Insights Spend & Trends Report - H1 2023

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SPEND AND TRENDS REPORT

This H1 2023 Insights Spend & Trends Report reveals that the insights discipline is starting to showcase an old world and a new world. Coming through the pandemic, Insights leaders went from a research and report methodology to an analytics and insights approach. Insights laggards seem to still be approaching the discipline from the old world research mindset. This is not a comment on disciplinarians but on the organizations for which they work. Only 14% of the community still identifies as market research. Companies who have actively integrated analytics into their insights function are beginning to separate themselves from the competition. Respondents have lengthy tenures; nearly ¾ of respondents note 15+ years of experience, the community is truly cross- industry, from mostly large organizations with a mostly worldwide remit. The community lists understanding consumers as its top strength, which, of course, is table stakes. Over half of respondents list ‘expanding influence on the business’ as a strength, meaning that the majority of the community is headed in the right direction. The ‘unique skill set’ that’s needed in Insights is listed as the third biggest strength which is a good thing for present day disciplinarians. That said, ‘When it comes to building out your Insights team’’ the ‘biggest challenge’ listed was a talent/skills shortage. That seems to indicate that the evolution of the discipline is now outpacing an influx of the talent needed to evolve the discipline. Limited budget, time or resources is noted as the biggest weakness by the community- which might be the case no matter the decade. But ‘lack of control over activation of insights’ is listed as the second biggest weakness for two fifths of respondents. That might indicate that the 52% of respondents who indicated ‘expanding influence’ are distinct from the 40% who ‘lack control over activation.’ if there is more overlap in the venn diagram of those two results, that might mean that the expanding influence certain Insights teams are experiencing, might be short-lived.

When it comes to Insights focus over the past four years leading up to present- whether during the pandemic or after, the top focus area is ‘unifying insights, data and analytics’ . And that number has grown following the pandemic to the majority at present. Transforming the insights function was the next top area of focus during the pandemic for nearly half of the community, whereas now it’s just over a quarter of the community. This seems to be an indication of where the leaders and laggards are split… and it showcases a possible point of now return for the laggards. Either way, the next top area of focus for the Insights discipline post-pandemic is supporting the product development and innovation teams. Over half of respondents answered thusly. That seems to indicate that for over half of the community, teams have been cut as much as possible and that- although these are uncertain times, organizations are now focused on growth after focusing on cost- cutting throughout the pandemic. With that understanding, overall spending isn’t necessarily up , but the category where it’s up the most is far and away, business and product development. As far as actual solutions, data visualization has been and continues to be the top area of spend. Not surprisingly, moving forward the next highest area of spend is AI-assisted research. Those that are actually diving into Generative AI and LLM solutions have previously put themselves in a position to do so, and those that haven’t are still struggling to catch-up.

Seth Adler All Things Insights

A LOOK INSIDE

06 04 The All Things Insights Community Strengths

38 42 40 30 36 34 32 28 26 24 22

The Influence of Insights by Jennifer Avery

Spend

Community Insights by Karen Kraft

Weaknesses

In Tune with Insights by Stephan Gans

Spend Changes

14 12 11 10

Impactful Insights by Cory Lommel

Opportunities

Solution Priorities

Threats

Internal Insights by Xabier Palacio

Innovation Insights by Cherie Leonard

Beyond Insights by Shilpa Khanna

Insights Talent

Delivering Meaning by Tom Gould

Insights Focus

20 18

The Value of Insights by Michael Nevski

Insights Talent

Understanding Insights by Charitie Dantis-Gayo

Data Directions by Ericka Podesta McCoy

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

ALL THINGS INSIGHTS The Community

Please choose one of the following that best describes your job function:

What title do you hold at your organization?

Our community are senior-level, cross-industry experienced disciplinarians from large organizations which are either worldwide or based in the Americas. These are very similar attributes to the H2 2022 Insights Spend & Trends respondents.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

Which industry do you operate in?

Approximately how many years of experience do you have?

Approximately how many employees are there in your organization in total?

What region(s) does your organization operate in?

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

STRENGTHS

What are the biggest strengths within the Insights function in your organization? Choose up to 3.

Understanding consumers is, of course, table stakes for Insights disciplinarians- meaning that should be the absolute top strength. That said, respondents noted expanding influence on the business as the next top strength. The unique skillset that Insights professionals bring to the position is noted as a strength for two- fifths of the group. And working across departments is listed as a strength for just over a third of the group. Which makes sense when looking at the Weaknesses to the right.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

WEAKNESSES

What are the biggest weaknesses within the Insights function in your organization? Choose up to 3.

