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Among marketing and market research consulting organizations, we are proud to present what is one of the most experienced teams today. We bring expertise across every major category. We provide an effective blend of marketing skills combined with more technical data analytic experience. Below is a list of our senior team members:
Larry Chiagouris
Voted by the editors of Agency Magazine as one of the 10 best and brightest agency strategists, he has had extensive experience as a senior marketing, branding and research executive on the client, consulting and agency sides of the marketing and communications business. He has been responsible for directing major business building assignments for startups as well as leading marketing companies, including AT&T, BellSouth, Campbell Soup, Kraft Foods, Miller Brewing, Peugeot, Pfizer, Prudential and Visa.
Previously, he held the position of Vice President Marketing and Strategy at the Starz Encore Media Group (subsidiary of AT&T/Liberty Media). Prior to joining Starz Encore, he held senior executive appointments at major advertising and pr agencies, including Creamer Dickson Basford (subsidiary of Havas/RSCG), Grey Advertising, Bozell and Backer Spielvogel Bates Advertising.
Larry received a B.S. in Economics, Magna cum Laude from New York University with special honors in Economics. He holds an M.B.A. in Industrial Psychology and a Ph.D. in Marketing and Consumer Behavior from the City University of New York. He has lectured to or been published by a variety of organizations, to include the Public Relations Society of America, the Direct Marketing Association, the American Marketing Association, Investor Relations Society, the Consumer Electronics Show, Institute for Broadcasting and Technology, and Yale University. He is a past-member of the Board of Directors of the American Marketing Association and past-chairman of the Advertising Research Foundation.
Michael Cole
Mike’s specialty is bringing energized marketing leadership and top line growth to companies engaged in media and information services, financial services, and education. Areas of focus include strategic marketing, service and information marketing, new product development ---- from concept through launch, creative - integrated sales and marketing initiatives, e-marketing and business development.
During his years at Citigroup, Mike led the launch of the first premier branded Visa product and managed several nationwide new account solicitations for Citibank credit cards. As VP- Product Manager, he led an international marketing and sales turnaround for Citicorp Travelers checks, developing high potential European and Asian markets via co-branded arrangements with overseas distribution channels. As SVP of Marketing at Citibank Retail Services, Mike developed industry leading database marketing and information programs to drive profitable growth, and used marketing excellence as a USP to sell major retailers long term contracts for their credit card services. While Donnelley’s SVP of Strategic Marketing, he integrated print, cable TV advertising and direct marketing services to offer thousands of Donnelley’s business customers a full, yet low priced marketing program, which gave Donnelley’s nationwide sales force a distinct competitive advantage. Donnelley’s marketing initiatives received top industry awards for direct marketing, advertising, and new product development. While EVP at Reed Business Information, he was recognized by Folio magazine as one of the industry’s most influential leaders and thinkers for his work in developing internet portals as effective information and marketing channels. Most recently, Mike worked with Columbia University’s Teachers College to develop a multimedia education product that was recognized for its innovation and effectiveness by the Association of Educational Publishers.
Mike holds a BA from St. Peter’s College and an MBA from Pace University, where he is a Professor of Marketing. He recently developed and taught the seminar in e-marketing at the Lubin Graduate School of Business at Pace. He has done post graduate work at the Wharton School for new product development, strategic sales management, and marketing and finance, as well as at the University of Chicago for new product development. He also has experience in marketing and fund raising for a not for profit, serving as Vice President of the Board of Directors for Riverbrook Residence in Stockbridge, Mass. Riverbrook is a residential program for mentally disabled women, which was recently recognized for it’s excellence in the field on the PBS documentary, “The Visionaries”.
Kathleen Uptegrove
With twenty-five years of experience in market research and strategy planning for leading US and global brands, Kathleen has worked on a wide array of categories: healthcare, personal care, food, financial, retail, telecommunications and B2B.
Kathleen
is experienced in all types of quantitative methodologies including:
tracking, brand imagery, problem detection, market segmentation, concept
testing, and consumer generated media analysis. She also has extensive
experience in qualitative research through moderating and developing
creative projective techniques. Her strength in developing qualitative
techniques extends to running inventive brainstorming sessions for new
product development, name generation and promotional
events.
As VP,
Associate Group Director of Strategic Services at BBDO New York, Kathleen
collaborated with her client in heading up the research that led to a
breakthrough strategy for Bayer Aspirin. The new ad campaign reversed seven
years of share erosion, followed by six years of steady sales growth. Kathleen won the ARF’s David Ogilvy
Research Award, which is given for outstanding research contributions to
the development of successful advertising campaigns. While at BBDO, she
played a major role in the launch of Gillette’s Mach3 razor from concept
development to creative strategy. Creative brainstorming sessions led by
Kathleen uncovered the brand name and generated new promotional event
ideas for the brand launch. The Mach3 launch is considered to be the most
successful innovative introduction in the category. While working on
special projects with BBDO agencies across the globe, Kathleen identified
emerging trends in the
Prior
to working at BBDO, Kathleen worked at Bozell as Senior Manager of
Research and Planning. One of
her major clients was Pfizer. Pfizer was the first pharmaceutical company
to take their brand Feldene and delve into uncharted territory, being the
first DTC advertising brand.
