Claim OwnershipThe Curiosity Current: A Market Research Podcast
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Do you find yourself pondering what today’s trends and insights tell us about tomorrow’s consumers? Ever wonder how technology is changing the market research landscape? Are you curious about what keeps insights professionals up at night? Get swept away by the Curiosity Current: A Market Research Podcast about two world-leading market research experts who follow their natural curiosity to bring consumer insights to life.
55 Episodes
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Speed is reshaping how insights teams operate, but hearing directly from customers still matters. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Sarah Haftings, Insights Manager at Shurtape Technologies. They talk about why qualitative research remains essential even as AI accelerates insight generation. Sarah shares how her team balances qualitative and quantitative methods, evaluates new research technologies, and uses AI powered tools to scale voice of customer insights without losing the human perspective that makes research meaningful.
The people behind good research have to speak for it.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Aarti Bhaskaran, Global Head of Research and Insights at Snap Inc., about how insights professionals stay impactful as platforms, audiences, and attention spans all shift at once. Aarti shares how she leads global teams, tells research stories that cut through, measures brand health across a uniquely fragmented competitive set, and advocates for the bold, boundary-setting mindset that keeps insights functions relevant.
AI is accelerating research, but it isn’t replacing human judgment.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current: A Market Research Podcast, Molly Strawn-Carreño is joined by Lisa Wilding Brown, CEO at InnovateMR. They explore what “data quality” really means in today’s environment of AI-powered tools, hybrid methodologies, and increasing fraud risk. Lisa shares why there is no silver bullet for quality, how respondent experience directly impacts insight integrity, and where human-powered sampling still makes the difference between surface-level metrics and meaningful foresight.
Research, trends and insights do not stand still, and neither do the people who practice it.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly step away from guest interviews to reflect on five lessons from the past year of conversations with researchers, strategists, and marketers. They share what surprised them, what made them uncomfortable, where they disagree on speed versus rigor, and the open questions they are still wrestling with about influence, measurement, and the future of insights roles.
Consumers say they care about health, sustainability, and quality… but their behavior doesn’t always align. In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Laurie Demeritt, CEO of The Hartman Group, explains why the aspiration–behavior gap in food and beverage is human, not irrational. She explores how integrating quantitative and qualitative research reveals emotional trade-offs, how to interpret consumer skepticism around claims, and what emerging wellness shifts including GLP-1 adoption mean for brands trying to make smarter decisions.
In this 50th episode, Shanon and Lev reflect on the journey of building a meaningful B2B podcast. They explore the lessons learned from 50 guest conversations the consistency and collaboration required behind the scenes, and the themes that continue to shape the show. Looking ahead, they reaffirm their commitment to creating thoughtful, long-term value through conversation.
Market research only works when companies actually listen to it.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Ernest Baskin, Department Chair and Associate Professor of Food Marketing at Saint Joseph’s University, about why market research still matters and why it does not have to cost an arm and a leg. Ernest explains how organizations misuse data, overlook bias, and skip context, then shows how simple, intentional research practices can lead to better decisions, fewer failed launches, and a deeper understanding of customers.
Strategic insights only matter when leaders trust them.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly speak with Christopher Khoury, Vice President of Strategic Insights at the American Medical Association, about how credibility is built over time inside complex, highly regulated organizations. Christopher shares how insights teams earn trust by saying yes early, getting close to the business, building strong team chemistry, and using market intelligence to guide leaders through uncertainty rather than chasing shiny ideas.
Enterprise research teams often produce plenty of insight but struggle to influence real decisions.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie speaks with Kylee Lessard, Group/Principal Product Marketing Manager for Insights & Strategy at LinkedIn, about how she helped build a centralized insights function that leadership actually relies on. Kylee breaks down the practical steps she used to move from scattered, ad-hoc research to a shared system for prioritization, synthesis, and decision support. The conversation covers how to design insight charters, align research to planning cycles, separate signal from noise, and use simple AI workflows to stay close to both market shifts and customer reality.
The story that older adults struggle with technology keeps showing up. The data says otherwise.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Molly is joined by Dr. Brittne Kakulla, Senior Consumer Insights Manager at AARP, with special guest co-host Elana Marmorstein, aytm’s Market Revenue Operations Specialist and host of Waves of Thinking. Brittne shares what over two decades of research reveal about older adults in tech, including gaming, smart devices, and AI. The conversation reframes adoption as selectivity, not reluctance, and shows why trust, usefulness, and life stage matter more than age when designing technology for the 50+ market.
