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Strong Leadership Skills for Market Research Consultants in the World of AI

Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing the market research industry—boosting speed, automating repetitive tasks, and enabling deep data analysis like never before. Yet, as AI reshapes our tools and methodologies, it also increases the demand for human leadership. In this evolving landscape, the most successful consultants aren’t just tech-savvy—they are powerful communicators, strategic thinkers, and empathetic collaborators.

At Fieldable Research, we believe that strong leadership in market research isn’t about resisting AI—it’s about guiding it with purpose.

 

  1. Strategic Thinking in the Age of Automation
    AI can analyze patterns, but it can’t define purpose.

Consultants with strong leadership skills can:

  • Connect insights to business strategy
  • Prioritize what matters in a sea of data
  • Decide when to trust automation— and when human judgment should take precedence

 

Resources to develop strategic thinking:

  • Harvard Business Review’s Strategy Section: Regular insights and case studies on decision-making and strategic frameworks
  • Coursera’s “Business Strategy” by the University of Virginia: A foundational course on aligning research with business value
  • Books like “Good Strategy Bad Strategy” by Richard Rumelt: A classic on the principles of effective strategic thinking

 

  1. Communication That Translates Complexity
    In today’s data-saturated environment, the ability to transform complexity into clarity is more valuable than ever.

Great market research leaders:

  • Communicate with clients in clear, engaging, human-centered language
  • Build trust by transparently explaining what AI can—and can’t—do
  • Empower stakeholders to take confident, informed action

 

How to grow this skill:

  • “Data Storytelling” by Brent Dykes: A book that bridges analytics and narrative
  • Toastmasters International: A global community for practicing public speaking and communication
  • LinkedIn Learning’s “Communication Foundations”: A practical course on business communication essentials

 

  1. Emotional Intelligence and Team Empowerment
    AI can simulate inteactions, but it can’t replace empathy or cultural sensitivity. Consultants who lead with emotional intelligence:
  • Build stronger rapport with participants
  • Create inclusive research environments
  • Inspire teams through curiosity and collaboration

 

 

Where to build emotional intelligence:

–        Tell Me More About That: Solving the Empathy Crisis One Conversation at a Time- Rob Volpe

  • Daniel Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence Framework (explored in his book and website)
  • Yale University’s “The Science of Well-Being” (Coursera): Offers insights into self-awareness and empathy
  • Coaching certifications or workshops (e.g., ICF-accredited programs) for team development and leadership coaching

 

  1. Curiosity and Continuous Learning
    The most impactful leaders are lifelong learners. In a fast-moving AI landscape, staying still means falling behind..

In the AI era, we must:

  • Stay updated on new tools and ethical implications
  • Experiment, adapt, and evolve methodologies continuously
  • Cultivate a mindset of “always asking why” to drive meaningful insights

Suggested learning platforms:

  • MIT OpenCourseWare – Artificial Intelligence and Ethics: For understanding AI beyond the tools
  • Reforge and General Assembly: For evolving skills in product thinking and digital innovation
  • Podcasts like “The AI Alignment Podcast” or “Data Skeptic”: To stay updated and inspired on the go

 

Final Thought
As AI takes on more tasks, he need for uniquely human leadership grows stronger. The most effective consultants are those who bring direction, depth, and purpose to data. They guide technology, not the other way around.

 

 

At Fieldable Research, we embrace the future of market research by combining state-of-the-art tools with timeless human skills. Because without leadership, even the most advanced technology is just noise.

Ready to lead with us? Contact Fieldable Research today

www.fieldable-research.com

Boosting the Speed and Impact of Insights in Market Research

In today’s fast-paced and ever-evolving business environment, organizations are under increasing pressure to deliver insights that are not only meaningful—but also fast, focused, and actionable. Market research and analytics teams must rise to the challenge: deliver more value, in less time, with greater clarity.

 

At Fieldable Research, we believe that efficiency and efficacy are not trade-offs. When approached with the right tools, strategies, and mindset, they become mutually reinforcing pillars of impactful research.