While at Bozell, Kathleen was responsible for designing the
research and identifying key strategic insights for: Minolta, Nabisco, VF
Corporation (Lee Jeans, Vanity Fair) and Revlon.
In
addition to Kathleen’s major in English Literature at City University of
New York, she holds a Certificate Degree in English Language and Cross
Cultural Studies from
Dr. Jerry Ehrlich
Jerry is one of the country's leading authorities on medical education and the application of marketing to healthcare related issues. Most recently, he directed a team of marketing specialists to develop a national program that targets doctors and patients in need of developing an appreciation of a wide variety of medical therapies in cancer treatment.
Jerry has worked in a senior capacity at leading medical education firms, including Becker and other Havas entities. He currently leads the medical education practice at BrandMarketing Services, Ltd.
Nancy Jamison
As a consultant in the field of telecommunications, she has considerable experience in the enterprise communications market. Specializing in speech technologies, voice and unified messaging, interactive voice response, mixed media contact centers and computer telephony integration (CTI), she provides market research, strategic planning and custom consulting services to both end user and vendor clients. She has authored numerous white papers for vendors in the area of speech technologies and contact centers, co-authored a multi-client study on Next Generation PBX VARs along with the IN-Fusion Group, and written for trade press, including Speech Technology magazine and CommFusion.
Her twenty-two years of industry experience include five years as a Principal Analyst at Gartner Group/Dataquest, in the Voice Systems North America program of Dataquest's Telecommunications group. While working at Dataquest, she was responsible for conducting market research and analysis of several markets, creating US and Worldwide market share and forecasts for the voice processing market, and working with clients on tactical and strategic planning. In addition she spoke at many customer and industry events, both domestically and internationally.
Prior to Dataquest, Nancy spent 13 years at the former ROLM Corporation (now owned by Siemens), in marketing, product planning and competitive analysis. Her work included cradle to grave brand management of products ranging from the PBX and voice processing adjuncts to the original industry CTI products.
Nancy holds a B.S. degree in Linguistics from the University of California at Berkeley.
William C. Johnson
During his 23 year career Bill has consulted, written and taught extensively on customer value, business processes orientation, service quality and customer satisfaction. He has also conducted sales training and consulted at the Fortune 150 level on marketing strategies and marketing plans. He worked with a large tire manufacture in China that was seeking venture capital financing, helping them develop their business plan. He also has consulted with the soft drink, healthcare, telecommunications, along with a variety of small businesses in dealing with their marketing problems.
Bill earned his Ph.D in Business from Arizona State University in 1985. He served as a full-time faculty member at the Huizenga School of Business for nearly 20 years, where he published in nearly 30 journals and 35 conferences. He has also co-authored five books, Total Quality in Marketing, Designing and Delivering Superior Customer Value: Concepts, Cases and Applications, Business Process Orientation: Gaining the E-Business Competitive Advantage, Supply Chain Networks and Business Process Orientation: Advanced Strategies and Best Practices, and Superior Customer Value in the New Economy,: Concepts and Cases, 2nd Edition, 2004, published by CRC/St. Lucie Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Bill has had experience in international executive education, giving seminars to businesspeople from Brazil, Taiwan, China, Thailand and Indonesia. His consulting work abroad has focused on strategy, business planning, and in particular, how to develop market—oriented cultures. His other work has focused on the sales forecasting and how to create and deliver superior customer value in organizations.
Steven Howard
Steven specializes in “connecting the dots,” linking and aligning marketing, sales, operations, and channel partners with the right media at the right time, with the right message and offer to generate sales. He is the one-to-one maven at BMS. As G2 direct & digital’s (formerly Grey Direct) southeastern region senior vice president for business development and direct marketing operations and analysis, Steven worked with a diverse group of B2B and B2C clients including America’s Mart, American Intercontinental University, AT&T-BellSouth Corp., Allconnect, Inc., BP, Camp Twin Lakes, Gilda’s Club Greater Atlanta, Hebel Concrete, Outback Steakhouse, Inc, Premiere Global Services, Reliant Technologies (Fraxel), Southern Company Gas, and The City of Atlanta. Steven’s engagements involve synchronizing “through the line” integrated communications, with precisely targeted online, offline, mobile media, and “social networking/buzz marketing” channels.