Market research often rewards speed, confidence, and verbal fluency. That leaves insight behind.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Molly is joined by Garret Westlake, Vice Provost for Innovation and Strategic Design at Virginia Commonwealth University, with special guest co-host Katie Bernal, Senior Director of Learning and Enablement at aytm. Garret explains how LEGO SERIOUS PLAY can be used as a legitimate market research methodology, why embodied and visual thinking matter, and how serious play creates space for insight from people who do not thrive in verbal-first research settings. The conversation explores inclusion, storytelling, innovation, and how AI can support creative sense-making without replacing human judgment.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with Jason Cohen, Founder and CEO of Simulacra, to explore how causal AI and scenario modeling are changing the way market research actually works. Jason explains why more rows rarely fix weak studies, how seeded synthetic data can extract insight from incomplete datasets, and why understanding cause and effect matters more than ever in modern consumer research.
Market research is losing great talent because the career path remains invisible.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly are joined by Charitie Dantis-Gayo, Corporate Vice President, Center for Consumer Insights at New York Life Insurance Company. Charitie shares her nonlinear path into market research, explains why visibility matters more than credentials, and outlines what truly attracts and develops the next generation of researchers. The conversation covers recruiting for initiative and curiosity, using AI with discipline, and why human judgment and fieldwork remain essential in modern insights work.
AI can accelerate research. It cannot replace context.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with Nancee Halpin, a researcher and insights specialist whose career spans Fuel Cycle, SurveyMonkey, Highlight, and Strella. Nancee explains why human judgment, curiosity, and lived context still sit at the center of good research, even as AI reshapes how fast teams can move. The conversation explores where AI genuinely helps, where it falls short, and why researchers remain essential interpreters between data and decision-making.
Influence does not come from more data. It comes from understanding risk, value, and timing.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly are joined by Ed Kahn, Senior Principal of CX Research and Insights at Mutual of America Financial Group. With a career spanning consumer electronics, syndicated research, and financial services, Ed shares why researchers often feel excluded from decisions and what actually changes that dynamic. He explains how fluency in business context, clarity around risk, and relevance in the moment turn research into influence. This conversation reframes the idea of a “seat at the table” and offers practical ways insights teams can earn it.
AI is transforming research, but human judgment still anchors the work.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with David Evans, Director of Market Research at Microsoft and author of Bottlenecks, to explore the realities of building AI and digital products that respect how humans think, feel, and decide. David draws on a decade of applied psychology at Microsoft to examine where AI truly accelerates research, where rigor is at risk, and why the voice of the customer must guide decisions long before any model speaks. From synthetic data to privacy, from UX bottlenecks to conversational interfaces, this episode reframes AI not as a shortcut, but as a partner that demands stronger theory, clearer ethics, and deeper accountability.
Research is evolving from reporting the past to shaping what comes next, and the most meaningful shifts begin with how we understand people.
In this Greatest Hits episode of The Curiosity Current, five guests share the ideas that are redefining the insights profession. From Adam Hagerman’s view of research as a strategic engine, to Lindsey Goodman’s lived-world ethnography, to Marcus Cunha on influence and ROI, to J. Walker Smith’s return to analog life, and Ben Valenta’s work on connection and well-being, this episode brings together the human themes that turn information into impact.
UX research only matters when it changes something.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, Stephanie and Molly sit down with Amberly Miller, Director of UX Research at Prudential Financial, to discuss the real work of turning insight into influence inside a heavily regulated, high-stakes enterprise. Amberly shares how she rebuilt Prudential’s approach to research, moving from a tightly gated silo to a democratized model that empowers more than a hundred practitioners and what it takes to deliver insights that land, even when the truth is uncomfortable. From stakeholder silence to C-suite pressure, from separating signal from noise to knowing where AI belongs, this conversation goes beyond theory and speaks to the reality of earning a voice at the table.
Modern CMOs are overwhelmed with data yet short on clarity.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, host Molly Strawn-Carreño and guest host Shanon Adams, President and COO of aytm, sit down with Steve Olenski, “The CMO Whisperer,” to unpack what CMOs really need from insights partners. Steve explains why insights must be treated as a growth engine, how the strongest teams align on trust, translation, and timing, and why storytelling and speed now matter more than volume. The conversation breaks down how to earn a real seat at the table, how to use AI responsibly, and what separates insights teams that drive decisions from those that only deliver decks.
Every plate, product, and policy starts with research.
In this episode of The Curiosity Current, hosts Molly and Stephanie talk with Steve Markenson, Vice President of Research & Insights at FMI – The Food Industry Association and longtime President & Consultant at WBA Research. They explore how industry-wide research shapes the food retail ecosystem, how consumer behavior is evolving, and how emerging technologies and analytics are transforming the way decisions are made across a $1 trillion grocery landscape. From defining value beyond price to balancing speed and rigor in research, Steve reveals how FMI brings data, advocacy, and collaboration together to serve an entire industry.
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