Mary-Kay sees her role as a kind of agent provocateur, guiding clients to insights that challenge accepted ways of thinking about consumers and the concerns that shape their lives. She consults with clients in diverse industries on the implications of the Yankelovich MONITOR trends for their particular customer targets and brand strategies. Mary-Kay views the Yankelovich trend data as more than mere statistics and as more of a virtual window into the lives of very real men and women. As a former client herself, Mary-Kay has firsthand experience applying MONITOR findings to product development and marketing communications. Throughout her career in research, Mary-Kay has worked closely with clients on a wide range of business problems from selecting the best product name to identifying opportunities for new revenue streams. Because most of her career has been spent with research firms, she has extensive experience conducting research for a range of organizations, including financial services, home improvement, restaurants, packages goods, pharmaceuticals and technology. While on the client side, Mary-Kay was Research Director for International Masters Publishers (IMP, Inc.), a direct marketer of continuity programs. Her move from IMP to Yankelovich is actually a homecoming: she was an Account Manager with Yankelovich earlier in her career. In addition to her research skills, Mary-Kay is a group facilitator trained in Creative Problem Solving techniques, and she frequently leads ideation sessions. Mary-Kay earned her B.A. degree in sociology from Emmanuel College. |