At the helm of the agency’s research group in the Big Apple is freshly appointed Kerry Sette who is poised to steer the team’s direction
Integrated global communications firm, Ogilvy Public Relations, has officially named Kerry Sette to the dual role of Executive Vice President and Research Director of the Research Group based in New York, effective August 2015.
A seasoned researcher with deep expertise in a wide variety of research methodologies and topics, she is set to build upon Ogilvy PR’s already strong Research Group, products, and approaches. Meanwhile, Sette’s appointment signals the brand’s ongoing commitment to research-driven insights that solve client challenges and drive business outcomes.
“Powerful insights are essential in today’s communications environment and powerful insights start with smart research,” said Michael Briggs, Ogilvy PR EVP and Head of Insight & Strategy, North America. “Kerry’s infectious enthusiasm for the possibilities of research, and her eagerness to explore new frontiers in methods and measurement, make her the right leader to develop a robust research-driven culture across the agency.”
The new EVP has been tasked with leading the agency’s New York based Research Group, a team of dedicated professionals who design and conduct research to inform client programmes, new business pursuits, and thought leadership platforms. The cross-functional research team advises clients and teams on research programmes, develops new research-based products and measurement models as well as better integrates data and analytics into research functions.
“Research is a critical function of all aspects of our agency—from gaining insights for new campaigns, to benchmarking, to branding, to analytics,” said Robert Mathias, Ogilvy PR’s North American CEO. “More importantly, clients are demanding new and better ways of measuring the impact of public relations campaigns. We are thrilled to have Kerry lead our research team.”
Sette specialises in multi-country qualitative research projects. Given her in-depth international research experience, she understands the cultural nuances of each market and the importance of following local norms. Early in her career, Sette supervised the coordination and implementation of brand health studies in over 40 countries with Young & Rubicam Inc., laying the groundwork for model extensions that still exist at Y&R today.
Most recently, she was Senior Vice President, Director of Consumer Insights with Hill Holliday/Erwin Penland, where she lead consumer insights for the agency by designing and executing strategic brand research for Fortune 500 companies. Earlier in her career, Sette worked as Global Research Manager at Behavioral Insights LLC where she focused on concept testing for IT related services, packaging testing for pharmaceutical companies, brand positioning, communications and messaging, and advertising testing.
She has conducted extensive international research and contributed to brand strategies for clients such as Microsoft, OBM, Pfizer, and Rolls-Royce. Sette is a graduate of Hofstra University, where she received her Master’s Degree with High Distinction in Industrial Organisational Psychology. She earned her Bachelor’s degree cum laude from the State University of New York at Albany.
