Data Gurus Podcast | Insights on Business Strategy, Mergers and Acquisitions, Market Research & Data Collection

For today’s episode, Senior Business Consultant at Southwest Airlines Isaac Muñoz sits with Sima Vasa. They talk about marrying research and insights and why research is not just an optional element but should be deeply integrated into the marketing process. Isaac Muñoz – Insights at Southwest Airlines Isaac is part of the Customer Insights of the Marketing Team at Southwest Airlines. His jo...

On today’s episode, Kris Hull and Chris Murphy  of Kantar North America joins Sima Vasa. Together, they talk about marketing metric audit protocols, finding the balance between short-term and long-term tracking, and so much more. Kris Hull and  Chris Murphy  – MASB Accreditation In a recent press release, the market research agency announced its accreditation for the Marketing Accountability...

On today’s episode, President of The Opinion Economy Ted Waz sits with Sima Vasa to talk about the rising distributed ledger and blockchain technology. They also touch on how it will affect the way we collect consumer data and the market research sphere as a whole. Ted Waz – On The Opinion Economy The Opinion Economy is a distributed ledger, blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) company. They...

Ben Smithee is the CEO of The Smithee Group, a digital marketing agency based in New York City. On this episode, he sits with Sima Vasa to talk about what they do, how they do it, and how millennial research has affected the marketing sphere. “I think there’s a new shift… marketing in the moment and not for the moment.” – Ben Smithee Ben Smithee – The Smithee Group’s Pedigree His full-...

On this episode, Anese Cavanaugh , CEO of Active Choices, Inc., joins Sima Vasa to talk culture and leadership. Devoted to helping people show up, Anese is an author and is the leading voice on intention, energy and presence. Today she brings to us the story behind her famous IEP Method. “I believe that we each create the culture that we are a part of.” – Anese Cavanaugh Anese Cavanaugh &#82...

Steve Koenig is the Vice President of Research at the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), a US trade association for all consumer tech. Today he joins Sima Vasa to talk about the future of society with the continued rise of consumer tech, automation and AI. “I think it’s safe to say, in 2018, that technology is a mainstay of our society, whether its for work, business, or personal use. That dyn...

Tuomas Syrjänen is Chief AI Officer and Co-Founder of Futurice. Today, he sits with Sima Vasa to talk about emerging data-driven business models. He also discusses the impact of data and AI on culture and practical blockers to data and AI adoption. “We are in the middle of this kind of digital innovation culture shift where we are talking more about agile organizations.” – Tuomas...

Ryan Barry is the Chief Revenue Officer at Zappi. In today’s episode, he sits with Sima Vasa to talk about Zappi’s unique approach to innovation, how a culture of instant gratification is shaking up market research, and the exponential growth of the insights industry. “My worldview of research is it’s an industry that should be growing exponentially.” – Ryan Barry Ryan Barr...

Joel Rubinson , founder of Rubinson Partners, Inc., joins former colleague Sima Vasa today. They talk about how digital analytics can be intercepted with the theory of recency to create great strategies. Joel also discusses targeted advertising, and why surveys are important to improve marketing. “There’s a need for survey because you can’t learn everything you want from digital exhaust.” –...

Allie Bohm is the Policy Counsel at Public Knowledge, a non-profit advocacy organization based in Washington DC. Today, she and Sima Vasa discuss the existing privacy and consumer policies in the United States. Allie Bohm – Policy Work Expert Prior to Public Knowledge, Allie dedicated most of her time at law school. She also spent 7 years at CLU doing policy work. Now, she is working to help...

Ulli Appelbaum is the founder of First the Trousers Then The Shoes, Inc. The consulting firm has been grounded by execution rather than deliverables, resonating with Ulli’s beliefs on strategies and the creative process. Today, he sits with Sima Vasa to talk about the power of extracting insights from data. Ulli Appelbaum – Advertising Ever Since Ulli’s US advertising career started 16 years...

Rolfe Swinton is known as the blockchain expert. He joins Sima Vasa in this episode to talk about the potential and applications of this fundamental technology that can change the workings of the market industry. Rolfe Swinton – Promoting Blockchain Insights Rolfe has recently joined GfK where he’s taken on a new role as Director of Data Assets. GfK is currently on a mission to reinven...

