POSTED BY: | August 8, 2016

 

SMARI is pleased to announce that Michael D. Ross has joined the team as an Account Executive, where he will be working with a variety of clients, catering especially to those in the manufacturing and industrial sectors.

Mike comes from a long track record of research, including 15 years as a Senior Manager of Market Research & Strategy at Lexmark, a manufacturer of printers and enterprise software. An education in finance and international business led him to a focus in sales and marketing, later consulting on strategy and research methodologies for a variety of large manufacturing firms.  He has also held teaching positions in marketing and research courses at the University of Kentucky and Asbury University.

What intrigues him about the research process? He feels the most satisfaction when his team can provide genuinely surprising insights, leading to strategic advantage. Client understanding is his game; he notes, “I am told that I am good at quickly building trust with people. I want to be known as someone who is as good as my word. Also I’m pretty good at numbers — they just make sense to me.”

His ideal weekend includes staying in a cabin in the mountains, with a fly fishing rod, a stream nearby, and a stack of books. Watch out – Mike’s secret skill is his possession of a black belt in Shaolin martial arts!

Watch this space for Mike’s upcoming reflections on switching from the client side to supplier side of market research.