Leading Executives in Market Research

Jean‑Laurent Poitou

Chief Executive Officer, Ipsos

Named Chief Executive Officer on August 19, 2025 (effective September 15), tasked with accelerating growth after senior leadership changes; previously led digital and tech practices at major firms.

Company bio | LinkedIn (company) | Newsroom/press

Chris Jansen

Group Chief Executive Officer, Kantar

Group CEO since 2021, steering Kantar’s transformation and portfolio reshaping, including the 2025 sale of Kantar Media.

Company bio | LinkedIn (company) | Newsroom/press

Karthik Rao

Chief Executive Officer, Nielsen

Promoted to CEO on September 14, 2023, after leading Audience Measurement; driving modernization of Nielsen’s cross‑platform currency.

Company announcement | LinkedIn (company) | Newsroom/press

Jim Peck

Chief Executive Officer & Executive Chairman, NIQ (NielsenIQ)

Executive Chair and CEO who led NIQ through its combination with GfK and took the company public in July 2025.

Leadership bio | LinkedIn (company) | News (IPO)

Zig Serafin

Chief Executive Officer, Qualtrics

CEO championing AI‑powered experience management at scale under Silver Lake ownership; anchors the flagship X4 Summit platform.

Newsroom | Event site | LinkedIn (company)

Eric Johnson

Chief Executive Officer, SurveyMonkey

Appointed CEO in 2023 and led the return to the SurveyMonkey brand, sharpening focus on core feedback and research solutions.

Leadership bio | Brand announcement | LinkedIn (company)

Stuart Aitken

President & Chief Executive Officer, Circana

Took the helm as President & CEO on January 1, 2025, to lead the IRI–NPD combined company’s next phase after its rebrand to Circana.

Company announcement | LinkedIn (company) | Newsroom/press

Mike Petrullo

Chief Executive Officer, Dynata

CEO since 2022, steering Dynata’s transformation and, in 2024, installing a new independent board to accelerate growth.

Newsroom | Leadership/board | LinkedIn (company)

Frédéric‑Charles Petit

Chief Executive Officer & Founder, Toluna

Founder‑CEO who expanded Toluna’s footprint with the MetrixLab acquisition and launched the ‘QSphere’ quality framework in 2025.

Leadership/press | Product/quality update | LinkedIn (company)

Michael Ramlet

Co‑founder & Chief Executive Officer, Morning Consult

Co‑founder and CEO who built a high‑frequency global decision‑intelligence platform used by leaders across sectors.

Executive bio | LinkedIn (company) | Newsroom/press

Tim Kitchin

Chief Executive, Euromonitor International

Chief Executive since 2014, scaled Euromonitor’s global research and mixed‑method capabilities and led recent brand‑recognition wins.

Leadership bio | Newsroom | LinkedIn (company)

Matthew (Matt) Nelson

Global Chief Executive Officer, Mintel

Global CEO guiding Mintel’s AI‑enabled insights strategy and expanding predictive capabilities via the 2025 acquisition of Black Swan Data.

Leadership/press | Acquisition release | LinkedIn (company)

Eugene A. Hall

Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer, Gartner

Long‑time CEO (since 2004) and now Board Chair as of July 1, 2024, with a contract extended through December 31, 2031.

Press release | Investor/SEC | LinkedIn (company)

George F. Colony

Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Forrester

Founder and CEO who has shaped the firm’s customer‑obsessed research agenda and authored widely read guidance on AI’s impact.

Leadership bio | Leadership roster | LinkedIn (company)

Jon Carpenter

Chief Executive Officer, Comscore

CEO leading Comscore’s push for omnichannel currency and AI‑driven, privacy‑forward measurement partnerships across CTV, digital and linear.

Leadership/press | Partner announcement | LinkedIn (company)

Eric Belcher

Chief Executive Officer, Numerator

CEO since 2019, scaling omnichannel consumer‑panel data and analytics adopted by many Fortune 100 brands.

Press release | Leadership bio | LinkedIn (company)

Steve Schlesinger

Executive Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Sago (formerly Schlesinger Group)

Industry veteran who resumed the CEO role on October 9, 2024 to drive Sago’s next stage of digital and services transformation.

Leadership/press | LinkedIn (company)

Melissa Sauter

Chief Executive Officer, Escalent

CEO leading the STG‑backed insights group’s expansion (including C Space and Hall & Partners in 2023) and new AI‑powered behavioral science offerings.

News/press | Product/AI update | LinkedIn (company)

Stephan Shakespeare

Interim Chief Executive Officer, YouGov

Co‑founder who returned as interim CEO on February 4, 2025 to steady execution and refresh strategy at the global online research leader.

Leadership/board | LinkedIn (company)

Tom Smith

Chief Executive Officer & Founder, GWI (GlobalWebIndex)

Founder‑CEO who built one of the world’s largest continuous audience‑insights studies and a widely used self‑serve platform for marketers.

Leadership | LinkedIn (company)