Transforming Insight Podcast

At the Quirk’s events in Chicago, London and New York, I’ve been asking corporate Insight professionals that question. And the answers have been largely split between those who say they are “tentatively hopeful” and those who admit to having “mixed feelings”.Exploring this topic further at the IMA’s Insight forums and team development workshops, I think there are some clear patterns we see relating to how visible and valued an Insight team feels, and how optimistic it is for the future.Those that are engaged early on strategic projects, whose opinion is respected, and whose work is valued are being a given a licence to experiment with new tools and have a confidence about shaping the future.Those who feel trapped on the corporate hamster wheel feel so much pressure to just produce analysis and research they say they can’t prioritise Insight communication or stakeholder influence. Not surprisingly they are worried that AI adoption be a threat to their jobs.So the big question for me, at this pivotal moment in the evolution of Insight teams, is whether we are going to wait for change to happen to us, or step forward and shape the definition, development and decisions of Insight-driven organisations. If you have the ambition to be a change-maker rather than a change-taker, please listen to Episode 94 of the Transforming Insight podcast to find out more! Topics Discussed·        The first episode of Season 14 of the podcast (0.44)·        Are you feeling visible and valued, with a licence to explore? (5.50)·        Are you constantly under pressure, responding to requests (9.22)·        Are we going to wait and accept change, or step forward and lead it? (12.12)·        An Insight-driven organisation needs a blueprint (16.18)·        Changing our self-perception from Insight producers to Insight activists (19.57)·        Insight leaders’ responsibility to write their own playbook (27.23) This is episode 94 of the Transforming Insight podcast.If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, and the 9Ps of The Insight Leader’s Playbook, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. About James WycherleyJames Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays Bank from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA).He published his first book, Transforming Insight, in 2020, and his second, The Insight Leader’s Playbook, in 2025, and he hosts the Insight forums and the Transforming Insight podcast.An entertaining keynote speaker, he has presented over 60 times at Quirk’s events, a global record, and has provided thought leadership in the UK, USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, India and the Middle East.The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming corporate Insight teams, and its vision is to inspire and support every Insight leader to transform the impact of Insight in their organisation. Resources:If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org DisclaimerThe Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

Elizabeth brings over two decades of experience in the Insights sector, with a reputation that spans both sides of the Atlantic. Her book is part memoir, part manifesto, drawing on hard-won lessons from a career spent helping organisations turn research into action. She's refreshingly candid about her own missteps along the way, including a telling example of research that yielded plenty of findings but precious few answers, simply because the right questions weren't asked at the outset. The conversation gets into the practical mechanics of actionable Insight: how to identify the knowledge gaps that are genuinely blocking decisions, how to work backwards from the actions stakeholders could take, and how to close the gap between what Insight teams think success looks like and what senior decision-makers actually need. Elizabeth also introduces a memorable framework: “no longer true, still true, now true” - for navigating an industry in flux. Because while AI, budget pressures, and shifting methodologies are reshaping the landscape, her core conviction holds firm: the job of Insight is to surface human truths and drive business action. Everything else is context. More Than Just Interesting is warmly recommended for any Insight professional looking to deepen their impact.   Please listen to find out more!   Topics Discussed The Genesis of “More than just Interesting” (2.54) Key Pillars of Insight Practice (06.57) Learning from Mistakes in Insight Projects (12.09) Planning vs Agility in Insight Functions (18.09) Framework: No Longer True, Still True, Now True (26.13)   This is episode 93 of the Transforming Insight podcast.  If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, and the 9Ps of The Insight Leader’s Playbook, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members. You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening.    About James Wycherley James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays Bank from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA).  He published his first book, Transforming Insight, in 2020, and his second, The Insight Leader’s Playbook, in 2025, and he hosts the Insight forums and the Transforming Insight podcast. An entertaining keynote speaker, he has presented over 60 times at Quirk’s events, a global record, and has provided thought leadership in the UK, USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, India and the Middle East. The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming corporate Insight teams, and its vision is to inspire and support every Insight leader to transform the impact of Insight in their organisation.   Resources: If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org   Disclaimer The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

