Rock n' Roll Research Podcast

Start with a UC Berkeley background in the hard sciences and some time working on the Valdez oil spill, take a turn toward data analytics, layer in some orchestral bassoon and tattoo artistry and then you start to understand what makes Bryson Cwick tick.

 Bryson is currently Business Development Manager at the research consultancy, Orchard, where they help their clients understand authentic consumer behavior. But on the weekends, you may find Bryson tattooing at a festival or popping in as a guest artist at a friend’s shop somewhere in the US.

 Bryson shares his fascinating journey from Berkeley and hard sciences to Orchard and consumer behavior with several fun diversions along the way.

Today’s episode is self-referential in the best of ways. We talk to Erik Peterson from Spotify who is currently the Director of Podcast Insights. An insights podcast with a podcast insights pro. Ha! 

Erik is really into his work and even once took a gig economy job to get a better first-hand understanding of consumer supply/demand dynamics. 

Erik shares his professional journey through insights, analytics and Spotify. Along the way, he offers a unique take on the future of research, his experience with Spotify Wrapped, some cool podcast features you may not know about and even a few of his favorite records which may surprise you.

Tara Bosenick is a pioneer in user experience testing and measurement within human-centered design. She is the Managing Director (MD) of a holding company, ReSight Global, and also the MD of UIntent, which she first founded as SirValUse in 2000 and was later purchased by GfK.

We discuss Tara’s journey through UX including her take on what the future of the space looks like. We also discuss her podcast (Beyond the Business), what she learned as the Head of Scouting in the city of Hamburg DE, and the freedom she has experience in recent years since making a big life change.

Scott Tilford built an excellent career within Procter & Gamble. Over 17 years, he had worked on several categories culminating in his role as Sr. Director Analytics and Insights for North America Grooming.

But after so many years in a corporate setting, Scott found another calling. The town of Morrow, Ohio and the city of Cincinnati are anxiously awaiting his launch of The Depot Brewing Company, opening this year in the town’s nearly 200-year-old train depot.

Scott shares his story from college athlete and musician to corporate life to starting a brewery. We also stumble upon the likes of OJ Simpson, The King of Kong and 90s music along the way.

Michael Nevski has a really cool job. He is the Director of Global Insights at Visa working with the company’s Chief Economist to add a consumer research and strategy lens to the economic insights and forecasts they provide to their clients. He is also on the TMRE Advisory Board which has long been the biggest annual conference event in the Insights industry.

What you may not know is that Michael is likely the best table tennis player in your network. He trained intensively in college and has been playing ever since.

We discuss Michael’s career, the lessons he’s learned from competitive table tennis and his outlook on the future of insights. I also get his take on pickleball and he shares the records he’d want to keep him company on a desert island.

How does one go from art museum management to market research to DEI and storytelling consulting? Just ask Mary Hunter from Data Larks.

Mary has always been one to question the status quo, and one of her core strengths is understanding context – history, society, culture, economy and more. It has helped her at every stage of her career which includes working for the Museum of Contemporary San Diego, Kantar, GfK and The Kaleidoscope Group before starting her own consultancy.

Mary shares her unique journey from studio artist to researcher to consultant. Along the way, she covers the importance of storytelling, inclusive insights and the indie music and artists that move her.

After considering careers in medicine and law, Suann Griffin took a statistics class and decided upon a career in market research.

She has built a great career with roles on the client- and supplier-side, most recently as Sr. Director of Insights at Serta Simmons. She is a frequent and highly engaging speaker at industry conferences and is a University of Georgia MMR alum.

Outside of work, Suann has long been a serious and competitive rower, starting the day early on the water with her crewmates and regularly traveling to competitions.

Suann shares her journey and perspective on research and takes me to school on what rowing is all about.

Experienced human researchers vs. AI. How does AI stand up right now, today? The results may surprise you like they did for me.

In this special “Open Mic” episode of the Rock n’ Roll Research Podcast, our guests share the results research-on-research that address that very question.

Julie Leonard and Brennan Held (colleagues of mine at MarketVision Research) conducted a live, robust study to determine the relative quality and efficiency of human analysis vs. employing AI. 

Is AI ready to replace human analysis? Is it complementary? Does it make the research process more efficient? What can we conclude today? What’s next?

Once fairly traditional, the market research industry is now teeming with fresh thinking and ways to discover insight. Someone needs to help make sense of it all. Graeme Ford is leading the charge by bringing a punk rock ethos to the game with his new consultancy, PunkMRX.

 Prior to PunkMRX, Graeme had a ‘boomerang’ career at YouGov, returning as Global Head of Innovation after leaving to co-found a conversational tech company which YouGov later acquired.

 We discuss Graeme’s journey from a young lad fascinated by culture and geography, to a graduate student researching punk culture to his professional career in insights. We talk plenty of punk rock along the way including who has the best punk rock tradition – the UK, the US East Coast or the US West Coast?  

 [I also continue my sponsorship of Magic Mind . . . if Green Day can sell Keurig machines, I can pitch performance enhancement shots – ha!]

Step aside Adam Levine, Joseph Wylie will take the mic now.

Joseph is a goal setter and a planner. He knew in undergrad that market research was his ticket, so he got his MSMRA from Michigan State, took a position at Precision Sample and got involved in the Insights Association (smart moves!). Today, he is Precision’s Global Director of Supply and President of the Insights Association South Central Chapter.

But, oh, what a voice!  We talk research and we talk music where Joseph has been part of an a capella group, a solo artist and a band frontman for the past several years. In fact, his new EP, “Frontal Lobe Development” drops TODAY wherever you stream your music!