Limited budget, time or resources will always be listed as a weakness- even in the best of times. And it’s not the best of times. Lack of control over activation of insights is listed as a weakness for two fifths of respondents - this is a ‘matching’ group with the 37% of folks to the left that list working across departments as a strength. We’re starting to see the have’s and have not’s take shape. There is a wide group in the community who are winning the influence game...and a fairly sizeable set who are not.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

IN TUNE WITH INSIGHTS

For Stephan Gans, the question is, to what extent are you able to inspire, enable, and optimize the business?

There is a large contingent within survey respondents who seem to continue to have quite a traditional take on the consumer insights profession. To put it bluntly, that of an order taker who is trying to do her or his work as efficiently as possible, not somebody who’s actually aspiring to impact the business. During the pandemic , professionally everybody was quite inward focused and trying to figure out what all of this was going to mean. Coming out of the pandemic, a lot is “business as usual.” There’s a sense of relief. I think that ‘take’ on the role is outdated and not fit for purpose with or without a pandemic, with or without accelerating change, and with or without conversational AI.

Consumer insights can no longer afford to be the order taker. That’s just not good enough. A lot of consumer product categories have come out of the pandemic in growth mode. And there’s a sense of momentum that you can capture with the right type of development and innovation. There’s a sense of opportunity. We need to maintain the growth momentum that we’ve enjoyed over the last couple of years. In terms of strengths , “expanding influence on the business,” will be different based on the industry of the respondent. “Influence,” means a whole different thing even for somebody who works in CPG

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

“Consumer insights can no longer afford to be the order taker. That’s just not good enough.”

versus somebody who works in a bank or an automotive company or B2B company for that matter. It’s the same with seeing “lack of control over activation of insights” as a weakness . I think if you are influencing the business, you’ve managed to not necessarily control, but to actually impact the way the business is done, the way the business is run or the way the brand strategies are articulated. I think for people in a function like insights to say it’s a weakness, I’m sorry, but then you just don’t get it. You also have no control over product production, because that’s not what the Insights role does. Other people do that. So the question is, to what extent are you able to inspire, enable, and optimize the business with human-centricity? “Not a revenue generating function” is also not a weakness . I always compare insights to an old- fashioned radio where you have a big knob

knob, the volume– i.e., by adding more advertising budget. But if you’re not spot on the station, you’re just creating noise, whereas if you’re spot on with your tuning, i.e. a really insightful insight or data set, then you know it can work at lower and higher volumes. It just depends on the budget that you have available. The role of insights is to get your organization tuned to the right station. I think that’s as revenue generating as making advertising. There is an opportunity with data overload– as opposed to perceiving it as a threat . But the role of the insights function is to drive simplicity and to turn what can feel like data overload into meaningful information for the business. For an Insights person to say I’m overloaded with data is strange to me. It’s about finding the right data and finding the synthesis that makes the learning accessible for the organization.

Stephan Gans SVP, Chief Consumer Insights and Analytics Officer PepsiCo

that you have to tune- - you can be close to a station and then you can turn up the other

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

OPPORTUNITIES

What are the biggest opportunities within the Insights function? Choose up to 3.

While there is an ‘influence’ split in

the community, nearly two thirds of respondents list guiding enterprise strategy as the biggest opportunity for the discipline. Not surprisingly, unlocking new insights and providing deep understanding are listed as the next two biggest opportunities.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

THREATS

What are the biggest threats to the Insights function? Choose up to 3.

Data overload is listed as the biggest threat

to the Insights discipline. Getting the right data to the right stakeholder at the right time in the right circumstance is a must. Compromising quality over speed coupled with the function chasing shiny new objects vs. being the voice of the customer is the push and pull of keeping pace with the speed of business.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

INNOVATION INSIGHTS

An increased focus on innovation is on the rise as companies aim to grow in new and different ways in this economy-- presenting challenges and opportunities for the insights team. From the survey results, I am taking away an increased focus on innovation . Innovation probably means something slightly different based on the type of business in question -- it could be innovation in new products, new services, or business models. From my CPG perspective that rings very true. Organizations are looking for growth in new and different ways in this economy. And no matter which approach you’re considering, it is heavily reliant on having strong insights. Over 50% of survey respondents think expanding influence on the business is a strength . But working across departments is only a strength for

roughly 1/3. It could be that those expanding influences are across upper management levels, but when the actual day-to-day happens between the teams on the ground, it’s maybe not as smooth. But when it comes to visibility of the function they do feel like there’s influence on the business. They’re getting time with the various cross functional heads and driving decision making among leadership. As for a lack of control of activation of insights as a weakness , again I will put on an innovation lens. For instance, work is completed, there’s a strong consumer perspective, actionable takeaways, but there may be something that’s unexpected when it comes to the product formula and we can’t deliver on the product claims or maybe it just doesn’t work with the P&L to drive the sustainability positioning that we thought we could. Marketing barriers come up. It could be R&D technology, it could be supply chain, it could be P&L, or other unforeseen factors that weren’t yet apparent in the early concept development stage.