In Episode 92 of the Transforming Insight podcast, James is joined by IMA Head of Content, Emma Jones, and IMA Senior Adviser, Roy Hammond, who have been leading the discussion about AI adoption at the Insight forums this month. Emma shares the results of a recent survey of IMA members, which shows that the proportion of Insight teams “regularly adopting” or “rapidly embracing” AI has moved from 10% in 2024 to 56% this year. But adoption alone isn’t the whole story: we need to explore quality standards, skills gaps, trust issues, governance challenges, and the cultural variations in organisations that go a long way to explaining the context in which this transformation is happening. Roy offers a framework to help make sense of that journey: a 5-step model of AI adoption running from discovery and experimentation through to optimisation, standardisation, and ultimately transformation. Most Insight teams are somewhere in the middle of that arc. Roy's practical advice for teams at each stage will give listeners something genuinely useful to take back to their own organisations. But throughout the conversation we keep coming back to the parallel ways in which we can think about AI: is it the technology behind a set of tools forced upon us to enable our organisations to cut costs, or a treasure trove of opportunities which, handled carefully, could enable your Insight team to provide faster, better and cheaper insights and simultaneously enable you to move upstream and add more value?  There’s much to be said for exploring what lots of new technology can do for us, but we should also remember that we must see new opportunities and threats in the context of the evolution of Insight in our organisations. As James reminds us at the end, it’s an Insight leader’s role to shape the definition, development and decisions of an Insight-driven organisation; how can AI help you to do that?   Please listen to find out more!   Topics Discussed Current Trends of AI Adoption in Insight Teams (1.06) The Dual Perspectives of Insight Teams on AI (05.11) Examples of AI Applications in Insight Processes (11.09) Framework for AI Adoption in Insight Teams (17.39) Transforming Insight Roles in an AI-Driven World (23.05)   This is episode 92 of the Transforming Insight podcast.  If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, and the 9Ps of The Insight Leader’s Playbook, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members. You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening.    About James Wycherley James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays Bank from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA).  He published his first book, Transforming Insight, in 2020, and his second, The Insight Leader’s Playbook, in 2025, and he hosts the Insight forums and the Transforming Insight podcast. An entertaining keynote speaker, he has presented over 60 times at Quirk’s events, a global record, and has provided thought leadership in the UK, USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, India and the Middle East. The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming corporate Insight teams, and its vision is to inspire and support every Insight leader to transform the impact of Insight in their organisation.   Resources: If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org   Disclaimer The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

One year on, Ruth returns to take stock of where things stand through the “Working Well Together Charter” - a practical framework built around six core principles designed to make client-agency relationships more intentional, more respectful, and ultimately more productive. Those principles cover everything from respecting agency time and the right to disconnect, to committing to open communication and treating agency partners as genuine members of the team. As Ruth is quick to acknowledge, none of this is rocket science. The challenge has never been knowing what good looks like; it's consistently living up to it under the pressures of real working life. That honest tension is what makes this conversation so valuable. We dig into findings from recent research with Aura members and agency partners that paint an encouraging picture. When the principles are genuinely applied, the results are tangible: more innovative proposals, deeper insights, better value, and stronger working relationships on both sides. There's a broader theme here, too, one that will resonate with any Insight professional looking to raise their team's profile. The most impactful Insight teams aren't just managing projects; they're building the kind of trusted partnership that makes better thinking possible. That’s one of the 9P’s in James Wycherley’s Insight Leader’s Playbook and an important aspect for any Insight professional who is working to become an Insight activist in their organisation. If you run a client-side Insight team or a market research agency, please visit the Aura website here to explore the Working Well Together Charter and think about how its principles might apply to your client-agency relationships.   Please listen to find out more!   Topics Discussed Six Principles of the Charter (2.42) Preferred Client Status and Agency Relationships (09.08) Navigating Budget Transparency (13.07) Training Needs for Insight Professionals (18.41) How to Learn More About the Charter (25.31)   This is episode 91 of the Transforming Insight podcast.  If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, and the 9Ps of The Insight Leader’s Playbook, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members. You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening.    About James Wycherley James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays Bank from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA).  He published his first book, Transforming Insight, in 2020, and his second, The Insight Leader’s Playbook, in 2025, and he hosts the Insight forums and the Transforming Insight podcast. An entertaining keynote speaker, he has presented over 60 times at Quirk’s events, a global record, and has provided thought leadership in the UK, USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, India and the Middle East. The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming corporate Insight teams, and its vision is to inspire and support every Insight leader to transform the impact of Insight in their organisation.   Resources: If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org   Disclaimer The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

With over 15 years of experience spanning Insight, research, market intelligence, and voice of the customer, Jo arrives at Admiral fresh from a significant tenure at TalkTalk, where she helped build something that every Insight leader will recognise as the holy grail: a value log that quantified the real monetary impact of Insight on the business. It's the kind of initiative that doesn't just demonstrate worth; it changes the conversation entirely. Jo talks candidly about what she's learned from that experience and how it's shaped the Insight Leaders Playbook she's brought with her to Admiral, a practical framework for setting vision, building momentum, and embedding Insight where it matters most. Her approach is deliberate and structured, but what comes through just as strongly is her belief in the power of relationships. Stakeholder trust, she argues, isn't a nice-to-have; it's the foundation on which everything else is built. This is an episode full of honest, grounded advice for anyone stepping into a new Insight leadership role or looking to reposition an existing team. Jo's energy and clarity of purpose are infectious, and her journey at Admiral is only just beginning.   Please listen to find out more!   Topics Discussed Establishing a Value Log for Insight (3.58) Insight Leaders Playbook: Planning for Success(12.20) Prioritising Transformation Areas at Admiral (16.25) Embedding Insight into Business Processes (22.10) Advice for New Insight Leaders (26.47)   This is episode 90 of the Transforming Insight podcast.  If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, and the 9Ps of The Insight Leader’s Playbook, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members. You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening.    About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays Bank from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA).  He published his first book, Transforming Insight, in 2020, and his second, The Insight Leader’s Playbook, in 2025, and he hosts the Insight forums and the Transforming Insight podcast. An entertaining keynote speaker, he has presented over 50 times at Quirk’s events, a global record, and has provided thought leadership in the UK, USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, India and the Middle East. The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming corporate Insight teams, and its vision is to inspire and support every Insight leader to transform the impact of Insight in their organisation.   Resources: If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org   Disclaimer The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.