Conversations in Depth: A QRCA Views Podcast: Recent Episodes

Michael Carlon

In-depth conversations with business leaders, marketers, and authors.

Design Thinking and the Power of Anecdotes: A Conversation with Bryony Hancock

In the latest episode of Conversations in Depth, host Doug Keith talks with Bryony Hancock, Senior Strategist at Eighth Day, an independent strategy consultancy based in London. Bryony discusses her journey from industrial designer to innovation strategist, and how design thinking, imagination, and carefully crafted anecdotes can help qualitative researchers uncover deeper insights and inspire meaningful action.

Originally trained in industrial design, Bryony began her career designing products before transitioning into strategy and innovation consulting. Today, she works with multidisciplinary teams to help organizations solve complex business challenges, redefine problems, and develop new products, services, and propositions rooted in qualitative research. Drawing from both design and strategy, she shares how creative exploration, thoughtful analysis, and the willingness to challenge assumptions can lead to stronger recommendations and more impactful research outcomes.

In this conversation, Bryony explores how researchers can move beyond simply validating existing ideas to helping clients imagine new possibilities. She explains why memorable anecdotes often have greater impact than lengthy stories or isolated data points, how to identify the moments that can truly change the direction of a project, and practical ways to incorporate these powerful human examples into presentations and strategies that resonate with clients long after the research is complete.

https://www.8th-day.com/about

https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryony-hancock/

https://bryhancock.substack.com/?r=28svyk&utm_campaign=pub-share-checklist

https://www.qrcaviews.org/

https://www.qrcaviews.org/features/podcasts/

https://www.qrca.org/

Understand Your Motivational Style and How to Adapt Your Communication Approach: A Conversation with Beka Shea

In the latest episode of Conversations in Depth, host Doug Keith talks with Beka Shea, Founder & Executive Advisor of Magnetic Consulting. Beka discusses her path from Naval officer and mechanical engineer to client and business advisor, and how behavioral analytics can help both individuals and teams understand their own communication styles and be better communicators as a result.

With ambitions to be a pilot, Beka completed an undergraduate ROTC program and joined the Navy, serving as the Assistant Training Officer on an aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington. She finished an advanced degree in mechanical engineering and moved into the private sector as an engineer at NORESCO, a carrier company focused on energy efficiency and sustainability. She's since led one consulting firm and founded another, created a real estate investment business, and has become an in-demand public speaker. With her team at Magnetic, she helps growth-stage companies align their leadership teams, improve decision-making, and scale with confidence.

In this conversation, Beka will share what she's learned about key types of motivational factors that typically define team members—Sharks (autonomy), Sunshines (social) and Shepherds (knowledge)—so you can think about what motivates you and how this influences your own communication approach. Through this assessment you can learn how to adapt your communications as a consultant with both respondents and clients, while avoiding letting your best traits become your Achilles heel.

https://www.magneticconsulting.net/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/bekashea/

In the latest episode of Conversations in Depth, host Doug Keith chats with Sally Kohn, public speaking coach, media trainer, author, and former MSNBC commentator as she shares her personal journey from on-air personality to helping people and organizations be more effective at delivering key messages.

Kohn is a nationally recognized television commentator, writer, and executive presence coach working with top executives and political leaders. A frequent guest on CNN and MSNBC—and once upon a time, Fox News—Kohn’s first book, The Opposite of Hate, was published in April 2018. Kohn is a TED Curator, and her three hit TED Talks have been viewed more than six million times. She is also a popular keynote speaker at business conferences and on college campuses, talking about how to end political division and save democracy by cultivating connection and belonging.

In this conversation, Kohn talks about how she found her way into commentating, and what led her back out of it—a desire to help people and organizations on a much larger scale through her current work. She also reflects on what she’s learned from having conversations with people who are very different from her, and how that can help qualitative researchers be empathetic even when the topics get tough.

In this time of polarization, where even the most seemingly innocuous research topics can veer into deeper concerns, Kohn reminds us that understanding the complicated natures of people is more important than ever.

Show notes:

Website

https://www.sallykohn.com/

What we can do about the culture of hate (TED Talk)

https://youtu.be/BzeTjn0R2VY?si=9pzv8xYW2c0ITsKP

View Sally's book:

The Opposite of Hate: A Field Guide to Repairing Our Humanity by Sally Kohn

The Opposite of Hate: A Field Guide to Repairing Our Humanity

In the latest episode of Conversations in Depth, host Mike Carlon sits down with Frank Murgalo, master of reinvention, lifelong prankster, and author of My Mid-Life Crisis at 82. With a career that defies any neat category, Murgalo’s story offers a refreshing perspective for professionals looking to pivot, reimagine their path, or simply embrace what comes next.

Known for reinventing himself every 7–8 years, Murgalo has been everything from a Marine reservist to an actor, from a soup entrepreneur to a stand-up comic, from a financial advisor to an Off-Broadway producer. His journey is a study in resilience, curiosity, and finding opportunity in the unexpected.

In this conversation, Frank shares candid lessons on navigating career shifts, overcoming self-doubt, and turning so-called “failures” into springboards. For qualitative researchers contemplating their own next chapter, his approach to adaptability and creative risk-taking resonates deeply. He reminds us that the ability to evolve—whether through reinvention, humor, or sheer persistence—is often the best asset any professional can cultivate.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone seeking inspiration on how to turn career uncertainty into possibility, and how to approach change with curiosity, courage, and a little laughter.

In the latest episode of Conversations in Depth, host Mike Carlon interviews Jack Bowen, the visionary founder of CoLoop, an AI-powered tool transforming the way qualitative marketing research is analyzed. With a career rooted in problem-solving and innovation, Bowen’s journey is a testament to the impact of technology on modern research approaches.

Bowen shares the story behind CoLoop, offering insights into his motivations for addressing perceived inefficiencies in traditional qualitative analysis. From identifying key pain points to designing solutions that streamline processes and uncover richer insights, his entrepreneurial path is one of perseverance, creativity, and customer-centric evolution. He dives into how real-world feedback from research professionals shaped CoLoop into a tool that not only enhances productivity but also elevates the depth of qualitative insights.

Looking ahead, Bowen provides a compelling perspective on the future of the industry. He highlights the role of AI in fostering more dynamic and adaptive research practices, emphasizing the need for researchers to embrace technological advancements while maintaining the human element that defines qualitative work. His advice for professionals navigating this changing landscape is both practical and inspiring.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone in the marketing research field eager to understand how AI is reshaping the industry. Tune in to hear Bowen’s fascinating journey, actionable insights, and predictions for what’s next in qualitative research.

Joe Indusi, an expert in the technology behind usability research and the founder of TrueView Audio visual, joins the VIEWS Podcasts team for an insightful conversation. Joe’s career trajectory is nothing short of fascinating. He got his start in the entertainment industry as a writer and filmmaker working in the highest levels of Hollywood productions with the likes of Ridley Scott and Sharon Stone. This creative foundation laid the groundwork for his eventual transition into the world of UX research.

During this conversation, Joe shares how his experience in film and television has shaped his unique approach to UX Research, offering a blend of storytelling and technical innovation. Over the past 30 years, Joe has witnessed the evolution of UX research firsthand, from its early days to its current prominence in shaping digital experiences. He discusses the major changes he’s observed and provides insightful predictions about where he believes the field is headed.

Through his work at TrueView Audio Visual, Joe continues to push the boundaries of UX research, leveraging technology to deliver enhanced usability insights for clients across various industries. This conversation is a must-listen for anyone interested in the intersection of technology, research, and storytelling.

Tune in to hear Joe’s thoughts on the future of UX research, his remarkable journey from entertainment to tech, and how his work is influencing the way we interact with digital products today.

Connect with Joe at https://www.truview.tech/

In this episode of Conversations In Depth, host Mike Carlon speaks with Isaac Rogers, President of Sago, about his unique journey from a tech startup in the early 2000s to a leader in the market research industry. Isaac shares the challenges and opportunities he encountered along the way, including the industry's digital transformation and the impact of AI on qualitative research. He also offers insights into the importance of networking, the evolving nature of in-person research, and strategies to engage clients more effectively. 00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome 00:32 Isaac Rogers' Journey into Market Research 05:49 The Evolution of Market Research 07:08 Impact of COVID-19 on Research Methods 09:00 Future Trends in Qualitative Research 13:38 Challenges for Independent Moderators 18:08 The Role of AI in Market Research 24:37 Advice for Aspiring Market Researchers 33:12 Sago's Innovations and Final Thoughts

Honoring the honesty of our subjects is essential in filmmaking. Capturing their emotional journey, not just their words, is what makes a story compelling. — David Kalisher

In this episode of Conversations in Depth, host Mike Carlon sits down with David Kalisher, the founder of Jolly Road Productions. David, a seasoned filmmaker, shares his journey from corporate finance to Hollywood, and eventually to becoming a respected filmmaker in the market research industry. With a background that includes creative development at MGM Studios and hosting a television show, David brings a unique perspective to storytelling through film.