“Insights is one of the functions that organizations should be doubling down on, to ensure a consistent pulse of the consumer mindset.”

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

Opportunities come in the form of guiding enterprise strategy . It may go back to the silos challenge and also may be a reflection of how organizations beyond insights and within insights are structured – meaning, in many organizations, people “own” insights or marketing or supply chain for a certain brand or category of the business. The influence may be naturally stronger between those cross-functionals. But when you’re looking more broadly, it’s more difficult to connect those dots or break down the silos between teams or across categories. Threats include data overload, and relatedly, compromise quality over speed . Data overload is real. It’s the quantity of data, but it’s also, what do I do with it and how do you take the time to make it actionable? One of the challenges was limited time or resources. I think that’s linked because it takes time to go through various data sources, especially as we encourage our insights teams to think broadly and creatively about sources of learning. And in any given week or month, we don’t always have time or space for the type of dot connecting. A main area of focus is now supporting the product development and innovation teams . This is from a business perspective, pulling ourselves out of some of the supply chain constraints that were happening through COVID

Biggest priorities have been data visualization and business intelligence . Let me go back to the data overload challenge. We generally feel like we’re getting our game in order from a data curation perspective. And now, what do we do with it? How do we make it meaningful or actionable for business? Let’s get back into the conversations and take the time for cross-functional collaboration sessions. How do we take some of these new data sources, visualize them, get engagement, get activation in new ways? We’re all dealing with a challenging business environment as we move through the inflationary times. Insights is one of the functions that organizations should be doubling down on when we’re in a very challenging economic time, to ensure a consistent pulse of the consumer mindset. If we’re part of the teams that have been cut, that’s hard to swallow.

Cherie Leonard Director of NA Insights Colgate-Palmolive

and returning to a sharp focus on jobs to be done for consumers.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

BEYOND INSIGHTS

The insights function has to become more proactive and engaged, accelerating growth to meet the needs of a challenging business environment. The insights function is more active, more proactive, engaged, looking for innovation within methodologies, open to possibilities, spreading their wings beyond the function. It’s been a great accelerator to growth and how to optimize in a challenging environment while meeting organizational needs.

The level of uncertainty in the market has really pushed insights people beyond any other motivation that has existed before. Respondents selected ‘ a unique skill set as one of their biggest strengths.’ It could be that you’re a strong business partner, so you are operating beyond your insights function. This is not application or delivery of insights. There is an aspect of idea building, prototyping, positioning and so much more. That’s not usually the core strength of insights. That could be either in the innovation area or in the business

implementation area. People have the mindset, that’s not my area or I delivered my insights and my job is done. But the world is changing, functions are collapsing and people are required to do more. Lack of control of activation of insights is a top weakness in the survey. It’s true. We were pushed by a lot of our leaders to look

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

“Those who have taken this time as an opportunity have had a chance to grow. For everyone else, it’s time to catch up.”

at implementation and actionability. Structures are changing and they’re moving to more lean organizational structures. One or two people are making the decision for the advocacy of agility, and what’s happening in that is a lot of insights. People have lost their seat at the table when those decisions get made, but I play my business role and push for advocacy. It makes sense that a big opportunity is to guide enterprise strategy. We are looking at AI tools and it’s quite bold for insights folks because there is this conversation about AI replacing us and how do we feel about it. Now we’re at the forefront of saying this is a good tool. We are going to apply our human intelligence to it and that’s where the value comes. We are looking across tools and technology to make that happen. In terms of areas of focus , we’re in a new world. And the two years that we stayed still has expedited our rate of change. My discovery

so much transformation. In the last six months, we can see there has been a business and product development focus . The emphasis to win and to launch with accuracy has increased. The dynamism and competition you have in the market, it’s moved to a psychology where you want to do it right and you want to do it right the first time. Those who have taken this time as an opportunity have had a chance to grow. For everyone else, it’s time to catch up. Urgency is a great motivator. It’s not as complicated or overwhelming as one might think. It comes back to prioritization and keeping yourself wide open. There is an environment in which new things are coming up to aid us with agility. We just have to be able to make some of those leaps.