 

Reimagining Insight Generation
Gone are the days when long timelines and siloed data limited the power of market research. Today, technology, collaboration, and a human-centered approach allow us to transform the way insights are generated. The modern research function is:

  • Agile, not rigid
  • Collaborative, not isolated
  • Iterative, not linear

By leveraging technology, expert human insight, and intentional design, we should be able to enable smarter, faster, and more relevant decision-making.

What Drives Efficiency?

Efficiency isn’t just speed—it’s about optimizing processes without sacrificing quality.

 

Key drivers of efficiency:

  • Agile research cycles with short feedback loops and rapid iteration
  • AI-powered transcription & analysis, always validated by human experts
  • Cross-functional collaboration between qualitative and quantitative teams for unified insights
  • Interactive data visualizations, including dynamic dashboards and geographic mapping for faster pattern recognition

✅ Actionable Recommendations to Improve Efficiency:

  • Adopt a sprint-based approach to research—define clear weekly deliverables and checkpoints
  • Use collaborative platforms like Miro, Notion, or Airtable to manage real-time workflows and keep teams aligned
  • Implement automation tools (e.g., Otter.ai, Dovetail, or MaxQDA) to streamline repetitive tasks such as transcription, tagging, and data coding
  • Train teams on agile principles using resources from the Agile Alliance or LinkedIn Learning
  • Develop templated reporting frameworks to cut down production time and maintain consistency across projects

By optimizing every step of the research process, we reduce friction and open space for deeper strategic insights.

What Enhances Efficacy?

Efficacy is about influence. Research is only effective when it drives decisions—and decisions require clarity, relevance, and emotional resonance.

 

What drives efficacy:

  • Narrative-driven reporting that helps stakeholders engage with findings emotionally and intellectually
  • Emotion-rich qualitative data that surfaces the why behind the what
  • Customized dashboards that emphasize decision-critical KPIs
  • Integrated storytelling, where qualitative insights enrich quantitative findings

 

✅ Actionable Recommendations to Improve Efficacy:

  • Create “Executive One-Pagers” for each study—distilling key insights, recommendations, and business implications
  • Use empathy-mapping frameworks to visualize consumer emotions and behaviors in context
  • Conduct “insight-to-action” workshops with stakeholders to co-create next steps based on findings
  • Standardize the use of data storytelling structures (such as problem → insight → opportunity)
  • Invest in UX/UI training for your dashboards to ensure stakeholders can find and understand data quickly (consider tools like Tableau or Power BI with UX best practices)

 

 

Why It Matters
Organizations that optimize both efficiency and efficacy in their insights functions:

  • Stay closer to their consumers’ evolving needs
  • Empower faster, more confident innovation
  • Avoid analysis paralysis by surfacing what truly matters
  • Gain a competitive edge through clarity, speed, and strategic alignment

 

In the age of information overload, insights that are clear, timely, and actionable are not just valuable—they’re essential.

Let’s Connect
At Fieldable Research, we help brands reimagine what’s possible with agile, collaborative, and strategic research. Whether you’re entering new markets, refining your product roadmap, or trying to better understand your customers, our team is ready to help you get there—faster and smarter.

Reach out to discover how we can help you drive better results, faster.

www.fieldable-research.com

Embracing the Hybrid Future: New Techniques and Approaches in Market Research

Market research is entering a hybrid era—blending qual + quant, human + machine, and behavioral + attitudinal data for deeper, faster, and more actionable insights.
In 2025, it’s no longer about choosing one method, but about integrating the best of many. From AI-augmented design to synthetic data, micro communities, and DIY-meets-expert models, hybrid approaches give research buyers the speed, depth, and context they need—while staying agile and future-proof.

Read the full article here → The Relevance of using Hybrid Market Research Techniques

Cultural pitfalls when selling to US customers

From the outside, the US can look like a wide-open market: large, affluent, and English-speaking. But many international brands have learned the hard way that what works at home doesn’t always land with American customers. Even globally sophisticated companies have stumbled by overlooking cultural cues, customer expectations, or just how different the US really is.