Key Themes:

Early Beginnings in Filmmaking: David's passion for filmmaking began in high school with a music video project, which set the foundation for his future career.
Transition to Hollywood: After a stint in corporate finance, David moved to Hollywood, where he gained experience working on music video sets and eventually in creative development at MGM Studios.
Market Research Filmmaking: David's journey led him to market research, where he discovered the power of capturing honest, emotional stories from research participants, enhancing the depth and impact of qualitative research.
Founding Jolly Road Productions: David founded Jolly Road Productions, focusing on creating powerful, research-based films with a small footprint, ensuring minimal disruption while capturing authentic insights.
Advice for Moderators and Filmmakers: David emphasizes the importance of good sound quality, maintaining a small and non-intimidating production setup, and the art of letting respondents speak without interruption to capture genuine moments.
Separating Roles for Better Results: David advises keeping the roles of moderator and filmmaker separate to ensure the quality of both the interview and the video capture, sharing a personal anecdote about the challenges of managing both simultaneously.

For more information about David Kalisher and Jolly Road Productions, visit https://www.jollyroad.com/ or contact David directly at David@JollyRoad.com.

Join us in this insightful episode as we dive deep into the world of design with Dresden McBride, Head of Design for Small Business Lending at JPMorgan Chase. From an early fascination with advertising sparked by a second-grade toothpaste poster project to a career spanning traditional advertising agencies and digital marketing, Dresden shares her journey through the evolving landscape of design and marketing.

Key Points Discussed:

Early Beginnings: Discover how a school project ignited Dresden's passion for design and led her to aspire towards a career in advertising, inspired by iconic roles in 'Melrose Place' and 'Boomerang'.
Career Evolution: Learn about Dresden's transition from traditional advertising to mastering digital marketing, including a stint at Capital One, and her role in the burgeoning field of UX design.
Research and Design: Explore the dynamic between designers and researchers in creating user-centric digital experiences, highlighting the importance of collaboration and open communication.
Advice to Designers and Researchers: Dresden offers pearls of wisdom for budding designers and researchers, emphasizing patience, openness to opportunities, and the value of constructive partnerships.
A Personal Touch: Enjoy light-hearted stories from Dresden's life, including humorous takes on the Tooth Fairy tradition and reflections on personal growth and career development.

Wrap-Up: Dresden leaves us with a thoughtful message to her younger self, encouraging patience and the ability to enjoy the journey without rushing through life's milestones.

Laura Nozicka is a moderator from Chicago and has a long career in healthcare, which drives her passion to elevate the healthcare experience. Out of Laura's own experience of spinning through the healthcare "revolving door," desperately trying to find a diagnosis for symptoms that made no sense to most doctors or were simply dismissed, she created the "Desperate For a Diagnosis" podcast.

Key Themes

Why Laura started the Desperate for a Diagnosis podcast (It wasn’t just to promote her business).
Lessons Laura learned the hard way after deciding to launch a healthcare focused podcast (great advice for aspiring podcasters).
How to judge the success of your podcast (It’s not just about the numbers).
Laura’s moderating backstory (and what moderators can learn from the hospitality industry).
Laura’s advice for anyone who wants to get into podcasting (go in with eyes wide open).

Connect with Laura

Website: https://www.desperateforadiagnosis.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lnozicka/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@desperateforadiagnosis

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauranozicka/

Connect with Mike

Website: https://uncorkingastory.com/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSvS4fuG3L1JMZeOyHvfk_g

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uncorkingastory/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@uncorkingastory

Twitter: https://twitter.com/uncorkingastory

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uncorkingastory

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/uncorking-a-story/

To say that Emmanuel Probst wears many hats is an understatement. He is Global Lead, Brand Thought-Leadership at Ipsos, an adjunct professor at the University of California at Los Angeles, and the author of Wall Street Journal and USA Today best seller Brand Hacks.

Emmanuel joined me on Conversations in Depth to discuss his career and latest book, Assemblage, which guides readers through the art and science of creating transformative brands by combining personal, social, and cultural components. Listen to our conversation and get Emanual’s take on the evolving role of brands and branding, the increasing risk of brand backlash, and how market research has to evolve alongside brands to remain relevant in an everchanging business world driven by technology.

Listen at our website or find this episode wherever you get your podcasts by searching for Conversations in Depth. While you are there, consider subscribing and giving our podcast a rating and review. Happy listening!

More VIEWS Podcasts

Check out the newest VIEWS podcast online at https://qrcaviews.org/features/podcasts/

As an internationally-recognized thought leader whose TEDx appearance, keynotes, blogs, and books reach hundreds of thousands of business leaders each year, Karen Mangia is a catalyst who uses curiosity and diversified creativity to empower individuals, teams, and organizations to sustain success. With over 20 years of experience in communications, customer relationship management, and everything to do with “the business of people,” she is a champion of integration with a wealth of knowledge that empowers individuals, teams, and organizations to find freedom and create choices that move them from limited to limitless. Whether it’s personal or professional, individual or collective, Karen provides a framework for immense growth to people who are feeling stuck in their current chapter. Achieving the impossible begins by doing the doable.

Listen up as QRCA VIEWS podcast editor Mike Carlon and Karen talk about the state of the market research industry, implications of the downsizing happening in tech, and her take on key implications for qualitative researchers. So, head on over to our VIEWS website or find this episode wherever you get your podcasts by searching for Conversations in Depth. While you are there, consider subscribing and giving our podcast a rating and review.

Check out the newest VIEWS podcast online at https://qrcaviews.org/features/podcasts

What do dancing and running a fieldwork agency have in common? Maybe more than you think!

Kelsey Buttimer is the president of Fieldwork Chicago and knows a thing or two about the importance of flexibility (in more ways than one). Growing up dancing competitively, Kelsey spent most of her free time at the barre (in the dance studio). It was there that she learned the importance of structure, hard work, and communication while also developing her appreciation for music and entertainment.

In this episode, Mike and Kelsey discuss parallels between dancing and managing qualitative fieldwork, climbing the ladder in the qualitative research industry, and the value Fieldwork gets from their relationship with the QRCA. In addition, we talk music, festivals, and our mutual love of running, so shimmy on over to our VIEWS website or find this episode wherever you get your podcasts by searching for Conversations in Depth. While you are there, consider subscribing and giving our podcast a rating and review.

Happy listening!

Dave Kaye is a seasoned expert in digital qualitative research methods. His research career has taken him all around the world, where he has listened firsthand to stories from thousands of research participants. He is an expert in understanding how best to get to the heart of the narrative and the insights that live within it. And he has consistently been at the forefront of mobile research, previously founding Kiosk, the world’s first mobile qualitative agency, after a stint leading the digital team at Flamingo. He is passionate about applying new technologies to the world of research, but always keen to keep things simple.

Dave joined me on Conversations in Depth to discuss his untraditional path of getting into the market research business and why he became so passionate about digital methods. Along the way, we discuss why his former roommate thought he was a spy, how our parents have no idea what we do for a living, and what he’s up to now, including a business helping other qualitative researchers use mobile for insight gathering and storytelling.

Wendy Pease is the owner and president of Rapport International, a translation and interpretation services company specializing in marketing translation. Throughout her career, she has worked with hundreds of companies to help them communicate across more than 200 languages and cultures. She hosts the Global Marketing Show podcast, which features experts on opportunities and challenges in increasing multilingual lead gen and revenue. She also leads a global speed networking group, moderates the Boston chapter of Soft Land Partners, and hosts a weekly Clubhouse room on Global Business.

Wendy Joined me on Conversations in Depth to discuss her book The Language of Global Marketing: Translate Your Domestic Strategies into International Sales and Profits. In addition, we cover how a childhood of traveling the world got her interested in a global business career, why she wanted to own her own business, and how qualitative researchers can benefit from using simultaneous translation (hint, it has to do with inclusivity in Market Research).

Check past episodes of Conversation in Depth at https://qrcaviews.org/features/podcasts/

Before becoming the Editor in Chief of Views, I needed to give up the reigns of the podcast feature and I turned them over to Foster Winter, who did an absolutely wonderful job with it. His calming voice and insightful questions took our podcast feature up a few notches and I am grateful for his presence on our committee.

Many of you know that Foster lost a battle with cancer earlier this year and I wanted to use some space in this edition of Views to acknowledge his contributions to the podcast feature and to Views magazine.