Shilpa Khanna Associate Director Transformational Growth Insights The Clorox Company

or product innovation timeline has moved from 18 months to three months. How am I going to go fast? There’s been

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

INSIGHTS FOCUS

What were your main areas of focus March 2020 - March 2022?

Ah yes, pandemic times - unifying insights, data and analytics was the top focus at the time. Transforming the Insights function was a strong second. And uncovering new consumer needs was also, of course, high on the list.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

What are your current areas of focus for 2023?

Unifying insights, data and analytics is still the top focus this fourth year on. A close second is supporting the product development and innovation teams. This lines up with our H2 2022 results- Insights understands that the way to gain resilience for the organization is through well-informed innovation and growth.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

THE VALUE OF INSIGHTS

“Organizations have learned the lesson that research plays a significant role in developing new phases of their business and understanding their consumers.” the biggest impact. Changing that perception and saying not only do I deliver those strategic insights, but I also help my organization by increasing that bottom line success. For Michael Nevski, creating value for the insights function is critical. It starts with building the right partnerships across the organization. What can we as researchers influence? Let’s focus on new insights. Let’s focus on developing strategy and supporting the organization. Let’s focus on new skills or bringing data and research together to create 360 perspectives instead of just saying I have no influence. I think respondents understand those challenges, but at the same time you’re trying to focus on where they can make

There are key factors for expanding influence on the business. Having that seat at the table still continues to be a priority and it still continues to be a challenge. You need to build a partnership, to build a subject matter expertise for the people working with you. Working across departments is very important in this regard. That’s sometimes even more important than a unique skill set in terms of the research, if we’re talking about building relationships, trust and reputation across the enterprise. Lack of control over activation of insights is a weakness but you can turn it into an opportunity. You can build that reputation. In my case, people from other areas of the company come to me and ask for my participation in actioning the insight. Very often people feel they have delivered the insight, but they are not part of the rest of the process. But this is the opportunity, you build that trust, share your knowledge and you support them in the next phase. Another weakness is seen by respondents as not a revenue generating function. But there is clearly value. On the surface, it’s easy to say that we are not generating business. Not only do you generate those insights but you have to deliver those insights and you measure that satisfaction or count those opportunities where you

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

Organizations understand that research plays a significant role in developing a new phase of the business, a new phase of understanding consumers . Despite the pandemic-related cuts to market research, insights have proven their value time and time again. Organizations have learned the lesson that research plays a significant role in developing new phases of their business and understanding their consumers. Let’s continue to embrace this value and showcase the impact we can make on our organizations.

were able to assist on revenue generating projects indirectly. You’re not going to have a direct ROI to the bottom line. But indirectly my insights helped marketing or product to execute on this strategy and it contributed to development. Talk to multiple business partners to see how they use your insights and collect that feedback and show your management that we can contribute. Respondents recognize the biggest opportunity for us is to help the enterprise to grow. But beyond that, we have the unique opportunity to predict the future and build business

or consumer forecasts based on our insights. By guiding our organization’s strategies and identifying new white space opportunities, we can contribute to our organization’s long-term growth and success. Those to me go hand in hand.

Michael Nevski Director, Global Insights Visa

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

DATA DIRECTIONS

Technology is democratizing the data space, empowering the specialists as their organizations increasingly ask the insights function to do more during turbulent times. It feels as though these are turbulent times for insights professionals as there’s a lot that’s happening within the discipline. This is particularly a sizable challenge inside of large corporations. That said, the data that’s available and the access to the data is so much better and richer than it has ever been and the technology is so much more effective and precise than it’s ever been. The technology that can bring it all together has arrived.

It’s exciting because everything is moving in a direction to empower people. Five years ago, it wouldn’t have been possible to think about identity graphs or built- in privacy. Contemporary technology is going to help democratize everything that’s happening and it’s going to be empowering for people in the space. The survey respondents’ biggest strengths are aligned with what our clients would say. People are moving out of the research mindset and into an insight and analytics mindset. They are maturing their organizations and they’re becoming a resource for the rest of the company. In the most sophisticated clients, we see where they have built a great center of excellence around this new vantage point. We’re hearing things like “every brand comes to them with their questions and they’re getting their answers.” Leading organizations have installed a well formed, well-oiled machine. Other organizations are still struggling to establish that same infrastructure. In terms of respondents’ biggest weaknesses , the budget is actually a misnomer for the actual problem. The reality is that money is being poured into this space, but I think it’s a common issue of the silos that get built up. They might have formed a chief data officer or a data science team. The data science team is building out a data lake, they’re

