject: current and former employers, colleagues, business partners, clients, and co-directors. Professional connections are among the most reliably documented relationships available in open sources because they are deliberately disclosed on platforms like LinkedIn and in company filings.

## LinkedIn Network Analysis

LinkedIn is the primary source for professional relationship mapping. A subject's connections, endorsements, and mutual contacts reveal the structure of their professional network even without direct connection to the subject.

Key data points to collect from a LinkedIn profile:

- Current and previous employers with dates: builds an employment timeline
- Colleagues listed as connections: visible on public profiles as mutual connections
- Endorsers: individuals who have endorsed skills are confirmed connections
- Post interactions: commenters and likers on posts are real connections who chose to engage publicly
- Group memberships: shared professional or industry groups indicate peer relationships

Search for colleagues at the same organisation:

```
site:linkedin.com/in "Example Company" "London" "engineer"
site:linkedin.com/in "Example Company" "Head of" OR "Director" OR "Manager"
```

## Company Co-Directorship Mapping

Individuals who have served as co-directors of the same company share a documented formal relationship. Mapping co-directorships across multiple companies reveals business networks and investment relationships that would not be visible from social platforms alone.

Find all companies where a subject is or has been a director:

```bash
curl -s "https://api.company-information.service.gov.uk/officers/$OFFICER_ID/appointments" -u $COMPANIES_HOUSE_API_KEY: | jq '.items[] | {company: .appointed_to.company_name, number: .appointed_to.company_number, role: .officer_role, appointed: .appointed_on, resigned: .resigned_on}'
# {
#   "company": "EXAMPLE VENTURES LTD",
#   "number": "12345678",
#   "role": "director",
#   "appointed": "2018-03-15",
#   "resigned": null
# }
```

For each company returned, fetch the full officer list to find co-directors:

```bash
curl -s "https://api.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/$COMPANY_NUMBER/officers" -u $COMPANIES_HOUSE_API_KEY: | jq '.items[] | {name: .name, role: .officer_role, appointed: .appointed_on}'
# {
#   "name": "JONES, Sarah Elizabeth",
#   "role": "director",
#   "appointed": "2018-03-15"
# }
```

A co-director found here becomes a new node in the network. Run the same appointment lookup on their officer ID to find additional shared companies and further connections.

## Shared Shareholders and Persons with Significant Control

Beyond co-directorships, shared shareholding in the same company indicates a financial relationship. The Persons with Significant Control register in the UK discloses individuals who hold more than 25 percent of shares or voting rights in a company.

```bash
curl -s "https://api.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/$COMPANY_NUMBER/persons-with-significant-control" -u $COMPANIES_HOUSE_API_KEY: | jq '.items[] | {name: .name, natures_of_control: .natures_of_control, nationality: .nationality}'
```

## Patent and Publication Co-Authorship

Academic and technical professionals leave a record of collaboration in published research and patent filings. Co-authors on papers and co-inventors on patents are confirmed professional associates with a documented working relationship.

Search patent databases by inventor name:

```bash
curl -s "https://api.lens.org/patent/search" -H "Authorization: Bearer $LENS_API_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"query":{"match":{"inventor.name":"$NAME"}},"include":["inventors","title","publication_date"]}'
```

For academic publications, search Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, or OpenAlex by author name. Co-authors on multiple papers represent sustained collaborative relationships rather than one-off connections.

## Conference and Event Appearances

Conference speaker lists, panel compositions, and event attendee lists are frequently published and indexed. Subjects who appear at the same events repeatedly are likely to have a professional relationship worth exploring. Search for the subject's name alongside event or conference terms relevant to their industry.

## References

- [Companies House API Documentation](https://developer.company-information.service.gov.uk/api/docs) - Officer appointments, company officers, and persons with significant control endpoints
- [Lens.org API Documentation](https://api.lens.org/documentation) - Patent and scholarly work search including inventor and co-author data