Some examples:

  • When UK supermarket giant Tesco launched Fresh & Easy in the Western US, it assumed American shoppers would embrace smaller stores, self-checkout, and ready-made meals, just as they had in Britain. But they didn’t. Americans tend to shop less frequently and buy in bulk. Self-checkout kiosks (a core feature of the concept) felt impersonal. And the grab-and-go prepared foods? Not what many families were looking for in a weekly grocery haul. After five years and nearly $2 billion in losses, Tesco pulled out of the US entirely.
  • Danish pharma company Novo Nordisk saw enormous opportunity in launching its weight-loss drug Wegovy in the US But it didn’t fully anticipate just how fragmented and cost-sensitive the American healthcare system is. The marketing was strong, but the product wasn’t widely available. Supply was limited. Insurance coverage was patchy. And out-of-pocket costs could exceed $1,300/month. The result was frustration from patients and physicians, negative press, and a loss of ground to US competitor Eli Lilly.

What went wrong? In both cases, the companies entered the US with strong brands, solid products, and proven models. What they lacked was a deep understanding of American customers.

Here are just a few misconceptions that frequently trip up international companies:

  • “The US is one market.” In reality, it’s a patchwork of regional, cultural, and socioeconomic submarkets.
  • “What works in Europe will work in the US” American expectations around convenience, customer service, and speed are often much higher.
  • “Subtle, nuanced messaging will be appreciated.” US marketing norms favor directness, boldness, and clarity.
  • “If we build it, they will come.” Without understanding US shopping behaviors or systems (like insurance or retail logistics), even great products can falter.

These are the kinds of missteps that deeper qualitative research can help prevent. To understand American customers – not just what they do, but why – foreign companies need research that reveals cultural nuance.

Here are some research approaches that can help:

  • In-home or remote ethnography. Observe daily routines and behaviors. This would have revealed that “quick convenience meals” don’t mean the same thing to US families as to UK shoppers. This can be done in-person or using an online platform such as Field Notes (https://www.fieldnotes.space/) or a combination of the two.
  • Storytelling and projective interviews. Ask people to talk about their earliest memories related to your product or service, their best or worst experiences, and their ideal experience. This uncovers the values and emotional drivers behind their decisions.

And don’t forget to test assumptions across American submarkets (urban vs. suburban, East vs. West Coast). What resonates in Seattle may not play the same in Houston.

It’s easy to underestimate how culturally specific customer expectations can be, especially in a country that looks, on the surface, familiar. But the gap between looks familiar and feels right is where brand traction is won or lost. That’s where qualitative research makes all the difference. If you’re entering or struggling to grow in the US market, we can help. Contact me at 818-588-6050 or jay@bureauwest.com and let’s discuss!

Sincerely,
Jay Zaltzman (he/him), President
Bureau West: Market Research ∙ Consulting ∙ Coaching
http://bureauwest.com/  jay@bureauwest.com  +1-818-588-6050

Sources: “How Novo Nordisk misread the US market for its weight loss sensation,” Reuters, July 1, 2025; “Tesco will pull out of U.S., sell Fresh & Easy,” USA Today, April 17, 2013

How to avoid bias in research

One of the most important concerns we have as market researchers is how to minimize the influence researchers have on participants. We want to uncover participants’ real thoughts, feelings and motivations, but what if the researcher’s presence, or even the mere act of asking the question, has an impact on participants’ responses?

Click here to read the full article.

Using ethnography to get at the truth

One of the biggest challenges in market research is making sure people are telling us the truth. Beyond intentional lying, people frequently don’t realize they’re not telling the truth. For example, people think they always make decisions based on logic only (and they don’t). And they over-estimate how “virtuous” they will be, whether it comes to eating or saving or variety of other activities.

We have a variety of ways to get around that problem. One favorite: asking people what other people think or say or do – not them. Another is ethnographic research: observing people’s behavior in real life, whether at home or at work or while shopping. This type of research helps us learn more about customers and prospects: we get to see what they really do, including the things that contradict what they say they do. And we can more fully understand the context of how our product or service fits into their lives.

Click here to read the full article.