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

stuffing themselves with expensive data scientists and they’re buying all sorts of data in massive quantities and building expensive predictive models. Some of the legacy research people have evolved to become insights and analytics professionals. You’ve seen new organizations pop up inside of companies. So maybe there’s now a data science team or a data governance team or a strategy group. And so I think the budget is a little bit of a battleground, which is not uncommon

revenue and about how these insights are directly connected. And that’s how you reposition yourself. It’s concerning that respondents don’t see themselves as being able to do that, because to me that’s 100% the opportunity. It’s curious regarding the threats of data overload, and compromising quality over speed; the demands of the organization are that you have to be agile. Consumers are changing their behavior. You have to be able to keep a pulse on that so you can react in an agile way. Some of the

“Contemporary technology is going to help democratize everything that’s happening and it’s going to be empowering for people in the insights space.”

in big companies. The leaders that have come from that legacy space have an opportunity to present themselves and to seize this opportunity, and it will play out in this new more data-centric way. As for the opportunities to drive revenue, it’s about changing the conversation. It’s the opportunity to mature the organization and make it about driving revenue. It’s making it about your ability to predict the future so that you could actually drive

big guys are losing ground because they can’t be agile and they’re then pushing back on their Insights people to be able to act more quickly. You don’t have the luxury of time anymore. So they’re feeling compressed, but the reality is the market is moving and you need to be able to capitalize on it. But the traditional way of doing it doesn’t match up with that. So I think that’s where the friction comes for them. The time to act is now.

revenue across the marketing

Ericka Podesta McCoy Chief Marketing Officer Resonate

lifecycle. The scope of influence is not there, but the way to change that is to start having conversations about

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

THE INFLUENCE OF INSIGHTS

For Jennifer Avery, it’s the science of insights that wields a particular kind of power. But challenges remain in making the research resonate with the business. Survey results note that the biggest strengths within the insights functions are expanding influence and the unique skill set. I agree. There are many forms of data available to organizations today, and primary research data is a very particular kind of data. It’s not well understood. It’s not easily analyzed. So, I do think there is a very specific thing that primary research has to offer as a complement to other kinds of data that also help you understand consumers. It helps you influence the business. There’s a sort of magic about primary research that makes it uniquely interesting. I’m specifically talking about the science part of it. I’m a stickler for methodological purity and it’s not something that’s terribly prioritized in market research as a field. What are the biggest weaknesses within the insights function? Survey results say limited budget time and resources and lack of control over activation of insights. It doesn’t have to be that way, but it is. It’s

a cultural thing where insights functions are support functions. There’s a way you sort of compartmentalize those types into this space where the experts live.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

But there’s also a belief that their utility is circumscribed to that realm, that they should stay in their lane once the data is produced. There’s a myth that data doesn’t require any sort of further interpretation or any sort of guardrails for its use. And we can just kind of take it as clients and do whatever we want with it. If you were to collaborate and partner with your insights professionals and the application of that data, you probably could use it better. But we’re still ineffective generally as an Insights culture and gaining that type of influence because our role is being siloed into that side space. In terms of opportunities , respondents selected to unlock new insights, guide strategy and provide deep human understanding. The thing about primary research data is we’re kind of unique in our ability to craft an instrument that will extract any kind of data we want. There’s just a tremendous unique power in data because of the agency we have in making the data come into being. I think there’s an unnecessary drive for novelty or freshness. There’s a lot of politics in the usage of data, and the drive for novelty is as much about discovery and learning new things as it is about just

“There’s a lot of politics in the usage of data, and the drive for novelty is as much about discovery and learning new things as it is about just having something new and shiny to keep the hamster wheel moving.” year and there’s not a lot of volatility. When the pandemic happened, it radically transformed consumer behavior. It took that inflection point as an opportunity to make some radical changes because it’s hard to make changes when you’re essentially always measuring the status quo.

having something new and shiny to keep the hamster wheel moving. The pandemic was a very interesting time because data doesn’t change a whole lot . It’s very consistent year over

Jennifer Avery Senior Vice President, Strategy and Insights NBC Universal Parks & Resorts

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

Thinking about your plan in 2023 vs. two years ago, how has your research budget changed between new products/innovation and current products/opportunities? SPEND

72% of our community has at least $500K a year for Insights Technology and Services. While budgets have been cut, it does seem as though we’re now as streamlined as possible for the majority of respondents. That said, the feeling, at least in part, is ‘hold the line,’ on the current products. That said, one third of respondents are more focused on new products and opportunities now vs. two years ago.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

What is your Insights Technology & Services Budget?

