Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII

Data and insights have become the required superpowers of growth companies. No matter what peak or trough the economy is in, business leaders need actionable insights to grow markets, engage customers, and make smart strategic decisions. And research professionals need skills and insights to grow their strategic seat at the table. MRII’s Insights & Innovators talks to today’s top experts and innovators to chart a path for the role, the research methods of tomorrow, and the growing importance of the researcher to business success.

Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII is a business podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 79 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Unknown Host hosts Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII, a business show with 79 episodes published.

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  Episode #82

  How Great Insights Teams Make Every Study Count with Daniel Graff-Radford

  Oct 1, 202629 min

  The opportunity has never been better for insights teams to earn a meaningful seat at the strategy table by reducing busy work and focusing on the key data that drives decisions. In this episode, Daniel Graff-Radford, CEO, Discuss, joins host Pavi Gupta, Founder, The Insights Exchange, to discuss how researchers can shift from being “traffic cops” to building librarian-like systems that make organizational knowledge accessible and reusable. They explore the risks of partners uploading research into off-the-shelf LLMs, the need for traceability and repeatability, and how to avoid “insight slop” from either excessive questions or generic outputs. Daniel frames AI interviewing as a fast in-between method bridging surveys and live moderated qual, stressing guardrails and using the right tool for the decision’s risk and complexity. 00:00 Why Insights Matter Now 00:36 Meet the Host and Guest 01:44 Cutting Busy Work 03:11 From Traffic Cop to Enabler 04:57 The Librarian Mindset 07:36 Humans Plus AI Guardrails 11:26 Avoiding Insight Slop 14:16 Traceability and Trust 18:23 AI Interviews as the Middle 21:40 Choosing Methods by Risk 23:22 Key Takeaways and Wrap Up Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII | Hosted by The Greenbook Podcast Network Explore more episodes and resources → https://www.greenbook.org/podcast-network Learn more about MRII → https://mrii.org/

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  Episode #79

  The Redesign of the Insights Industry with Jim Whaley

  Sep 24, 202636 min

  The insights industry isn’t in decline, it’s being redesigned, and AI is accelerating that shift. In this episode, Jim Whaley, CEO OvationMR, joins host Jon Last, President, Sports and Leisure Research Group, to reframe what AI is really disrupting in market research: tasks like fast fielding, charting, and basic summaries, not the core purpose of insight. They explore why organizations confuse activity with value, how the “kindergarten” moment of AI creates excitement and anxiety, and why fluent answers aren’t always true answers. Jim outlines the risks of “synthetic certainty,” the need for inclusive leadership when adopting AI, and why younger researchers should focus less on producing outputs and more on helping people learn and make better decisions. 00:00 Define Yourself by Impact 00:26 Podcast Intro and AI Redesign 02:10 Decline Versus Redesign 03:54 Tasks Disrupted Not Insight 05:33 Kindergarten AI Metaphor 08:32 We Have Been Here Before 12:53 Loud Voices and Governance 15:46 Insights as Learning Systems 18:39 Fluency Versus Truth 22:43 Synthetic Certainty Tradeoffs 25:31 Leadership Skills for Researchers 29:08 Optimism and Domain Expertise 33:06 Closing Thanks and Subscribe Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII | Hosted by The Greenbook Podcast Network Explore more episodes and resources → https://www.greenbook.org/podcast-network Learn more about MRII → https://mrii.org/

