The Nielsen Company

Conducting and analyzing large scale quantitative consumer surveys to gauge product potential and estimate first year sales.

As a Sr. Research Analyst with Nielsen BASES, I worked with consumer packaged goods manufacturers to help them prioritize innovation and marketing decisions. I conducted and oversaw many consumer preference studies, analyzed the data, forecasted sales volume, and presented results.

Due to confidentiality, I cannot mention the specific clients for whom I worked.

Research: Quantitative + Qualitative Analysis
I helped clients to navigate the new product development funnel and make informed decisions about their product portfolios. My clients included two companies in the confection and snack food space. Both clients needed to prioritize new product ideas based on consumer appeal and product line fit. At Nielsen, I worked with our client and our team to develop statistically valid quantitative analyses. In order to compare back to previous studies, a portion of the questionnaire was relatively standardized. The latter portion however, was an opportunity to exercise creativity within statistical constraint. I would later analyze the data to uncover the story and present that story to my clients.

Other Projects
Beside my primary role, I took on several extra-curricular projects to learn more and create a positive work environment.

National Buddy Program
I noticed that many incoming college graduates, myself included, found a lot of value in speaking with younger analysts about how to navigate the workplace and be successful. Together with Jordan Wolf, I designed a procedure to pair incoming college graduates with first-year analysts and a structure through which they could get in touch. The program was highly successful in the first year, so much so that Human Resources adopted the program nationally.

Regional Career Mentoring Program
Similar to the National Buddy Program, I also believed that newer analysts should have a codified way to meet with industry veterans in order to learn what makes a successful career in market research consulting. I created a procedure by which newer analysts could peruse biographical and career information about the leaders of the Chicago office. After application, I worked with HR to match pairs and notify everyone. This program was similarly successful, but was not adopted nationally.

Contract Development
One of my favorite projects while at Nielsen was the development of a $6MM annual concept testing contract with a large client. Working with John Schroeder, Vernon Nicolas, and Mike Huber, I used past responses and our global network to craft some of our responses to the RFP. Furthermore, I was responsible for creating the pricing structure for the services across 26 different countries – this involved an incredible amount of triangulation, reconciling, and analysis of our value proposition. After several rounds of negotiation, we were awarded the contract.