I’m also happy to announce that we have a new episode to share featuring author April Bell. April is an empathy researcher and the author of The Fire Starter: Igniting Innovation with Empathy. April loves to solve problems. She has conducted more than 11,000 hours of empathy research through her boutique research agency, April Bell Research Group, working with many of the world’s giant brands such as PepsiCo, P&G, Hewlett Packard, and Pfizer to name a few.

How did April get into the insights business? How did she uncover how important empathy is to her work? Where did the idea for The Fire Starter come from? Tune in to hear the answers to these questions and uncover the important lessons she learned about herself during the writing process.

More VIEWS Podcasts

And while you’re at it, peruse the list of over sixty podcasts covering a range of topics from which to choose from on the VIEWS podcast page.

Check out the newest VIEWS podcasts online by clicking here.

C. Frederic John enjoys a global reputation as a strategic researcher with a career spanning over forty years. He specializes in melding profound insights into concrete recommendations for clients, and in crafting compelling research deliverables using story-telling techniques.

Fred and I have a few things in common: we both work in the market research industry, we both worked for MasterCard, and we both value the power of storytelling when it comes to presenting findings to clients. In fact, Fred is so passionate about storytelling in market research that he literally wrote a book, Storytelling and Market Research: A Practical User Guide.

I caught up with my former colleague just a few days before his book launched to discuss his career as a researcher, what compelled him to write this book, and how he went about finding a publisher and turning his idea into reality. Of course, we discuss the importance of using story to keep a reader’s attention and Fred gives practical and tangible advice for transforming mundane reports into page turners. If you want to build your storytelling chops, this interview is not to be missed!

Check out the newest VIEWS podcast online at https://qrcaviews.org/features/podcasts/

This Conversation in Depth podcast features Kay Corry Aubrey and former tech executive, TED speaker, BBC producer, and author Margaret Heffernan. Margaret’s latest book, Uncharted: How to Navigate the Future, is not only fascinating but very timely. Margaret says we can step back and learn from the very visceral experience of uncertainty that the COVID-19 pandemic threw our way.

This edition of the QRCA Conversations in Depth podcast features Foster Winter’s conversation with Daniel Wolf discussing the Power of Business Conversation—from casual, informal conversations to structured strategy meetings. Some takeaways: Keep the elements of productive conversations relevant, alive, and available; address the benefits of casual office conversations even while working remotely; conversations are key to decision management and organizational development.

Liz Sanders is an experimental psychologist and a pioneer in generative design research. She is the founder of Make Tools, which leverages participatory human-centered methods for innovation and to address the big challenges we face in today’s world. Liz is also a professor within the Design Department at The Ohio State University. QRCA VIEWS Luminaries Feature Editor Kay Corry Aubrey recently spoke with Liz about her work in a field that she helped to create, related to qualitative research.

In addition to his position as managing partner of the Prell Organization, he is adjunct assistant professor at the George Herbert Walker School of Business and Technology at Webster University in St. Louis.

As an emeritus member of QRCA and a recipient of the President’s Award, he is also very involved with the Education Special interest Group.

QRCA luminary Jen Dale shares a fun conversation with Foster Winter about her 22 years in online qualitative research—the past, the present, and the future; the good, the bad, and the ugly!

In this edition of Conversations in Depth, QRCA’s Luminairies editor Kay Corry Aubrey talks with Karen Mangia, Vice President of Consumer and Market Insights at Salesforce.com.

Kay and Karen discuss the role of qualitative research within this dynamic company as well as some very interesting ways in which Salesforce is listening to the voice of their customers around the world.

In addition, Karen is also the author of Success with Less, a particularly timely book for these current times.

Kayte Hamilton, recipient of this year’s QRCA Rising Star Award, joins host Foster Winter for a particularly timely conversation on transitioning to online qualitative work—how to think about wording, discussion flow, considering the final output, and other important aspects of online qualitative work.

Martin Raymond is a Co-founder of The Future Laboratory, journalist and considered one of the world’s leading futurists. In this Luminaries podcast interview Kay Corry Aubrey spoke with Raymond about the critical role of the human researcher in foresight research as we enter an age dominated by artificial intelligence. The Future Laboratory’s work is truly human centered. Raymond describes how his team identifies trends by finding and connecting with people who are the true innovators in a field, and how they use qualitative research, scenario planning, and storytelling to build frameworks to flesh out future trends

Considered one of the most talented brand strategists in the UK, Richard Shotton is the author of The Choice Factory: 25 behavioral biases that influence what we buy. His book won the 2018 World Cup of Advertising Books, outperforming Ogilvy on Advertising as one of the most significant books on advertising of all time.

In this Conversation in Depth with QRCA’s Kay Aubrey, Rich points out that discussions about behavioral science and marketing usually include descriptions of many biases, but not enough talk about how to apply them.

Be sure to listen for his references to ideas such as the “Pratfall Effect,” emotional context, and (my favorite) a phenomenon known as “nine-enders.” Rich also includes some specific brands that have been able to effect behavioral change.

Sean Campbell and Scott Swigart are the co-owners of the Oregon-based company, Cascade Insights. Together, they have built two different businesses over the past 10 years, in the broad arena of technology industry- focused marketing and consulting.
Their first business, founded in 1999, was a technical consultancy whose clients included some of the largest companies in the software and hardware fields. While building 3 Leaf, Sean and Scott also wrote three books on best practices in the technology industry, two of which were published by Microsoft Press and one by Intel. After growing and developing the company over six years, Sean and Scott sold it and founded Cascade Insights.
Cascade Insights, founded in 2006, focuses on providing competitive intelligence, qualitative market research, and strategic marketing services to clients in the hardware and software industries so that they can more effectively assess, compete with and beat the competition. Most recently, they have written Going Beyond Google: Gathering Internet Intelligence.

They are interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Podcast Editor, David Van Nuys, PhD, .

RCA book review editor Kay Corry Aubrey interviews Scott Berkun. Scott is the author of best selling Myths of Innovation, which explores the truths of creativity and innovation. Scott was a project manager at Microsoft from 1994 until 2003 and worked with the development teams on the original versions of the ubiquitous Internet Explorer (v1-5), Windows, and MSN. An author, consultant and software industry veteran, Scott Berkun writes books, consults with managers, and teaches creative thinking at the University of Washington. He is also the author of another best-selling business book The Art of Project Management (O'Reilly 2005). Over the years Scott has shared his wisdom on topics ranging from "How to manage smart people" to "Good,evil, and technology" and dozens of other thought -provoking essays on his blog.

Rick Weitzer is a longtime QRCA member and principal partner of the Prell Organization, received his MS in Urban Studies from Cleveland State University and a BA in Psychology from Case Western Reserve University.

In addition to his duties at Prell over the past 20+ years, Mr. Weitzer was also Director of Research at Kerlick Switzer Johnson Advertising, conducted surveys and performed on-air analysis for KMOV-TV, the CBS-affiliate in St. Louis, taught marketing research at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, was on the staff of Congressman Richard Gephardt and directed polling for St. Louis Mayor Vincent Schoemehl.

Paul Gillin is a veteran technology journalist with more than 23 years of editorial leadership. Paul was founding editor-in-chief of TechTarget, one of the most successful new media entities to emerge on the Internet. Previously, he was editor-in-chief and executive editor of Computerworld magazine. He writes the social media column for BtoB magazine, and his new book, The New Influencers, chronicles the changes in markets being driven by the new breed of bloggers and podcasters. Paul specializes in advising business-to-business marketers on strategies to optimize their use of online channels to reach buyers cost-effectively. He is particularly interested in social media and the application of personal publishing to brand awareness and business marketing. Paul is a Research Fellow and a member of the advisory board of the Society for New Communications Research. He also chairs the Social Media cluster for the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council. He blogs at www.paulgillin.com. He is interviewed by QRCA reviews editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

The New Influencers: A Marketer's Guide to the New Social Media

Naomi Henderson opened RIVA in 1981 and is its CEO, directing policy and procedures for two divisions: Research and Training. She is co-founder of the RIVA Training Institute, where she serves as a Master Trainer writing curriculum for public and custom courses and fulfilling her dream to leave the industry in better shape than when she entered, by training researchers in the art and science of rigorous qualitative research techniques. Naomi has been a researcher since 1964, and has led more that 5,500 focus groups and interviewed more than 60,000 people in groups or individually and is a nationally recognized Master Moderator. She is most responsible for the well earned phrase sought after by moderators and potential clients alike: "RIVA Trained Moderator".