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

COMMUNITY INSIGHTS

For Karen Kraft, the ‘magic’ of insights explains the relatively low industry turnover and the unique skill sets that people in this community are known for.

Insights people are friendly and collaborative. Even direct competitors are having authentic conversations, sharing their problems and being open and honest with each other. It’s an interesting community and finding people that want to join is something that’s magical because this community is genuinely interested in and cares about others. Consumer insights teams are definitely having more influence on the business . Especially in the post- COVID world. We got a lot of influence during COVID and we’ve kept it. The fact that that’s 52% of respondents is good to see. Insights leaders have a diverse and dynamic skill set . A baseline for this industry is curiosity. Always wanting to understand the why,

“People find this work rewarding. You’re getting to do things that are genuinely interesting and especially tied with the increasing influence on business.”

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

will start recruiting the exact same person. We then run the risk of a lack of diversity, whether it be gender or racial. As consumer insights is trying to represent a more diverse base, we need to make sure that we are diverse as well. People find this work rewarding. You’re getting to do things that are genuinely interesting and especially tied with the increasing influence on business. There’s a lot of job satisfaction and low turnover . Sometimes you need a certain amount of turnover just to keep fresh ideas in place. But people want to make a difference and want to have meaning in their jobs. Whether we’re data or qualitative people, that oozes over into how we treat each other as an industry and so that’s why I’m not shocked by the low turnover. We have unique skill sets and it’s a fun industry to be in. Whether you discover it in college, coming out of college or somewhere along in your career, once you find it, you realize, these are my people.

never just taking the number or response for what it is. Whether it’s qualitative or quantitative data, and trying to understand where consumers are coming from. It’s that foundation and skill set that is grounded in social science. Some have strong math skills and business backgrounds. Some are more on the social science side, but as an industry it brings those things together. Make sure that we’re not confining ourselves and we’re not going back to the same schools with the same majors and we’re looking at people with different backgrounds. That’s part of what makes the current group of insights leaders interesting. The difficulty of sourcing new insights talent hasn’t changed. It’s great that there are master’s programs, but you have to look at what else people have done. There’s a lot of people that fall into this industry because they come into a company and they get exposed to consumer insights and they fall in love with it. That is something that we can’t lose.

Just requiring certain degrees can be dangerous, if that’s all you’re looking

for. We need to keep that magic of looking for people from all over. When people get too defined, we run the risk of not being able to find new talent or keep the industry as wonderful as it is because we

Karen Kraft Associate Director, Consumer Insights & Analytics Johnsonville

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

SPEND CHANGE

Did your Insights budget increase or decrease in H1 2023?

With 2023 being the year of uncertainty, it’s not surprising to see the majority of the group noting that budgets remain the same and will remain the same throughout the year. Where folks are spending is intriguing - the top spend area, far and away, is business and product development. Brand/image research is second and advertising research is third, based on the constant and continuing dynamic changes taking place in that world.

Do you plan to increase or decrease Insights budget for H2 2023?

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

How has the insights spend changed over the last six months?

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

IMPACTFUL INSIGHTS

For Cory Lommel, while the ways to identify insight continue to expand, ultimately it’s relationships and business knowledge that enable insights professionals to positively impact the business. I’m happy to see the results prioritize a few key themes. There is a focus on innovation coming out of the pandemic. Respondents want to have a broader impact on the organization, which is good and we should. They’re talking about agile tools and how to do things more efficiently. A strength for respondents is working across departments. This is connected to expanding influence on the business. The way to do that is to work across departments. Most insights people are not leading the business, and so if you want to have influence, you need to establish partnerships outside of our function. The insights function is evolving. We can’t just be insights people, we also have to be business savvy so we know how the insights can be applied to positively impact the business. Take control, be a part of it.

strategy. My team puts an emphasis on influencing strategy. For example, I want each of my team members every year to do at least one or two foundational or strategic studies. The intent is to have an impact on strategy. A lot of work we do is very specific about a new product, brand or communication tactic. That is certainly important but having an impact on enterprise strategy is also an important aspect of what we do. Unifying insights, data and analytics is interesting as a current area of focus . We have an analytics team that’s separate from what my team does in primary research and we’re always trying to understand how we can partner better. The analytics team is helping to understand the what’s and our team can

In terms of biggest opportunities , respondents selected guide enterprise

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

“The technology landscape is very dynamic right now and I’m optimistic that technology will have a positive impact on our industry.” takes a lot of time and effort. Sometimes agile tools can become a little bit of a crutch to understand the what, but not understand the why. Whatever great new tools we’ve got, we still have to balance it with actual human to human contact with our consumers. Technology is a big topic right now. Everyone’s wondering how generative AI is going to impact our industry. Is it an opportunity? Is it a threat? How do we leverage it to help us? The technology landscape is very dynamic right now and I’m optimistic that technology will have a positive impact on our industry.

help understand the why’s. When we partner together, the results are much more impactful. Even though most budgets aren’t increasing, agile tools enable us to do more research with the same amount of money, mainly by employing more DIY methods. It’s been a significant shift for us in a good way.