Tia Maurer is a Group Scientist at the Procter & Gamble Company. She sits with Sima Vasa to discuss data integrity, statistical significance, surveys and automation, and the shift to behavioral-based research methods. “Your analysis and insights is only as good as your quality of data and rarely is your data file 100% error free.” – Tia Maurer Tia Maurer – Seasoned Prod...

Melissa Sauter and Duncan Lawrence join Sima Vasa to share a bit of history of Market Strategies International (MSI) and Morpace. The two leading market research companies are combining after the acquisition by a private equity firm, STG. In today’s episode, they share the separate histories of their companies and the factors leading to the merger. “We’re better together. The mer...

Joe Catling is the Head of Analytics at Relish Research. Today he sits down with Sima Vasa to discuss marrying client or ‘big’ data to market research data, the challenges of doing so, and the future of advanced statistical or machine learning techniques. “What I think we’re going to see is a democratization of a lot of machine learning, big data tools, which can make them more a...

Brian Califano is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of AcceleratngCFO. Today he joins Sima Vasa in an episode dedicated to current trends of finance and the role of data in how we budget our financial results and plan for business future. Brian Califano – CFO: A Significant Service AcceleratingCFO offers Chief Financial Officer (CFO) services for small to medium size businesses, specializ...

In today’s episode, Sima Vasa talks with Roddy Knowles.  Roddy is  the Director of Product and Innovation Research at Research Now SSI. His leadership runs the machinery that leverages technology to effectively support products. Technology underpins processes by which innovation comes to fruition. This is what Roddy and his team are working to achieve. Technology Behind the Process Today, te...

Simon Chadwick is the Founder and Managing Partner of Cambiar Consulting. He and Sima Vasa discuss the shifts in the research industry and the Gen Z potential in the workplace. How different are they from the Millennials? Tune in. “If we look in the news we are constantly reminded that this is a generation that thinks rather differently … it’s much more about authenticity, much m...

Hermann Kudlich is a Denmark-based business development partner at LEGO Brand Group. Today, he touches base with Sima Vasa. They talk about how coming up with innovative ways to marry physical and digital experiences can be fun, albeit challenging. Physical Experience in the Digital Age For over nine years, Hermann has worked with product innovation and lean startup methods at LEGO, leading major...

Annie Pettit has a masters in data quality and online surveys. She was a certified organizational psychologist with the Ontario government. Annie then moved into the private sector doing research on the research of data quality and it’s analytics, social media analytics and now is a freelance researcher advising companies on best research practices and research reports. The Market Researcher...

Per Håkansson is the Managing Editor for Inside Blockchain and founder of Makerminds, Inc. On top of these, he’s a TEDx speaker and learning facilitator. He helps entrepreneurs shift their mindset and become more experimental and exploratory in their innovations. Transformation of humanity comes with emerging technologies.  Knowing this, Per promotes looking at the change from the perspective of t...

Laura Chaibi  has enjoyed a twenty-year digital career that started when she moved from Canada to UK. She got into digital media measurements and research when the industry was cutting-edge, hence progressing and growing with it. Her career cuts across media, telco, and digital brands like Yahoo, BBC, Orange, AOL, and the Middle East Broadcast Center, which she now works for as the Head of Market...

Kristin Luck is a serial entrepreneur turned growth strategist. She most recently served as a partner and President/CMO of Decipher until its acquisition in 2014. Currently, she works as a growth strategy consultant specializing in non-traditional sales and marketing strategies, for early and mid-stage companies preparing for global expansion, funding or acquisition. She is consistently ranked as...

Ray Poynter is the Founder of NewMR.org. He is also the author of several books and chapters about market research, a teacher, blogger, facilitator, presenter, coach, and consultant. Studies have listed him as one of the most influential leaders in the industry. In this episode, he gives an in-depth take on artificial intelligence, GDPR and so much more. Ray Poynter – Market Research Special...

Philip Delvecchio is the Program Director at VentureOut, a business accelerator that works with companies from around the world. What are the market trends and what type of companies are they looking to help grow and scale? Tune in! Philip Delvecchio – VentureOut Global Business Accelerator VentureOut seeks to invest in post-seed companies who want to enter the ecosystem in New York. These c...