It is becoming increasingly common for academic developers to engage in "insider research"; that is, researching their own and colleagues’ practices (e.g. using action research). Such research has the potential to yield significant insights into higher education praxis due to the unique position in which academic developers are placed, with access to different academic and disciplinary practices and university levels, and working at the intersection of research, development, and education. However, that very position also creates methodological and ethical tensions for academic developers conducting "insider research". In this seminar, we will explore such tensions, drawing on our own experiences as researchers and academic developers. In particular, we will discuss whether (and if so how) it is possible for academic developers to combine the critical distance of an outsider with the profound contextual insight of an insider. We will also consider how "insider research" linked to academic development can be supported.