With technology and automation tools proliferating, sometimes it gets in the way of truly identifying an insight. It’s easy to understand what consumers are doing. But to really get deep and understand the why

Cory Lommel Director of Consumer Insights Cargill

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

SOLUTION PRIORITIES

Which solutions have been the biggest priorities for you in the past 12 months? Select up to 5.

Data overload is listed as the biggest threat to the Insights function. The fact that Data Visualization is the largest spend category for the past 12 months seems to be one way disciplinarians are fighting that battle. Business intelligence is the next largest spend. More detail is needed for that line item.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

Which solutions do you expect to be priorities for you in the next 12 months? Select up to 5.

Data visualization reigns supreme on spend moving forward. The pace of business is at light speed. Stakeholders won’t see information unless it’s clearly communicated verbally and visually. AI-assisted Research rises to number two on spend moving forward. More soon - watch this space.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

INTERNAL INSIGHTS

For Xabier Palacio, an increasing array of companies are making the competitive landscape larger and more complex– and the insights function needs to feel empowered to help businesses – users and buyers of insights – wade into this new, complex reality. What I see in this survey is a very consistent picture. This is all part of the internalization of insights, where companies are finding it easier to integrate the function. Back in the day, only “the Coca-Colas of the world” could afford to have a big insights department. Nowadays, we see smaller companies having dedicated people, and that is being facilitated by lower costs and the increased availability of platforms. These companies are becoming part of the

new competitive landscape within the insights environment, even if there is still a bit of resistance from full-service agencies to recognize these newcomers. Those guys are competing for the same available budgets, and that is something we need to tackle and lift the veil. Particularly on expanding the influence on the business, I think the insights function needs to help businesses wade into a reality that is more complex and which has a higher impact of technological disruption. Reality is far more uncertain, and the impact of technology can be far more disruptive. In this context, clients essentially need to survive. They need to future-proof the business. In that sense, the role should move from descriptive to predictive or at least move into a far more empowered advisory role. In terms of biggest weaknesses , the “limited budget” finding also depends on how you define the function itself. The democratization of insights is lowering the cost of gathering data, which happens almost automatically nowadays. When you can already extract insights without so much cost, then you don’t need to allocate so many tools and resources. And I think that is also one element of what is lowering budgets there.

The lack of control over the activation of insights is the biggest weakness . We’ve

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

“This is all part of the internalization of insights, where companies are finding it easier to internalize the function.”

innovation due to cost-cutting . It was more about transforming the insights function in the sense that we had a whole new consumer that we needed to understand. And how do we understand this new person with the limitations imposed by the pandemic? How do we do that with what we have at hand? Now we are reverting a bit more into developing new products because we probably see the opportunity to do so. Which solutions have the biggest priority ? Let’s focus on data visualization. Insights leaders are saying we just need to keep doing a better job of just making sure the business understands us. People working on insights need to understand who their client is and who they report to. Some people are just not data literate or statistics literate. They need to simplify and just be mindful of what they are providing. Data visualization definitely helps in that.

been trying to find a bit more clarity at ESOMAR on how to demonstrate the value of insights and the impact we have. That is also something our current Director General would like for us to study and assess more. I think that insights in the past did not focus so much on impacting the future. But once insights start assuming an increasingly guiding role, an advisory role, then you will start setting more on that table. And then, there will be better opportunities to activate and guide enterprise strategy. It’s relatively self-explanatory that data overload is a threat. It’s hard to process lots of data, and it doesn’t mean that the data is good. The more data you have, potentially, the more you would have to spend on making sure that the data is of sufficient quality to be usable. So that also contradicts speed. Everybody wants things faster, but you need to spend some time making sure that what you are getting in is appropriate and usable. The organization’s leader might say, I am

compromising quality over speed. It feels like they’re stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Xabier Palacio Senior Manager Intelligence Unit ESOMAR

During the pandemic, there was little development or

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

INSIGHTS TALENT

How many Insights members are on your team?