Naomi holds a M. Ed. and a B.S. in Education and Psychology from American University. She is a licensed practitioner of NeuroLinguistic Programming [NLP] - a tool that accelerates the collection of behavioral data. As well, she is a certified Master Coach and has earned certificates of completion from Synectics, and the Creative Problem Solving Institute. She is a guest lecturer at George Washington University, Georgetown University and Hood College.

She writes a quarterly column, "Reflections," for the American Marketing Association Journal of Marketing Research. She is also a frequent contributor to Quirk's Market Research Journal on issues related to qualitative research. She has been quoted in American Demographics, Forbes and the New York Times. Appearances on TV include CBS Evening News, PBS Health Week, and NBC Dateline.

Finally, she is the author of a new book, titled Secrets of A Master Moderator.

She is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Business Matters Editor Kay Corry Aubrey.

Mary Ellen Bates is both the beauty and brains behind Bates Information Services, where she provides strategic business research for business professionals and knowledge workers. Before launching her business in 1991, she worked for many years as a corporate librarian. She never developed the quiet Librarian Voice, however.

Mary Ellen offers strategic business coaching to new and long-time info-entrepreneurs, and is the author of six books, including Building & Running a Successful Research Business (Information Today, 2nd edition, 2010). She is also a frequent keynote speaker. She, her partner, her dogs and (soon) her bees live in the boondocks of Colorado. You can reach her at 303 772 7095 or through her many virtual existences.
email: mbates@batesinfo.com

Liz Van Patten is a veteran qualitative research consultant with more than 25 years’ experience discovering insights for dozens of client companies, advertising agencies, government and industry groups.

As head of her own qualitative research consultancy since 1987, Liz has provided customized, highly professional qualitative research services to dozens of Fortune 500 companies. Her business philosophy relies on building partnerships with clients and managing research investigations with creativity and flexibility.

Through her newest venture, Liz designs and executes domestic and international online qualitative research projects and online insight communities in financial services, Internet,
e-commerce, CPG, retailing, pharmaceutical/health care, energy and other industries.
Liz is particularly skilled in branding research, and has worked closely with leading branding consultancies managing qualitative research for brand identity projects across a wide range of product and service categories.

Currently serving on the QRCA Board of Directors, Liz also received the 2008 QRCA President’s Award for her work producing QRCA Qcasts, monthly webinars targeting client users of qualitative research. Liz is a popular conference and webinar speaker about online qualitative research topics.

In 2008 she co-founded See Me Speak Communications, a consultancy devoted to helping research professionals improve the development, design and delivery of in-person and remote presentations. For more information visit www.seemespeakcomm.com

Contact Liz at Lvanpatten@aol.com

Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval have moved to the top of the advertising industry by following a simple but powerful philosophy: it pays to be nice. Where so many companies encourage a dog eat dog mentality, the Kaplan Thaler Group has succeeded through chocolate and flowers. In The Power of Nice: How To Conquer The Business World With Kindness, through their own experiences and the stories of other people and businesses, they demonstrate why, contrary to conventional wisdom, nice people finish first. They are interviewed here by QRCA President Sharon Livingston, Ph.D.

Laurie Tema-Lyn, Founder of Practical Imagination Enterprises, has been integrating creativity and qualitative research for the past 25 years. She inspires and guides client teams to create new business strategies, fill the pipeline with product and positioning concepts, and uncover robust insights about existing and potential consumers/customers. Laurie relishes taking on the tough assignments where new approaches and methodologies are created to deliver success: breakthroughs in thinking, insights and ideas. She draws her inspiration from the diversity of projects and clients she gets to work and play with—and has consulted in areas as wide ranging as advertising to zoos. Laurie interweaves her passions for theater, music, creative cooking, teaching and storytelling into her work.

A long-standing member of the Qualitative Research Consultants Association, Laurie is Editor-In-Chief of VIEWS, co-chair of the Philadelphia Chapter, and frequent presenter at national and local chapter conferences of QRCA and other organizations. Her book, Stir It Up! Recipes for Robust Insights & Red Hot Ideas. was recently published by Paramount Market Publishing Inc.

She is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Podcast Editor, David Van Nuys, Ph.D.

Stir It Up!: Recipes for Insights and Red Hot Ideas

Kenneth W. Gronbach is a gifted public speaker and a nationally recognized expert in the field of Demography and Generational Marketing. An accomplished President and CEO, himself, Ken has proven success in creating value, leading companies and planning for the future with uncanny accuracy. Ken entertains his audiences with his own special brand of wit, humor and clear communication. He makes the science of shifting demography come alive with real life examples that make it relevant to today’s culture, business climate and economy. Ken is a marketing guru who regularly provides counsel to Fortune 500 companies as well as large and small privately held businesses across the United States. In his new 2008 book Age Curve: How to Profit from the Coming Demographic Storm, published by The American Management Association, Ken takes you through a fascinating common sense understanding of shifting demography and the related opportunities and challenges. The demographic landscape in the United States is made up a series of waves that are about twenty years in duration. It would follow that business will rise and fall according to the critical mass of customers heading toward it. He is interviewed here by QRCA member and VIEWS book reviewer, Tom Lutz.

In this first QRCA VIEWS podcast, Sharon Livingston, Ph.D. interviews world-class consultant, Judith Glaser.

Judith Glaser is CEO of Benchmark Communications, Inc. Founded in 1980, her consulting firm works with CEOs and their teams helping them focus on competitive challenges in a world of moving targets with a direct line of site to the customer. Judith considers herself an Organizational Anthropologist, working with clients at the intersection of culture, leadership and brand

Her two books Creating WE: Change I-Thinking to We-Thinking & Build a Healthy Thriving Organization and The DNA of Leadership, made Amazon Business Book Best Seller Lists in 2005 and 2006, and were also selected by both Forbes and Business Book Review as two of the top business books of 2005 and 2006.

She has appeared on the NBC Today Show, ABC World News, Fox News Channel, News 12 Connecticut, NY 1, Martha Stewart Show and the Family Network talking about We-Centric Leadership, Bully Bosses and Culture Transformation. She has been quoted many times in the NY Times, WSJ, Crain’s, Newsday, Star Ledger, Harvard Management Review, AMA World and other print media talking about her Revolutionary Workplace Approaches. She is contributing Editor of Executive Excellence Magazine and is listed in the Excellence 100 Consultants.

Creating We: Change I-Thinking to WE-Thinking & Build a Healthy, Thriving Organization

The DNA of Leadership: Leverage Your Instincts to: Communicate--Differentiate--Innovate

Robert (“J.R.”) Harris, President of JRH Marketing Services, has over 40 years of diverse marketing and research experience, including media, packaged goods, international, and ethnic marketing and research assignments from major corporations, agencies, organizations and government ministries. He is also an experienced qualitative research consultant who has moderated thousands of focus groups. He is a Founding Member and past President of the Qualitative Research Consultants Association (QRCA). For more than 20 years he chaired the organization’s Bylaws Committee and he continues to be active in QRCA as Chair of the Professionalism Committee. Harris is an elected member of the Market Research Council honorary society, and is a past Chairman of the Research Industry Coalition (RIC).

When not at his desk, J.R. pursues his avocation as an adventurer and explorer. His resume includes more than 40 wilderness expeditions over the past 30 years to remote places such as Alaska, Tasmania, Iceland, Patagonia, Lapland, the Australian Outback, Greenland and Tanzania. Many of these treks were solo. In recognition of his experience, he was elected into the Explorers Club in 1993.

Mr. Harris has written a number of articles and stories about his exploits and experiences, and he uses these topics as a motivational speaker at inner-city high schools in New York City. He is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS managing editor, Dr. Sharon Livingston.

John Hlinko has long been recognized as an innovator and Buzz Czar on the grassroots-marketing front, using emerging technologies and creative communications to achieve maximum results within constrained budgets. He has been covered by nearly all the major broadcast and print news outlets and has been quoted as a grassroots expert in more than a dozen books.

Hlinko has earned a number of awards and accolades including being named one of the “top five PR Professionals of the Year” by PRWeek and one of the top 25 “individuals, organizations and companies having the greatest impact on the way the internet is changing politics” by the World Forum on e-Democracy.

He has worked with some of the biggest breakout viral success stories, starting with MoveOn.org in its earliest days and a “draft Obama” effort to build support for Barak Obama in advance of his presidential run. He has also worked extensively on the corporate side with a range of Fortune 500 clients including Walmart, Disney and Microsoft.

John is the founder of Left Action, a network of more than a million progressive activists and Act for Love. He holds a BA from WesleyanUniversity and a master’s degree from Harvard.

Hlinko’s book-- Share, Retweet, Repeat: Get Your Message Read and Spread was published by Prentice Hall early in 2012.

He is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Editor-in-Chief, Laurie Tema-Lyn.