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  Episode #78

  Agentic Shopping and AI-Mediated Consumer Behavior with Steve Phillips

  Sep 17, 202627 min

  When AI agents can research products in depth and make tailored recommendations, the traditional role of brand as a trust shortcut may shrink. In this episode, Steve Phillips, Founder, Chair and Chief Innovation Officer at Zappi, joins host Niels Schillewaert, Head of Research, Conveo.ai, to unpack “agentic shopping” and how AI-mediated decisions could reshape marketing and insights. Steve shares a real example of using Claude to choose a car, frames agent-driven choice as “system three” (system two on steroids), and explains why agents may prioritize specifics like ingredients, reviews, and scientific evidence over symbolism and advertising. They discuss category differences, how research may shift toward deeper human understanding and human-agent interaction, early experiments like surveying agents, and why insights leaders should lean into AI and lead organizational change. 00:00 Brand Collapses With Agents 00:42 Podcast Intro And Guest 01:44 What Is Agentic Shopping 02:32 Car Buying With Claude 05:12 System Three Decision Making 07:04 Why Brands Lose Power 09:42 Category Differences And Grocery 11:35 What Researchers Study Now 12:44 Agent Behavior And Discoverability 15:22 How To Experiment And Innovate 18:41 New Service Line For Insights 21:09 Skills And Industry Opportunity 24:31 One Thing To Do Tomorrow 25:05 Closing And Subscribe Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII | Hosted by The Greenbook Podcast Network Explore more episodes and resources → https://www.greenbook.org/podcast-network Learn more about MRII → https://mrii.org/

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  Episode #77

  Key Consumer Attitudes Toward AI with Idil Cakim

  Sep 3, 202631 min

  Four out of five US adults don’t trust an AI-generated ad, AI-driven product, or service, and that gap between business adoption and consumer acceptance is growing. In this episode, Idil Cakim, Founder & CEO, Iris Flex, joins host Jon Last, President, Sports and Leisure Research Group, to unpack what brands often miss about consumer attitudes toward AI. They discuss why AI usage doesn’t always equal trust, how gender and age shape adoption, and Idil’s AI Proximity framework (exposure, control, delegation, and context) for measuring readiness. The conversation covers audience segments from avoiders to power users, where power users convert more in categories like financial services, auto, and wearable health. They also explore common rollout mistakes, the need for pre-testing and longitudinal tracking, and why human support still matters in sensitive decisions. 00:00 Power Users Payoff 00:52 AI Adoption Trust Gap 02:28 Why Study Consumers 04:09 Gender and Age Nuance 07:44 Usage Doesnt Mean Trust 08:59 AI Proximity Framework 12:32 Segments From Avoiders 14:13 Brand Mistakes and Fixes 18:40 Measuring Trust Over Time 22:34 Future Attitudes and Governance 24:55 Human Touch Still Matters 27:35 Wrap Up and Book Info Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII | Hosted by The Greenbook Podcast Network Explore more episodes and resources → https://www.greenbook.org/podcast-network Learn more about MRII → https://mrii.org/

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  Episode #74

  People Tell AI Things They Won’t Tell Researchers with Alfred Wahlforss

  Aug 6, 202636 min

  Why do people often open up more to an AI moderator than to a human researcher? In this episode, Nick Graham (Founder, Vertemis) speaks with Alfred Wahlforss, CEO and Co-Founder of Listen Labs, about how AI is reshaping qualitative research from analysis into moderation and digital twins. Alfred shares how Listen Labs uses AI to conduct, moderate, and synthesize interviews in hours, what’s driving faster adoption inside insights teams, and why “research slop” makes responsible deployment critical. They explore when real human respondents are essential versus when digital twins can help with quick message or concept iteration, how Jevons Paradox may increase demand for researchers, and why anonymity can reduce social desirability bias in sensitive studies. 00:00 AI Moderator Hook 00:21 Show Intro and Topic 01:14 Guest and Listen Labs 02:25 AI Adoption Curve 04:20 Why Adoption Accelerates 07:01 Real People vs Synthetic 10:40 Digital Twins Use Cases 13:29 Humans vs AI Roles 18:39 Speed Versus Rigor 23:49 Honesty With AI 29:36 Skills for Researchers 32:56 Closing Thanks and Outro Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII | Hosted by The Greenbook Podcast Network Explore more episodes and resources → https://www.greenbook.org/podcast-network Learn more about MRII → https://mrii.org/

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