How many Insights professionals do you think are in your overall company?

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

When it comes to building out your Insights team, what is your biggest challenge?

How are you sourcing new talent? Select all that apply.

To what extent do you agree with the following statement: “My organization successfully measures the social media landscape as it pertains to our industry.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

DELIVERING MEANING

For Tom Gould, the insights team is constantly being asked to drive more action and to deliver more meaning—and from there it can win a place at the executive table. We are constantly being asked to drive more action. Insights is being asked from delivering insights into delivering meaning. And I think there’s a subtle but really good difference between what is being asked. I think that’s a key takeaway. Insights is just being asked to do a lot more, driving more influence, driving more action, more meaning and having a seat at the table. How do you get that visibility? I think that’s the one area where we’re still struggling. We’re being asked to do all this, but we’re being given the same visibility and not seated at that table. To be able to really do that, our work needs to live up there, but we’re not necessarily always being invited. From my perspective, how do we get faster to impact decisions ? Instead of doing a six-month long project, can you do something that gets us 90% of the

way there, far enough along that we can make a decision in half the time. There’s always a push to do things faster. Now some of that is probably out of everybody’s control because we have internal groups like procurement and legal, which are also part of the speed to insights. But our organization is trying to find ways to move as fast as possible. We can sacrifice a lot to just move faster and give us that directional guidance.

Insights is just being asked to do a lot more, driving more

influence, driving more action, more meaning and having a seat at the table.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

where cuts are looked at because there’s no direct tie to the bottom or top line. As an insights community, we need to do a better job of quantifying our impact. I would guess my insight colleagues have budgets that are constantly tight and insights is probably a place that’s often on the chopping block because it’s not always thought of as revenue generating. Because to that point of being on the chopping block, no organization is saying I want less out of my insights and analytics organization. It’s not an expectation, but it felt like in the organization that there was more of a way you would start off your career on the supplier side. And then as you work with clients, you would move into more of a client side. You would have built that earlier in your career. And I’m sure that still happens a lot. But I can’t remember the last time we brought people in like that. That was sort of the expectation, you got to a certain point of expertise and then the client would want you to be part of their team. Do these results indicate that maybe more people are choosing earlier in their career? Perhaps.

Data quality is not a weakness or a strength, it’s just the cost of doing business. It’s expected now within the insights community. Insights is really being asked to be an influencer and driver of business decisions, which means data quality is expected now.

Tom Gould Director Constellation Brands

Respondents selected not a revenue generating function as a weakness . Insights is often a place

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

INSIGHTS TALENT

What is your annual budget for hiring, training and engaging talent?

What is your annual turnover rate for Insights employees?

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

Which of the following is true for your company when it comes to compensation for key analytics roles?

Over half of respondents note that data scientists earn more than primary researchers. Like-level to like-level, that would be the case. For the other 42%, it seems as though the aim might be for lower-level talent in the data science space. A next question to the community would be the results oriented to senior-level vs. junior data scientists. In other news, hiring freezes look to be in effect. Which works with the vast majority of the community continuing to see under 10% turnover of current talent.

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

UNDERSTANDING INSIGHTS

For Charitie Dantis-Gayo, there’s no better way to understand what the insights function can do than sitting on the other side of the glass, hearing consumers talk about your brand. I’m not surprised by how AI has come up in terms of overarching digitization. But what is surprising is the lack of people wanting to engage with people again. Understanding that in a world of differences, the way you bring people together is to physically bring them together and better understand each other. When you’re in person, it’s easier to understand someone. You see them, meet them, understand who they are beyond just what they tell you on the surface. In the last six months, in terms of priorities , data visualization is high on the survey. Clearly, the communication of our insights is top of mind. That AI

assisted research is the second highest priority, that’s surprising because the world is open again. There’s nothing like leaving consumers in a room and seeing what they have to say. Remember that communication is also body language, facial expressions, posture, tone. All of that has quickly lost its space in the world of a pandemic and I have found it to be extremely valuable coming back. There’s no better way to understand what the insights function can do than sitting on the other side of the glass, and hearing people talk about your brand, company, products, and industry. AI is never going to do that. Respondents chose lack of control over activation of insights as a weakness . Across all of my experience, I think this comes from partners that think, “Thanks for the data. I’m good now.” You gave me what I needed. I can figure out how to take this further on my own. But I’m still an expert on the consumer, therefore I think I have a pretty good

“Part of what continues to be important is understanding human nature and how that’s changed and how people have changed fundamentally.”

INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023

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