John Arnold is a leading marketing speaker and author specializing in marketing advice for small businesses. He is the author of "E-Mail Marketing for Dummies" co-author of "Web Marketing All-In-One for Dummies", the forthcoming "Mobile Marketing for Dummies, and a regular contributor to Entrepreneur Magazine.

As Director of Constant Contact University John speaks, trains, and advises small business. He is a sought-after marketing speaker and small business marketing consultant. During John's tenure, Constant Contact(r) was named #166 on Inc. 500's list of the fastest growing private companies and later completed a successful Initial Public Offering. He is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Business Matters Editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

He has over 25 years of marketing research experience among clients in the United States, US Hispanic and Latin American market segments. He was born and raised in Mexico and is completely bilingual and bicultural. As a strategic planner, he is adept in transferring key insights and hot buttons generated from qualitative research into actionable copy points in the development of creative execution working closely with both clients and advertising agencies. He is interviewed here by QRCA member, Maureen Quinn Olsen.

Jean D. Sifleet, Esq., CPA is the head of the Business Practice Group law firm. With her extensive business background, Jean provides practical, outcome-focused advice to business owners. Jean is the author of numerous articles and several books, including: "Beyond 401(k)s for Small Business Owners" (Wiley 2004) and "Advantage IP - Profit from Your Great Ideas" (Infinity 2006). By working with Jean and her colleagues, owners of privately held companies receive a broad range of services - from business formation through ownership transition - with an emphasis on implementing smart business practices to avoid problems, and using legal strategies to protect their interests. Jean has extensive experience with corporate, contract, intellectual property (including copyrights, trademarks, and licensing), employment and business succession (exit) planning. She is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Business Matters Editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba are experts on the effects of word of mouth on customer loyalty. Forbes has called their work "the word of mouth gospel." In 2003, they released Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force. The New York Times called it "the new mantra for entrepreneurial success. At last count, the book has been translated into seven languages.

Their latest book is Citizen Marketers: When People are the Message, which the Wall Street Journal called "an insightful explanation of how the Internet has armed the consumer which is to say everyone against the mindless blather of corporate messaging attempts. Drop everything and read this book.

Ben and Jackie are also the co-authors of the award-winning blog, Church of the Customer. With 135,000 subscribers, Church of the Customer ranks as one of the most popular business blogs in the world. As speakers, Ben and Jackie have delivered hundreds of keynote presentations about word of mouth, customer evangelism and social media at conferences and events for businesses and associations of all sizes, reaching more than 25,000 people. Their work in researching passionate customer loyalty has been profiled by the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Fortune, BusinessWeek, U.S. News & World Report, the Financial Times, and several thousand blogs. They are interviewed, here, by QRCA reviews editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

Ilise Benun is an author, consultant, national speaker, founder of Marketing Mentor and co-producer of the Creative Freelancer Conference. She is on a mission to teach people who work for themselves how to take control of their business and get the work they want, which she does through one-on-one, as well as group, mentoring.

She speaks around the country to trade associations such as the UPA, Her books include “Stop Pushing Me Around: A Workplace Guide for the Timid, Shy and Less Assertive,” “The Designer’s Guide to Marketing and Pricing," and her latest, The Creative Professional's Guide to Money: How to Think About It, How to Talk About It and How To Manage It (HOW Design Books, Spring 2011). Sign up for her Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor at: http://www.marketing-mentortips.com

Frank Bentley and Edward Barrett wrote Building Mobile Experiences, a book recently published by the MIT Press that describes the qualitative and quantitative research process his teams at MIT and Motorola use to create unique and successful mobile products.

Frank’s research centers on building new mobile experiences to strengthen strong tie social relationships and to bring joy and delight to consumers. The techniques outlined in the book have evolved over the past 10 years and draw from anthropology, Human-Computer Interaction, design, computer science, and business. Frank is a Principal Staff Research Scientist in the Core Research Group at Motorola Mobility and teaches within MIT’s Department of Comparative Media Studies.

He is interviewed by QRCA VIEWS Managing Editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

Dr. Sharon Livingston interviews Dr. Stephen Covey. An internationally respected leadership authority, family expert, teacher, organizational consultant, and author, Dr. Covey dedicates his life to teaching principle-centered living and leadership to individuals, families, and organizations. Holder of an MBA from Harvard and a doctorate degree from Brigham Young University, Dr. Covey is author of the international bestseller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, named the #1 Most Influential Business Book of the Twentieth Century, and other best sellers that include First Things First , Principle-Centered Leadership, and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families. A recipient of awards ranging from International Man of Peace to the National Fatherhood Award, Stephen R. Covey is continuously engaged in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding through reading and through interaction with the diverse, inspirational people he encounters the world over.

Dr. G. Clotaire Rapaille is a French-born medical anthropologist and psychiatrist who consults with American corporations. He is author of the recent book, The Culture Code: An Ingenious Way to Understand Why People Around the World Live and Buy as They Do. According to his website, he is also an internationally known expert in Archetype Discoveries and Creativity. His unique approach to marketing combines a psychiatrist's depth of analysis with a businessman's attention to practical concerns. He has written more than ten books on these topics. One of his books, Creative Communication, has become the standard reference for the French advertising industry. He is a sought-after lecturer on creativity and communication. Dr. Rapaille's technique for market research has grown out of his work in the areas of psychiatry, psychology, and cultural anthropology. His work is an extension of the work done by many of the great scholars of the twentieth century, including Jung, Laing, Levi-Strauss, and Ruth Benedict. He is interviewed here by QRCA President, Dr. Sharon Livingston.

Dorie Clark is a strategy consultant who has worked with clients including the National Park Service, the Ford Foundation, Yale University, and Google. Clark served as the New Hampshire Communications Director for Howard Dean’s presidential campaign and the Press Secretary for former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich’s race for Massachusetts governor. She has been published in the Harvard Business Review and is a regular contributor to the Huffington Post and BNET, the business division of CBS Interactive.

David Vinjamuri is founder and President of ThirdWay Brand Trainers, a leading brand marketing training company and Adjunct Instructor of Marketing at New York University. David has over 18 years of marketing and management experience. He started his marketing career at Johnson & Johnson and later worked for Coca-Cola and DoubleClick. David is a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy. David writes and speaks frequently on marketing. He is editor for the ThirdWay Advertising Blog; an AdAge Power 150 blog and reviews advertising for BrandWeek magazine. He has been the featured guest lecturer on the Queen Mary 2 and quoted in major periodicals including BusinessWeek and Investor’s Business Daily. Publishers Weekly calls David’s book: Accidental Branding: How Ordinary People Build Extraordinary Brands, “compelling” with “a lively flavor that goes down better than any list of dry strategies.” He is interviewed here by QRCA Book Reviews Editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

Dave Siegel is the founder and “Big Daddy” of WonderGroup, the largest independent U.S. agency specializing in marketing and advertising to today’s moms and their kids. After serving as the President of WonderGroup for the past ten years, Dave has moved over to take the Presidential reigns of WonderGroup’s Launchforce Division—a premier innovation consultancy whose clients include: Kellogg’s, Purina, Sara-Lee, Nestle’s, ConAgra, Tate & Lyle, Anheuser Busch and others. Dave has spent the past 30 years immersed in youth marketing and new product development, advising some of the country’s top corporations in the fields of: Food & Beverage, Household Cleaning Products, Health and Beauty Aids, Toys, Entertainment, Clothing, Retailing, Technology and others.

Dave has also spoken at or chaired dozens of conferences throughout the world on youth marketing, marketing to moms and new products marketing. He served as an Associate Professor and Lecturer at: University of N. Kentucky, Thomas More College, Ohio State University and currently, Xavier University (where he is also on the Advisory Board to the Business School). Dave. Siegel is the author of several books. His latest is Innovation Myths and Mythstakes (Paramount Market Publishing) which he has co-authored with Tim Coffey and Mark Smith. He’ also written The Great Tween Buying Machine (Deerborn Publishing), Marketing to the New SuperConsumer—Mom & Kid (Paramount Publishing) and the soon to be released Market Smart Design (Crescent Hill Books). He is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS managing editor, Dr. Sharon Livingston.

Bill Hartman is the Director of Research at Essential - a product, interaction, and service design consultancy in Boston. Bill has a broad background in user-centered design and has led multi-disciplinary programs in a range of industries. He has a particular interest in ethnographic research and collaborative design methods as means to humanize technology in compelling and differentiated ways.

Bill's design research and strategy work has helped providers of devices, systems, and services better serve the needs of their businesses as well as end users. His recent work has included building products, medical devices, web portals, mobile applications, online communities, materials-handling systems, consumer electronics, and pro-audio equipment.

