The Curiosity Current: A Market Research Podcast

Speed is reshaping how insights teams operate, but hearing directly from customers still matters. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Sarah Haftings, Insights Manager at Shurtape Technologies. They talk about why qualitative research remains essential even as AI accelerates insight generation. Sarah shares how her team balances qualitative and quantitative meth...

The people behind good research have to speak for it. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Aarti Bhaskaran, Global Head of Research and Insights at Snap Inc., about how insights professionals stay impactful as platforms, audiences, and attention spans all shift at once. Aarti shares how she leads global teams, tells research stories that cut through, measures br...

AI is accelerating research, but it isn’t replacing human judgment. In this episode of The Curiosity Current: A Market Research Podcast, Molly Strawn-Carreño is joined by Lisa Wilding Brown, CEO at InnovateMR. They explore what “data quality” really means in today’s environment of AI-powered tools, hybrid methodologies, and increasing fraud risk. Lisa shares why there is no silver bullet for quali...

Research, trends and insights do not stand still, and neither do the people who practice it. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly step away from guest interviews to reflect on five lessons from the past year of conversations with researchers, strategists, and marketers. They share what surprised them, what made them uncomfortable, where they disagree on speed versus rigor,...

Consumers say they care about health, sustainability, and quality… but their behavior doesn’t always align. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Laurie Demeritt, CEO of The Hartman Group, explains why the aspiration–behavior gap in food and beverage is human, not irrational. She explores how integrating quantitative and qualitative research reveals emotional trade-offs, how to interpret consu...

In this 50th episode, Shanon and Lev reflect on the journey of building a meaningful B2B podcast. They explore the lessons learned from 50 guest conversations the consistency and collaboration required behind the scenes, and the themes that continue to shape the show. Looking ahead, they reaffirm their commitment to creating thoughtful, long-term value through conversation.

Market research only works when companies actually listen to it. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Ernest Baskin, Department Chair and Associate Professor of Food Marketing at Saint Joseph’s University, about why market research still matters and why it does not have to cost an arm and a leg. Ernest explains how organizations misuse data, overlook bias, and s...

Strategic insights only matter when leaders trust them. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Christopher Khoury, Vice President of Strategic Insights at the American Medical Association, about how credibility is built over time inside complex, highly regulated organizations. Christopher shares how insights teams earn trust by saying yes early, getting close to t...

Enterprise research teams often produce plenty of insight but struggle to influence real decisions. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie speaks with Kylee Lessard, Group/Principal Product Marketing Manager for Insights & Strategy at LinkedIn, about how she helped build a centralized insights function that leadership actually relies on. Kylee breaks down the practical steps she used...

The story that older adults struggle with technology keeps showing up. The data says otherwise. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Molly is joined by Dr. Brittne Kakulla, Senior Consumer Insights Manager at AARP, with special guest co-host Elana Marmorstein, aytm’s Market Revenue Operations Specialist and host of Waves of Thinking. Brittne shares what over two decades of research reveal abo...

Market research often rewards speed, confidence, and verbal fluency. That leaves insight behind. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Molly is joined by Garret Westlake, Vice Provost for Innovation and Strategic Design at Virginia Commonwealth University, with special guest co-host Katie Bernal, Senior Director of Learning and Enablement at aytm. Garret explains how LEGO SERIOUS PLAY can be u...

In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with Jason Cohen, Founder and CEO of Simulacra, to explore how causal AI and scenario modeling are changing the way market research actually works. Jason explains why more rows rarely fix weak studies, how seeded synthetic data can extract insight from incomplete datasets, and why understanding cause and effect matters more tha...

Market research is losing great talent because the career path remains invisible. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly are joined by Charitie Dantis-Gayo, Corporate Vice President, Center for Consumer Insights at New York Life Insurance Company. Charitie shares her nonlinear path into market research, explains why visibility matters more than credentials, and outlines what...

AI can accelerate research. It cannot replace context. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with Nancee Halpin, a researcher and insights specialist whose career spans Fuel Cycle, SurveyMonkey, Highlight, and Strella. Nancee explains why human judgment, curiosity, and lived context still sit at the center of good research, even as AI reshapes how fast teams can mo...

Influence does not come from more data. It comes from understanding risk, value, and timing. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly are joined by Ed Kahn, Senior Principal of CX Research and Insights at Mutual of America Financial Group. With a career spanning consumer electronics, syndicated research, and financial services, Ed shares why researchers often feel excluded fro...

AI is transforming research, but human judgment still anchors the work. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with David Evans, Director of Market Research at Microsoft and author of Bottlenecks, to explore the realities of building AI and digital products that respect how humans think, feel, and decide. David draws on a decade of applied psychology at Microsoft to...

Research is evolving from reporting the past to shaping what comes next, and the most meaningful shifts begin with how we understand people. In this Greatest Hits episode of The Curiosity Current, five guests share the ideas that are redefining the insights profession. From Adam Hagerman’s view of research as a strategic engine, to Lindsey Goodman’s lived-world ethnography, to Marcus Cunha on infl...

UX research only matters when it changes something. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with Amberly Miller, Director of UX Research at Prudential Financial, to discuss the real work of turning insight into influence inside a heavily regulated, high-stakes enterprise. Amberly shares how she rebuilt Prudential’s approach to research, moving from a tightly gated si...

Modern CMOs are overwhelmed with data yet short on clarity. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, host Molly Strawn-Carreño and guest host Shanon Adams, President and COO of aytm, sit down with Steve Olenski, “The CMO Whisperer,” to unpack what CMOs really need from insights partners. Steve explains why insights must be treated as a growth engine, how the strongest teams align on trust, transl...

Every plate, product, and policy starts with research. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, hosts Molly and Stephanie talk with Steve Markenson, Vice President of Research & Insights at FMI – The Food Industry Association and longtime President & Consultant at WBA Research. They explore how industry-wide research shapes the food retail ecosystem, how consumer behavior is evolving, and how eme...

Speed gets the headlines. Consistency drives the decision. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, host Molly and co-host Stephanie sit down with Charlie Grossman, Owner of CG Research & Consulting and former VP at BASES and Burke, to unpack what makes research trustworthy and actionable. Charlie explains why context and consistency beat one-off metrics, how to avoid the novelty trap of high pur...

Change gets the headlines. Fundamentals drive the business. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, host Stephanie and co-host Andrew Kawalek sit down with J. Walker Smith, Knowledge Lead for Strategy & Consulting at Kantar, to unpack what truly shapes consumer behavior. Walker explains why convenience remains the strongest driver of choice, how pricing tells a brand’s story, and why storytellin...

Every brand has a voice but few realise their loudest one sits quietly on the shelf. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, host Stephanie speaks with Matt Salem, SVP of Customer Success at Behaviorally and co-author of unPACKED: Predict Packaging That Sells. Matt explains how the Four-S framework: Seen, Shoppable, Seductive, Selected, helps brands design packaging that drives decisions at the...

We’re revisiting one of the most grounded and inspiring conversations from The Curiosity Current featuring Raina Rusnak, Head of Market Research and Business Intelligence at StarKist and CEO of 750 Research. In this Greatest Hits episode, Raina shares the lessons that connect mountaineering, leadership, and mental health, from knowing when to lean on your team to the science of taking just ten min...

We’re bringing back one of the most insightful conversations from The Curiosity Current, featuring Lindsey Goodman, Consumer Insights Leader at Wolverine Worldwide. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Lindsey shares how ethnography brings human truth back into research, turning observation into innovation and data into action. From trail runners who run for donuts to a framework that connect...