Rock n' Roll Research Podcast

Andrea Rowden’s fascination with the human condition has led her to a career in insights. Currently, she is Senior Manager, Consumer and Product Insights at hims & hers which has grown to over $2Bn in revenues in just eight short years.Outside of work, Andrea is a vocalist for a soul band in Chicago called S.O.U.L. (Spirit of Universal Love).Andrea discusses how starting her career on the supplier-side prepared her well for her client-side role. She also shares thoughts on cultivating the right environment for music and research; the importance of authentic research voices; and the albums she’d want to keep her company if stranded on a desert island.

Paula Rosecky is both a true expert qualitative research practitioner and a tireless contributor to the insights industry through WiRE and her significant long-time involvement in the QRCA (a fantastic organization!). Her journey through the world of research is one-of-a-kind, encompassing several opportunities for cultural immersion and broadening experiences. Paula and I discuss her unique path with stops in Prague, Milwaukee, Dallas and Seattle. She also shares the story of rediscovering her love for singing. Paula provided me with a new microphone, so you have her to thank for bettering this podcast’s production. Thanks, Paula!

Jeff Grant has had an enviable career in insights, first on the client-side where he rose to SVP Insights and Analytics for Time Warner, where he supported the Cartoon Network among others for 20 years. He then transitioned to the supplier side and now the agency world as VP Audience Strategy at Razorfish. But Jeff got bitten by the comic book bug as a wee lad and it turned into a lifelong passion. In this episode, Jeff shares his insights journey and then dives deep into his hobby including some of the notable, rare and favorite books in his collection. He also gives his fresh take on what the future of insights has in store.

Dr. Faith James and Stacy Graiko are founders of the insights-led marketing and strategy consultancy called The She Lab, where they apply their deep expertise to help clients win with women.They are also just about to release their second book, “Decoding She: How to Drive Growth by Understanding Women Consumers,” packed with insight and evidence on understanding and marketing to women.Faith and Stacy share their career foundations in advertising, personal brand consulting and insights and how their journeys have informed their work. We also discuss the book, their approach to The She Lab and the music they’d choose if stranded on a desert island (some stellar choices!).

After years of leading insights and analytics teams at great companies like Diageo, H&R Block, Supervalu and Best Buy, Dr. Ed Dobbles has recently joined the highly disruptive alcohol industry analytics start-up, Overproof, as Chief Analytics Officer. But for the past several years, Ed has been volunteering his precious spare time as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). Ed shares some fun and hilarious stories about his career in analytics and as an EMT; the karma that accompanies the transition from research buyer to seller; and his regimen of powerful AI use cases that make him smarter and super-efficient. 

Rachael Dimit is currently Sr. Manager of Global Consumer Insights at Foot Locker where she continuously uncovers fresh cultural trends that drive the business. In her spare time, Rachael also has a successful Instagram business (@pomodorapomodora) slinging custom pizzas to a rabid customer base in Chicago. She has very cleverly adapted the famous Foot Locker “sneaker drop” model to spur enthusiastic demand for her pizzas.  Rachael discusses her journey through trend forecasting, flexing her culinary skills and her childhood summer camp where her camp counselor went on to launch a platinum-selling album and win a Grammy Award. Best campfire songs ever!

Chris Hayward is a colleague and fellow Lead Client Partner at Mintel, but that is not all we have in common. Chris is also a drummer and quite a successful one at that! With his band The Samurai Seven, he released a full-length album, “Le Sport” in 2002. The band also recorded five “Peel Sessions” with legendary BBC Radio 1 DJ, John Peel, in the same studio where the Beatles recorded “Pop Goes the Beatles.” Chris has played gigs with members of Oasis, The Cult, The Alarm and more. We discuss Chris’ dual careers in insights and music and how those two disciplines intersect. Chris also shares his optimistic view of AI’s role in driving meaningful product innovation.

Carley Hart has spent her career advising, mentoring and teaching customer discovery to entrepreneurs which she currently does as Director of Partnerships for Cornell Tech’s Runway Startups Program. Cool job! But Carley has also applied everything she’s learned along the way in launching her own lifestyle company, Ahhhsome Kids, with a mission to “equip young children with essential life skills through fun, engaging and tech-light activities.” We discuss Carley’s career journey, the initial insight and the process that led to Ahhhsome Kids and a little bit of rock n’ roll, too.

Doug Keith started his career in public broadcasting, both as a producer and an on-air host. A grad program in communications led him to transition his career to insights. Today, Doug is 18 years into his research consultancy, was co-chair for the 2025 QRCA speaker committee and is a co-founder of the Insights Career Network. Doug shares his career journey and how qualitative research has become much more important to his practice over the years. He also dishes about his days as the bass player for modern rock band, The Dipsomaniacs, and why it’s so important to stay on the top of your research game.  We also touch on the upcoming Greenbook 2025 IIEX North America Conference in Washington DC where Doug will be attending and your host will be chairing a speaker track.

Austin Harrison is the CEO of Northbeam, a marketing intelligence platform helping clients maximize the profitability of their marketing spend. Austin knows more about this space than anyone I know, having been involved in digital audience measurement and attribution since he helped build NetRatings’ first audience panel.In parallel, Austin has long been involved in the world of comics and animation. Through media and animation companies he’s led, Austin has developed award-winning graphic novels and launched projects with the likes of Kelsey Grammar and Common among others.We discuss Austin’s journey along both paths including a new comedy subscription service he’s collaborating on from Titmouse called Churp announced this year at SXSW. Austin also blows my mind with a story about Slayer at the Whisky a Go Go in Hollywood that I was clearly not prepared for.