Bill speaks at design and innovation conferences and is an adjunct lecturer at Bentley University in Waltham, MA. Prior to starting the design research group at Essential, Bill worked as an independent consultant, was a Vice President of Product Development at Fitch Worldwide, and was a Director in the user experience group at Scient/Razorfish. Bill is a graduate of Davidson College (A.B.) and the Institute of Design/Illinois Institute of Technology (M.Des.).

He is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Business Matters Editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

QRCA book review editor Kay Corry Aubrey interviews Bill Buxton who is a designer and a researcher concerned with human aspects of technology.His work reflects a particular interest in the use of technology to support creative activities such as design, filmmaking and music. Buxton’s research specialties include technologies, techniques and theories of input to computers, technology-mediated human-human collaboration, and ubiquitous computing. He is helping to bring design to an equal footing with technology at Microsoft. His recent book, Sketching User Experiences, was recently named by Strategy+Business Quarterly as, “the best innovation book of this year.”

Bill Abrams is President and founder of dedicated to ethnographic marketing research since 1983. Housecalls has conducted ethnography for many Fortune 500 companies, including food and beverages, personal care, computer, household, financial, oil and gas, insurance, battery, camera and retail categories.

Bill is co-chair of the ethnography SIG for the Qualitative Research Consultant’s Association. He is the author of The Observational Research Handbook – Understanding How Consumers Live With Your Product. He has written a number of articles for various marketing research publications, and has spoken at various research conventions and meetings. He has appeared on national, French and Canadian TV, in The New York Times Magazine and a variety of other publications. He has taught at Columbia Graduate School of Business, and at the University of Illinois.

Co-Directors of the consultancy, BrandVisioning, these senior level creative directors have brought their intuitive brand of creativity to global businesses around the world. Among other techniques, they specialize in the use of hypnosis focus groups for deep dives into consumer brand perceptions. They’ve strategized and created some of the industry’s most memorable campaigns: The Best Part of Waking Up … for Folgers coffee. It’s Your Life. Feed it Right… for Slim-Fast. Moms like you choose Jif…for P&G. We Fit America for Fruit of the Loom. They’ve worked their magic for Disney, Duncan Hines, Kool-Aid, Olive Garden, Dove chocolates, Post cereals, Land O’ Lakes, The Egg Board, Fresh cosmetics and so many more. With heart and soul, and delicious ‘eat the screen’ visuals, their work connects people to brands, and brands to their people. They are interviewed in this latest podcast by QRCA’s own Sharon Livingston, Ph.D.

New ways to recruit qual participants are popping up. How do you decide whether they fit your recruiting needs and if you do, how do you adapt all your recruiting skills to the new medium?

In our interview with Ted Kendall, market researcher and whenever possible also an avid fisherman – he discusses learning about new recruiting platforms and how to adapt screeners to optimize their use.

How does the fishing tie in with this topic – tune in and find out!

New fishing holes - the new options and what they offer (no endorsements or recommendations or pricing talk) 3. The new rod - how to adapt screeners to the new formats especially dealing with knotty problems like logic, quotas. 4. Gear and flies - walk through the steps and pieces beyond the screener that need to go together to make the recruit successful 5. Keep or toss back? - How to evaluate recruits with new tools at your disposal, especially how to spot the gamers and fraudsters 6. Q&A

Qualies will be able to: 1. Make an informed decision about whether to use one of these new services and which ones to consider for a project. 2. Know how to put the pieces together including the screener that will lead to quality participants.

Ted Kendall started in market research early—working as the gofer, essentially, for a small research firm to pay college tuition. Once out into the real world, his career has been in market research, starting on the client side as a research manager with Hewlett-Packard, Compaq, US West. The dawn of the Internet for real people presented the opportunity to pioneer online methods and he moved to the dark side to co-found QualTalk, a research bulletin board platform that was acquired by 20/20 Research and lives on today as Qualboards. But he missed the real work of research and started as a ‘supplier’—first as MI3 Market Intelligence and then 12 years ago as TripleScoop Premium Market Research. Not on his LinkedIn Profile: When he is not immersed in data, Ted loves a good ballgame, especially in person. (His favorite team is the Oakland A’s—because he grew up in the Bay Area going to their games and because Moneyball. But he appreciates most any team and can tell you a player he likes from any team.) He also loves to bake bread (really), run (latest fun run—on the Continental Divide at Monarch Pass) and listen to Prog Rock. And fly fishing on a mountain river. Ted’s dream job is to be mayor of a small town, where everyone knows your name and the local diner knows what your usual is.

His bucket list includes:

Watch a ballgame at each of the Major League Ballparks in the US and Canada.
Write a novel that people enjoy reading.
Break the two hour mark on a half marathon.
Take a photograph that is so amazing that people want to buy it.
Actually catch a fish fly-fishing.

Andrew Kent is a researcher turned fiction writer, living in central Massachusetts, with his wife, children, and dogs. His first novel, "Spam & Eggs: A Johnny Denovo Mystery," was published in February 2009. It introduces the character of Johnny Denovo, a detective who uses metaphor to solve cases. Kent has been described as "a new author whose originality explodes from these pages," and the book has been hailed as "a masterpiece of deductive challenge, engrossing reading, and engaging entertainment" and "a book that in fact puts the writing of a lot of very seasoned and famous mystery writers to shame." You can follow him at www.johnnydenovo.com. He is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS managing editor, Dr. Sharon Livingston.

Andrew Ballenthin is a marketing consultant and president of Sol Solutions with 18 years experience in this field. Having worked with corporations like Harley Davidson, Labatt, Quebecor, Volvo Group, Sharp Electronics, UPS and Texaco Andrew enjoys the challenges of complex growth plans. His 10+ years in digital marketing and work with small businesses have enabled him to apply flexible branding, integrated marketing and growth programs in this space too.

Over the past two years Andrew has spent over 2,500 hours working with social media from a marketing and business perspective. One of Andrew's key insights in this field is that the biggest hindrance to success in social media for businesses is the failure to apply good marketing and peer networking practices. He is interviewed here by QRCA VIEWS Business Matters Editor, Kay Corry Aubrey.

Follow Andrew on Twitter - www.twitter.com/solsolutions
Andrew's Latest News - www.communitymarketing.typepad.com
Andrew's International Network - www.linkedin.com/in/andrewballenthin
New! Andrew's Facebook - http://groups.to/socialmediamonetization

Bryan W. Mattimore is co-founder of The Growth Engine Company, an innovation agency based in Norwalk, Connecticut. Founded in 1999, the Growth Engine Company’s mission is to help companies grow through creative exploration. Prior to co-founding Growth Engine, he was President of the Mattimore Group, a twenty-year old ideation and creativity consulting company.

Bryan has facilitated over 1000 brainstorming sessions and moderated over 500 creative focus groups and/or ethnographies for large Fortune 500 clients including Kraft, Unilever, Proctor and Gamble, ATT, L’Oreal, BNY Mellon, Pepsi, Honeywell and Time Warner. A cum laude graduate of Dartmouth, his best-selling book on business creativity, 99% Inspiration, was selected as the American Management Association’s book of the year. He is also the inventor of the creativity training game, Bright Ideas. His new book on ideation and innovation process, Sparking Idea Engines!, will be published in 2012 by Wiley Jossey-Bass. He is also the author of Idea Stormers: How to Lead and Inspire Creative Breakthroughs by Bryan W. Mattimore (Aug 29, 2012) - Kindle eBook. Bryan lives in Stamford, Connecticut, with his wife and three children, and enjoys playing platform tennis in the fall and winter.

He is interviewed by QRCA VIEWS Business Matters editor, Mike Carlon. They got together for an informal chat over wine and eventually the conversation got around to qualitative research.

Robert Hoekman Jr has authored several books and dozens of articles for a range of publications, including Fast Company magazine's "Co.Design" blog. He is a columnist for the revered motorcycle culture and lifestyle magazine Iron & Air (www.ironandair.com), where he is also a contributing editor. He has spoken to packed rooms at dozens of events all over the world.

Robert is also the author of "The 13 Tenets of User Experience" for the Fall 2015 issue of QRCA VIEWS magazine. This article originally appeared in Smashing Magazine and it is republished in QRCA Views with their permission.

Robert's talents for questioning and challenging conventional wisdom have earned him success in a myriad of professional interests, including design, product strategy consulting, freelance writing, editing, and public speaking. As a veteran of the web industry, he was among the few who preached and practiced the fledgling profession of User Experience before it became a household term, and is considered by many to have written several of the profession's defining guidebooks. He has an undying drive to chase what he loves, a knack for asking the questions that will get him in the door, and a relentless devotion to understanding, accuracy, and quality.

