Nikki Lavoie

Personal statement video

Transcript

“Hi! I’m Nikki Lavoie, EVP of Global Experience Strategy at Savanta, and I’m running for ESOMAR Council President.

I joined ESOMAR as a Young Professional member almost 12 years ago and attended my first ESOMAR Congress in Athens. That decision was life changing, both professionally and personally – and it helped me establish myself in research industry through the organization’s significant global network of insight professionals and the abundance of learning materials I got access to. That decision also led me to start my own qualitative and UX agency, MindSpark, scale it to €2M and sell it successfully in under 10 years.

Beyond doubt, ESOMAR had a big impact on my life, and since my first term as an ESOMAR Council member, in 2018, I have been dedicated to returning that impact back to the organization and its members. With that in mind, to INSPIRE would be the central theme to my presidency, resting on 4 pillars:

• CLIENTS — the only constant is change, and that’s no different in the world of research. Inspiring clients to try out new disciplines and approaches as well as being strategic partners to them is key to our longevity
• INCOMING TALENT — inspiring the future generation of researchers and giving them the tools to succeed is one of ESOMAR’s main missions. There’s a lot more to be done, here, and we’ve only just gotten started.
• EACH OTHER — there is no better way to feel motivated, inspired and engaged in our work than to connect with peers globally at events designed to level up our skillset and exchange new ideas
• THE WORLD — insights no longer means market research, and the world is relying more on data, analytics, user and consumer research… we have to be ready to inspire the world to see the true value and impact of our work

Inspiration cannot just stop at buzz words and warm feelings. The main goal of my presidency would be to strengthen our association and provide value to members, and the broader insights industry across 3 key areas, namely

• ENGAGING with key communities: young professionals, those changing career paths, data scientists, members in regions like LATAM, APAC and North America where our potential is high and our presence is relatively low, as well as user and design researchers and accessibility research specialists.
• MEASURING our impact: as of 2021, we’re able to more effectively monitor the success of our communications and the resonance of our publications and events – we have to leverage this to double down on what works and improve what doesn’t
• SERVING our members: through evolving the ESOMAR brand to be in line with upcoming client needs, providing more career and development opportunities, acting as a hub for global-yet-local connection and guidance

As the current Council Vice President, my previous term was filled with hard business decisions, unexpected personal events, and changes to my life that I couldn’t have foreseen. But those obstacles have sharpened my focus and illuminated the priorities that I believe we need to be addressing as an industry. With that in mind, I hope you’ll consider me for ESOMAR President.

Thank you in advance for your support.”

Nikki’s recent impact examples include:

Inspiring clients

• The UX Factor – Greenbook Expert Channel (2022)
• SparkSummit 2021
• How to use interactive whiteboards to better engage participants, colleagues and stakeholders (Masterclass, 2021)
• Agile Research (2021)
• Lead the Change – SparkSummit 2020
• Understanding Agile Research (2020)
• [LOCK] Speaking the language of Research (2015)

Inspiring incoming talent

• WiRe, Investing in Research (2022)
• [ESOMAR Members only] ESOMAR Insights Festival 2020 Fringe: Diversity Workshop (2020)
• [ESOMAR Members only] ESOMAR Insights Festival 2020: Research for all (2020)
• Locavores and Fish in New Ponds: A discussion on expats as researchers (Page 20, 2015)
• How cultural differences affect approaches to qual (2014)
• We need to make market research more sexy (2014)

Inspiring each other

• CEO Series with Lenny Murphy: Nikki Lavoie (2021)
• Is co-opetition the future of business? (2021)
• How did you get there? By Significant Insights (2021)
• Insight from the Insight250 winners: Innovating to deliver to enterprises (2021)
• Qualitative Research is Product Management (Feedback Loop, 2021)
• [In French] Recherche utilisateur, la pratique international (Masterclass, 2020)
• Qualitative Research and Creating a Connection (2019)
• Talent finds new outlet (2017)
• Participant experience (2017)
• QRCA Worldwide Conference on Qualitative Research (2016)
• [ESOMAR Members only] Connecting with consumers: a new way of plugging in (2016)

Inspiring the world

• How Sh*t Gets Made – a podcast by MindSpark Research (2022)
• Rock ‘n’ Roll Research Podcast (2021)
• The “Why” Webinar with Market Research Pros (2018)

Left to right: Nikki Lavoie (serving ESOMAR VP), Dr. Parves Khan (ESOMAR CEO) and Kristin Luck (serving ESOMAR President)

Nikki’s upcoming engagements and appearances:

• “Ethics in Research” at EPIC PEOPLE 2022 virtual event on October 6
• “The Rise of UX” on October 14 for the Western African Research Association

Awards received

• Insight250 2022 – Global Innovator and Leadership Award
• Insight250 2021 – Global Innovator and Leadership Award
• Research & Equitable Leadership (REEL) List 2020

Memberships

• Vice President of the ESOMAR Council (2021 – present)
• Member of the ESOMAR Council (2018-2021)
• Member of ESOMAR (2010 – present)
• Member of the Board of the AQR (Association of Qualitative Research) (2016 – 2021)
• Member of WIRe (Women in Research)

Voting opens on October 12th.

For all information and updates regarding the council election, click here.