Client Spotlight Series

Posted on April 27, 2017

Each quarter, we’ll be featuring a new client interview in our Client Spotlight Series to get their valuable insight into the market research industry, new trends and their take on the future of qualitative research. To kick off the series, we talked to one of our clients who is a Researcher at a global manufacturing company. Enjoy!

What are the favorite parts of your day?

Early morning and evening… I like the idea of the start of a new day, when anything is possible, and I like closing out the day.

 

From a 10,000-foot view, what are your biggest challenges as a researcher? What keeps you up at night?

Finding qualified respondents. Managing to respondent fatigue is a big issue.  Also, I think making research relevant and actionable for the business – regardless of the findings. Managing the volume of research insights

 

What are the three most important attributes of a research partner? 

Communication, communication and communication.  Please be responsive, let me know where things are at – whether good or bad, let me know what concerns or questions you have. It’s both listening and responding.

 

What are things that a research partner does that make your day easier? Harder?

Communication – it makes things so much easier – even when there is a problem to solve.  The lack of communication can also make things harder.  Even if the answer is no, let me know what the options are that we can tackle together.

 

What do you think are the biggest trends in qualitative research right now in your organization?

The need for quicker, deeper, iterative research that is still ultimately actionable. Trend-wise, coming up with ways to leverage technology and distance to meet the needs of the respondents? and be accommodating and flexible to get the sample needed.

 

What is on the horizon in qualitative research? Any new or exciting approach, method, idea, or exercise that caught your eye recently?

I like the application and action-ability of co-creation. I’m not sure how new it is, but bringing the parties together to collaboratively address issues seems to move business clients further down the path of action, while engaging them in the research.

 

What advice would you give to new client-side research managers?

Listen, communicate expectations, ask questions, participate in the research – don’t just throw it over the wall. Even with the best partners, that’s is not a good practice for anyone.