He is a lifelong drummer, and has a passion for psychology, metalwork, and—as his Dutch lineage would require—building furniture. He lives in downtown Phoenix, Arizona with his partner Jodi and their two large dogs, Max and Daisy.

In this podcast Robert offers an overview of the UX field and how qualitative research is used. He also gives us a preview of his latest book whose working title is "Experience Required" where he explores the soft skills UX folks need to get their ideas implemented in an organization.

Should qualitative researchers be thinking about adding mobile to their qualitative toolbox? Richard Owen, founder and CEO of Crowdlab says, without hesitation, yes!

Who is Richard Owen? Well, Richard has been in the market research business for over twenty years and has worked at prestigious firms such as Millward Brown, Copernicus, and Hall & Partners. Frustrated by the pace of change (or lack thereof) in the market research industry, Richard founded Crowdlab as a company designed to field high quality research empowered by bleeding edge technology to amplify the wonders of traditional research thinking and doing. If you want to know exactly what that means then you will have to listen to this podcast!

Now I know what you may be thinking – how can this help me as a qualitative research consultant or a buyer of qualitative research? Here are a few thought starters; what if instead of walking behind a shopper on a shop-a-long, you empower participants to keep a shopping diary using their mobile phone to answer questions, take pictures, and record video while on a REAL shopping trip and use that footage as stimuli for a one on one or group interview? What if you could get people who are in the shopping process for a new car to use their mobile phone to answer questions and capture video before, during, and after going to a car dealer? Mobile technology can help you do that and you can learn more about these and other practical qualitative applications by listening to our conversation with Crowdlab’s Richard Owen.

Listen in as QRCA Views Podcast Editor Mike Carlon interviews Randy Scher of iPowering Motivation about the use of hypnosis in qualitative research. In this interview, Randy dispels some common myths around hypnosis and discusses its practical applications in qualitative research. For example, as people can remember things vividly while “in state,” Randy discusses how memories of early brand experiences can be shared and how stories of those experiences can help brands better understand the relationships they have with consumers. Hypnosis also helps to uncover brand associations below the level of conscious thought, where modern neuroscience suggest most brand decisions come from.

Randy is a former Consumer and Market Insight Director at Unilever and championed the practice of using hypnosis in qualitative research to better understand Unilever brand experiences. He now runs iPowering Motivation, a consultancy designed to drive attitude & behavior change to solidify Brand Growth & Loyalty through unique and powerful targeted Consumer programs. An accomplished musician, Randy now resides in the West Palm Beach area of South Florida and can learn more about Randy and iPowering Motivation by visiting http://www.ipoweringmotivation.com/

Paul Jacobson is a 20 year veteran of the qualitative research business. For the past 15 months, Paul and his lovely wife Leny have run Razor Focus; a focus group facility located in Stamford, CT.

Listen in as we explore Paul's early days in advertising and his journey to becoming a highly sought after moderator. We cover the lessons he learned about himself while working as a qualitative consultant for over 20 years and why he and his wife ultimately decided to get into the facility business. We wind down our conversation by discussing what moderators should know about the facility business as well as Paul’s vision for where our industry is heading.

If you enjoyed this podcast, please let us know. Better yet, share it with a friend.

Owen Shapiro is a market researcher, strategist and speaker. He’s the President of Shapiro + Raj, a Chicago-based strategic research firm. He’s also highly educated, having earned an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago (with a concentration in Behavioral Sciences), an M.A. in Social Sciences from the University of Chicago and a B.A. in Political Science from Reed College.

Shapiro co-authored a book with futurist David Houle about how cultural change and accelerating technological advancement are affecting brands called, Brand Shift: the Future of Brands and Marketing. The book begins with a history of brands and branding then moves quickly into an explanation of the forces at play in today’s rapidly changing environment (an age Houle first labeled the “Shift Age”). The book ultimately ends with the trends that will impact brands and provides strategies for brands to embrace to effectively navigate the changed landscape of the future.

While Houle and Shapiro state, “Brand Shift: the Future of Brands and Marketing does not seek to be an authoritative or academic textbook on marketing,” the dog-eared, flagged and notes-logged pages of the review copy we received tells a different story.

Have a listen to the conversation Owen Shapiro had with QRCA VIEWS Online Qual/Tech Talk editor Karen Lynch.

Naomi Henderson is the CEO of RIVA, based in Rockville, MD, where she directs policy and procedures for two divisions: Research and Training. Naomi co-founded the RIVA Training Institute in 1981 where she currently serves as a Master Trainer, writing curriculum for public and custom courses and training researchers in the art and science of rigorous qualitative research techniques.

Naomi has led over 6,000 focus groups and interviewed more than 60,000 individuals in her career since 1964. She is a nationally recognized Master Moderator.

A licensed practitioner of NeuroLinguistic Programming, Henderson is also a certified Master Coach, and has earned certificates of completion from Synectics and the Creative Problem Solving Institute. She holds both an M Ed. and a BA from American University in Washington D.C. Naomi has been a lecturer and/or adjunct professor at Georgetown University, George Washington University, The University of Maryland, and Hood College.

Henderson is interviewed here by QRCA Views Global Features Editor Pat Sabena on Naomi’s “legacy” in this third edition of her book, Secrets of a Master Moderator.

Listen in as authors Kathryn Haydon and Jane Harvey are interviewed by 2015 QRCA MaryAnne Pflug Award Winner Marta Villanueva about their book Creativity for Everybody (Sparkitivity, 2015) which was published in 2015. This conversation brings to life valuable insights and awareness that unlock creativity and lead to more innovative business practices.

Kathryn Haydon is a writer, speaker, and creativity consultant who helps teams find purpose and productivity through awareness and application of creative strengths. She co-authored Discovering and Developing Talents in Spanish-Speaking Students (Corwin, 2012); writes for various publications on creativity, education, and parenting; and is a published poet. Kathryn holds a M.S. in creativity and change leadership from the International Center for Studies in Creativity at State University of New York, and a B.A. in Spanish language and literature with a minor in economics from Northwestern University.

Jane Harvey is an art director, creativity consultant, and visual facilitator. Her creativity began with drawing and painting in youth and led to a B.F.A. in Communication Design from Parsons School of Design. Combining business experience and conceptual thinking, Jane has the ability to diagnose challenges and opportunities and creatively solve for business innovation. She is valued for her openness, empathy, humor, and insight. Jane also holds a M.S. in creativity and change leadership from the International Center for Studies in Creativity at State University of New York.

Jim Heisler's work in the marketing research industry spans almost four decades. In that time he has become an expert in all facets of customer experience research as well as in market segmentation, brand advertising, corporate reputation, market attitudes and behavior, and new product research.

In this interview you will hear how Jim parlayed his doctorate in Social Psychology into a very successful career in market research. You will also hear his take on where our industry is going and the skills that researchers of the future will require to succeed in the "new world" of market research.

In addition to his role as a partner at Lodestar Advisory Partners, Jim is an industry educator - he's the director of Fairleigh Dickinson University's Certificate in Market Research Program. He has applied his expertise in the field to pen "A Job Seeker's Guide to Careers in Market Research."

I hope you enjoy my conversation with Jim as much as I did. If you have any feedback please send it to mjcarlon@mac.com. Happy listening.

Jim Bryson is the founder and CEO of 2020 Research; a Nashville based qualitative research firm with facilities in Nashville, Charlotte, and Miami. In addition to traditional facilities, 2020 is a leading provider of online qualitative solutions including both asynchronous and real-time interviewing solutions.

In this interview, Jim talks about the irony of hating his research classes while in college while seconds later discussing how he helped to develop a very successful research business. We discuss the bet he took on online qualitative research early on, his time as a state senator in TN, and his motivations for starting a school in Haiti.

We end our conversation with a discussion on where the business is going and what qualitative research consultants must keep in mind to be successful in the future.

Listen up as there is more to Jim Bryson than meets the eye, or in this case, the ear.

Listen in as QRCA Views Podcast Editor Mike interviews Jennifer Golbeck from the College of Information Studies at the University of Maryland.

If you are in the majority, you share a lot of your own life on social media; services such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram account for a significant amount of Internet traffic and people are sharing massive amounts of data about themselves, their attitudes, and their brand preferences through these services. In the marketing community there are what seem to be never-ending arguments about how this active and passive sharing of data by consumers will impact the research industry and Jen Golbeck certainly has a point of view on it but it may not be what you think!

In this podcast you will hear Jennifer’s point of view that data collected from social media will enhance, rather than replace, most of the techniques that qualitative researchers use to understand behaviors and perceptions. To understand why she feels so strongly about this, you will have to listen in!