DAVID YING HON HO

David Ying Hon Ho is an independent market research consultant based in the United States. Having permanently relocated to Portland, Oregon, he originally hails from Hong Kong.

With a research agency career spanning over three decades, David has successfully conducted numerous international studies for multinational corporations, most notably the technology and pharmaceutical companies in the US. Drawing from his diverse background of residing in various countries, conducting global fieldwork, and being fluent in multiple languages (At varying proficiency levels, David speaks Cantonese, Mandarin, Shanghainese, Japanese, et al), David has developed an acute sensitivity of the similarities as well as nuanced differences across markets and cultures.

 

David has overseen numerous qualitative projects and moderated face-to-face, phone or online discussions in Chinese-speaking markets (namely China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan). Additionally, he boasts extensive experience across all major APAC markets, such as Japan and Korea. David actively collaborates with various recruiters and field service providers, aligning with specific parameters such as covered markets, product categories, and target audiences.

David holds postgraduate qualifications in translation (Chartered Institute of Linguists, UK) and Comparative Asian Studies (University of Hong Kong), complementing his earlier education in medicine and biology (Ohio State University, US). Additionally, he has IT certifications from Microsoft and CompTIA.

Do better research

I just got back from the QRCA Worldwide Qualitative Research Conference in Lisbon – there was a lot of great content packed into 2.5 days, as well as a dinner at the amazing Palacio Conde d’Obidos, shown here.

It occurred to me that we were all there for the same reason: to learn ways to do better research.  And I think we did!  Here are a few of the highlights for me:

Lucy Foylan gave a great presentation about the differences between conducting research online and in-person.  Her agency, The Nursery in the UK, compared the two and they found the people were more likely to work to build consensus during in-person focus groups and more willing to disagree with each other during webcam groups.  While some might think that’s a reason to conduct all focus groups online, remember that consensus building also happens in real life.  Witnessing how participants persuade one another can provide valuable insights for our clients.  Depending on the objectives of the research, we might benefit from in-person groups, webcam groups, or a mix of both – where we examine the differences between the two.

There were several sessions about the impact of AI on qualitative research, including presentations by Daniel Berkal and Sidi Lemine, followed by a panel discussion which I moderated, with Simon Shaw, Tom Woodnut and Paul Kingsley-Smith.  Some of my takeaways:

  • Daniel talked about ways AI can be used so we can do our work better and more efficiently.  He uses Chat GPT to help with screener development, with ideas for discussion guides, and to summarize responses, and Adobe Firefly to create images for proposals and reports.
  • Sidi talked about using AI tools to recognize emotions in research participants and how they’re surprisingly accurate across cultures.  While a smile or a frown may mean different things in different cultures, it turns out micro-expressions are remarkably consistent throughout the world.  Specifically, Sidi said he likes the following tools: Phebi.ai, Emozo, Immersion.
  • While there are many great ways AI can help us in our work, our panel participants focused on what AI can’t do, and why we researchers are still needed.  One example: in a recent focus group project, participants all said they liked one of three concepts best, but I realized that was because it was the shortest concept, not because of the content of the concept.  If we had relied on AI to conduct the research, it would have taken those responses at face value and not probed further.  Simon said that we qualitative researchers are too humble and don’t do enough to explain the value we bring.  I agree!

Those are just some of the highlights.  The Worldwide Conference reminded me of how important it is for us to keep learning and adding to our skills.  The next opportunity is coming up soon: QRCA’s annual conference will take place in Denver, January 22-25, 2024.  I recommend it!  Register here: https://www.qrca.org/event/2024-annual-conference .

How can we add value to your next research project?  Email me at info at bureauwest.com and let’s discuss!

 

Sources: QRCA 2023 Worldwide Qualitative Research Conference: “A Hybrid Future: Exploring Human Interactions On- and Off-line,” Lucy Foylan; “Navigating Qual in the Age of AI,” Daniel Berkal; “Can Emotion AI Remove Bias in Global Research?,” Sidi Lemine; “What AI Can – And Can’t – Do For Qual,” Jay Zaltzman, Simon Shaw, Paul Kingsley-Smith, Tom Woodnut