Steven joined Grey Direct - MDS Global Consulting following a 5-year career leading the Information Technology Strategy Consulting Practice for Gartner, Inc. At Gartner he worked with American Express Financial Advisors, Bank of America, HCA, Ingersoll-Rand, Shell Oil, Wachovia Corp., Blue Cross-Blue Shield/NASCO, Philip Morris USA, The Body Shop, The US Departments of Defense and Treasury, and The University of Alaska System. This followed a 15 year career at AT&T in product management, operations, and sales, and a career in bio-behavioral research at Rutgers University.
Steven serves on the board of directors of the Direct Marketing Association – Atlanta Chapter, and Gilda’s Club of Greater Atlanta (supporting those living with cancer). He earned a Masters Certificate in International Marketing from INSEAD (the European Institute of Business Administration, France), an MBA in Marketing and International Business from New York University’s Stern School of Business, a Masters in Project Management from George Washington University, a MSc in Biopsychology from Rutgers University, and a BSc in Psychology from Emory University. He has published research articles and book chapters on biopsychology and behavioral endocrinology.
Al Martin
Dr. Al Martin’s career over the past 20 years has focused on marketing, communications and management consulting for a wide array of clients from the private, public and humanitarian sectors. His consulting work benefits from his unusually diverse background including years of hands on line management in both the commercial and government areas melded with his academic background. His work has often focused on the application of marketing theory and practice in fields outside the commercial sector. Al has led large-scale marketing strategy, planning, operations and organizational assignments for clients including The Associated Press, USA Today, American Airlines, Armstrong World Industries, Booz Allen and Hamilton, GE Capital, SBC, SRI International; General Research Corporation; Human Resources Research Organization and the CNA Corporation in the commercial sector. In the communnications sector, he has directed work for The Omnicom Group; BBDO Worldwide; Grey Advertising; Bates Worldwide; Wells, Rich and Greene; Bozell; Porter Novelli Public Relations; and Rapp Collins Worldwide. His nonprofit work includes assignments for the United Nations World Food Programme; Delaware Foundation for Retarded Children; US Offices of the Secretaries of Defense, Army and Navy; US Army and Navy Recruiting Commands; Royal Thai Armed Forces, Miami Police Department and the American Trucking Association. Al has served as a Special Advisor to the Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme on fund raising in the private sector.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and an MBA at the University of Delaware. He holds a Ph.D. from The Ohio State University with concentrations in marketing, quantitative management and economics. He has been a professor at the US Naval Postgraduate School and the University of Delaware and was a member of the planning staff for the launch of Florida International University.
Rene J Trasorras
Rene takes a leading role in due diligence and competitive intelligence assignments. He is a former Special Agent with the United States Secret Service. He was trained as a criminal investigator specializing in fraud, forgery, counterfeiting and personal protection. While serving as a major case agent in the Miami field office, Rene oversaw the largest single seizure of counterfeit currency in the history of the agency. Rene also has had the honor of protecting some of the most powerful people in the world including former Presidents Regan and Bush, Pope John Paul II, numerous presidential candidates and multiple Ambassadors and Prime Ministers from all over the world. Since entering the private sector, he has distinguished himself by attaining the designation of Certified Protection Professional, as recognized by the American Society of Industrial Security. Less than 6000 people worldwide currently hold this designation and all are internationally recognized as board certified security managers. Rene is active in the competitive intelligence field, since 1993 he has helped clients save in excess of 150 million dollars in potential lost revenue due to information developed during his many assignments.
Rene is a member in good standing of the American Marketing Association, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals and the Florida Association of Licensed Investigators. He is a graduate of the Federal Law enforcement Training Center in Glynco, Georgia and Special agent Training school in Washington, DC. Rene earned a BA from the University of South Florida in Criminal Justice, and an MBA with honors from the University of Phoenix. Currently, he is a doctorial candidate in Business Administration (Marketing) at the Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship at Nova Southeastern University.
Brant Wansley
Brant Wansley's career is characterized by unusually profitable marketing and brand strategies, and new products with both national and international impact. As a consultant, he has worked on projects for such firms as Bank of America, JP Morgan, Dreyfus Corporation, McKinney & Silver and PriceWaterhouseCoopers. His senior marketing posts include Bozell Worldwide, Merrill Lynch, Marriott and McDonald's where his responsibilities included marketing strategy, marketing communications and new product development.
Working with advertising agency management, Brant designed a Dynamic Branding™ process, emphasizing future relevance and brand singularity. He has guided clients in such industries as energy, consumer products, financial services, food service, technology, health care, retail and professional services in development of brand strategies, positioning and marketing communications plans. In addition, he has authored articles in industry journals on marketing strategy and marketing communications topics and was twice invited to speak on brand strategies at the AMA's Institute for Marketing Communications and Strategy in New York.
He received a B.A. in Journalism from the University of North Carolina and an M.A. in marketing from Michigan State University. Brant completed the Developing Brand Strategies Program of the University of North Carolina, the Marketing Communications Strategy Program of Northwestern University and the Marketing Strategy Program of the Harvard Business School.