Jack Campisi is an Account Director with Civicom; a company serving the marketing research community with virtual communications solutions.

Jack joins the QRCA Qualcast to discuss his time during the "wild west" days of online qualitative research which began at Strategic Focus, a focus group facility in Westport, CT. That's where he met Andy Greenfield, Hugh Davis, and Paul Jacobson - the three people credited with building one of the worlds first (and most successful) online marketing research firms, Greenfield Online.

We follow Jack's career to FocusVision and end by talking about his current gig at Civicom and where he thinks mobile based qualitative research can take us. If you are interested in the history of online qualitative research, this is the episode to listen to!

Landing new clients is critical to having a healthy service oriented business. As such, it is important that we take the time to network in order to make new connections and identify new business possibilities. Have you ever stopped to ask yourself, 'How good am I at networking?' The fact of the matter is, none of us are born master networkers; networking is a skill we learn through experience - but it can also be coached.

Diane Darling is the owner of Effective Networking, a training organization designed to help people become better at networking. She has received rave reviews for her seminars and speeches and is increasingly sought after as an expert resource on the subject of networking. McGraw-Hill commissioned Diane to write the definitive book on networking called The Networking Survival Guide. Published in April of 2003, The Networking Survival Guide went into a 2nd printing just 90 days after the book hit the shelves! She has appeared on NBC Nightly News, in The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, and The Boston Globe. A former columnist for the Boston Business Journal, Darling is also a blogger and random columnist for a variety of publications.

In this podcast, listen up as QRCA Views new podcast editor Michael Carlon and Diane discuss her path to starting her own training business, the challenges of growing a business, and key tips that anyone can start using right now to become better at networking.

In the latest episode, QRCA Views Podcast Editor Mike interviews Steve August, Chief Marketing Officer of FocusVision, about the history and future of qualitative research.

A true visionary, Steve is a digital and mobile qualitative research pioneer. He created Revelation in 2007, the trailblazing online platform for mobile diaries, insight communities and bulletin boards. Revelation was acquired by FocusVision in 2014.

With all that success, you might think that Steve's career started in research, but you would be wrong. Before Revelation, Steve was a singer/songwriter with a pretty eclectic background. He was a dude in the truest sense of the word who suffered from, as he calls it, career attention deficit disorder. He was into clay animation, video documentary, and webmastering in the very early days of the Internet as a commercial medium. Prior to helping his wife Kimberly, in the market research business, he was in museum exhibit development.

But I think it is people with those types of backgrounds who have the ability to see the world just a bit differently than the rest of us, who can spot problems that the rest of us can’t see and have the ability to put thought into action in order to pursue solutions.

Listen up as Mike and Steve talk about the history of online qualitative research, the rise of mobile as a qualitative research vehicle, and the future of hybrid online/face to face qualitative research.

In casual conversations with architects and developers, I’ve heard interesting accounts of exploratory meetings and interactions that are conducted with community stakeholders during a community planning process. Of interest is the work of Philip Denning, our guest on this edition of the VIEWS Podcast. Prior to joining the City of Cincinnati, where he is director of Community and Economic Development, Phil’s work for a New Orleans architecture and planning firm involved him with vital community engagement projects post-hurricane Katrina. Beyond the world of marketing, it’s qualitative research in action.

These community meetings are often very large group sessions. Listeners will note the tie-in with the March 2018 VIEWS podcast with Missy Carvin about the World Café Technique.

And speaking of previous podcasts, be sure to check out the archives for discussions with interesting folks and a variety of topics from co-creation to becoming a master moderator.

In the latest episode, QRCA Views Podcast Editor Foster interviews Missy Carvin from New Directions Consulting, Inc., about her experiences using the World Café process for finding deeper connections with others.

Recalling a presentation of this technique at a QRCA conference, Foster called on Missy’s expertise to assist him with the development of several successful client workshops during the past year.

The World Café is a fascinating approach to holding conversations with meaning. In this structured but flexible methodology, participants are able to explore Questions That Matter; whether those questions are related to great social change, uncovering consumer motivations, or planning for the future of a group or organization. Missy has successfully facilitated several World Café conversations, for a range of not-for-profit organizations.

The World Café podcast just may whet your appetite for the use of this technique. Join us at podcast.qrca.org

Listen in as QRCA Views Podcast Editor Mike Carlon interviews Marc Engel and Pascal Patenaude on applying the art of improv in qualitative marketing research.

Marc was in two improve/sketch comedy troupes in LA with a name you might recognize, Kristin Wiig. He is also a standup comic. Pascal studied improv as part of his training at the National Theatre School of Canada. Listen as they discuss the practical applications of improv in the qualitative process including role-playing in workshops, reliving experiences with a product or brand, and in ideation.

You will walk away with the knowledge that at the heart of improv is the willingness to embrace things that many of us find discomforting including making mistakes, taking risks, and opening oneself up to vulnerability; kind of sounds like what we do as moderators! Also, consider that great qualitative researchers are those who are full of wonder, have a passion for following their noses, and generally enjoy pursuing some kind of truth. These same characteristics are also true of successful improvisers. As such, the idea of a marriage between improv and qualitative marketing research may not sound so strange after all.

In 1900 the average American lived to age 47, today this average has increased over 30 years to 79. By 2050 21% of the US population will be over 65 and this aging trend is worldwide. Yet, outside of sleeker looking adult diapers and products that help people when they fall and can’t get up, consumer product companies have largely ignored this cohort even though their spending power is $8 trillion dollars in the United States alone.

Joseph F. Coughlin is the Founder and Director of the MIT AgeLab, which for the past twenty years has focused on creating new ideas, products and services that help people live fully productive and engaged lives as they age. Joseph also recently published the highly acclaimed “The Longevity Economy: Unlocking the World’s Fastest Growing, Most Misunderstood Market”, which explores the insights on aging and the business opportunities that he and his team have discovered since the AgeLab was founded in 2009.

In this podcast Luminaries editor Kay Corry Aubrey sat and talked with Joseph, to learn more about his work and ideas as well as the innovative techniques he and his team use to learn from older people around the world.

In the latest episode, QRCA Views Podcast Editor Mike interviews John Seigel Boettner from Teen Press, an organization started at Santa Barbara Middle School that helps middle school aged kids learn the ins and outs of conducting interviews.

The story of Teen Press is quite unique. John is a film buff and often uses film as a teaching aid. Years ago, when the Santa Barbara International Film Festival was coming to town, John wanted to give his students a chance to talk to some influential filmmakers so he them apply for press credentials and taught them some interviewing skills; but one important lesson he impressed upon his fledgling journalists was to go beyond the questions that Hollywood types get asked all the time; Who are you wearing? What’s your relationship status? What’s it like working with so and so? Instead, he wanted his kids to uncover what these people are like as human beings. And that’s why, at one red carpet event, they handed Amy Adams a burrito!

John, and some of his former students, presented at the QRCA Annual Conference in January of 2017 where they inspired attendees with their unique approach to interviewing celebrities on the red carpet. Our QRCA Views Podcast Editor Mike Carlon caught up with John after the conference and recorded this interview. We hope you enjoy it.

In 2014 Barbara Rugen was a recently retired QRCA member. She and her husband joined the Peace Corps and were sent for two years to the African country of Namibia. As she now observers, “Never once did I think I would be called upon to use my qualitative background. To my surprise, I found that my skills could make a significant difference there.”

She primarily worked with the Nama, a population of marginalized communities within Namibia. There were a small number of Nama in positions of influence who wanted to uplift their people but were unsure how to do so. Barbara was able to provide assistance through qualitative sessions which explored Nama attitudes and behavior. The research provided insights to help these leaders frame recommendations for Nama capacity building and develop an action plan.

In this podcast we discuss the findings from these interesting explorations and what Barbara learned about conducting qualitative research for the capacity building of marginalized populations.

While you’re on the podcast site, be sure to check out the archives for discussions with interesting folks and a variety of topics from Co-creation to becoming a Master Moderator.

Sarah DaVanzo works at the intersection of innovation, marketing, branding, trends and culture. In her current role within the L’Oréal Group (USA), she has developed agile innovation methods to help brands sync with trends, anticipate change, improve relevance and design for the future.

In this podcast Luminaries editor Kay Corry Aubrey talked with Sarah about her work, the importance of curiosity and the methods she uses to detect trends that have led to a 73% futures prediction accuracy rate. Sarah suggests that we need to demystify AI. “I like to say AI is artificial ignorance – it’s not that smart. It’s basically taking in huge amounts of data links or data oceans and looking for patterns and trying to learn from those patterns. But humans have to train it still, so it’s years, hours, and so much human interaction to train AI into what to look for and what to see.”