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Falling into Insights- How to Break into the Market Research and Insights field. Insights in Color Presents: Falling into Insights A conversation about breaking into the MRX field. A Mimconnect, In Good Company Virtual Career Fair Initiative Click Here to Learn More About Market Research and How You Can Find a Career in This Space In partnership with Mimconnect's In Good Company Virtual Conference & Career Fair IIC Presents: FALLING INTO INSIGHTS: February 21, 2023 WHAT IS IT? A conversation with dynamic research & insights professionals on getting started in the market research and insights field. WHO’S IT FOR: Everyone! HOW LONG IS IT? 45 minutes WHO WILL BE SPEAKING? A dynamic panel of speakers from Meta, Spotify, ESPN, Accenture and Target. Learn more about our panel below. RSVP SPEAKERS A panel moderated by IIC's Founder, Whitney Dunlap-Fowler with speakers from ESPN, META, Target, Accenture and Target! MODERATOR WHITNEY DUNLAP - FOWLER Owner, Touch of Whit Creative Founder, Insights in Color Whitney Dunlap-Fowler is a seasoned semiotician and brand strategist specializing in helping clients build culturally intelligent brands. With more than 12 years of brand building expertise, she equips clients with the cultural strategy and foresight tools needed to insure their insights today will positively impact their bottom line beyond tomorrow. Before becoming an independent strategist, Whitney held roles at Kantar Added Value and Kelton Global and obtained her Masters in Media Culture and Communications at NYU. Today, she continues to work with clients across a wide variety of categories including Sephora, Meta, Target, ESPN, Oribe and more while overseeing Insights in Color, a diversity initiative for multicultural market research and insights professionals rooted in disruption, which she founded in 2020. EDWIN ROMAN Senior Director, Brand Strategy and Content Insights, ESPN Edwin Roman, who joined ESPN in 2004, is a Senior Director of Brand Strategy and Content Insights within the Marketing and Social Media department. In this role, Mr. Roman helps internal clients understand the brand and content landscape as it relates to the ESPN consumer -- ultimately serving as the “voice of the fan”. He is tasked with presenting these clients with strategic and tactical insights based on innovative proprietary and syndicated research solutions. He also serves as part of ESPN’s Inclusive Content Committee, is the People Chair for the SOMOS ESPN employee resource group and was part of the inaugural class of the ESPN M.O.R.E. mentorship program. Prior to joining ESPN, Mr. Roman conducted consumer trends research for RoperStarch, where he was responsible for analyzing and communicating macro level trends and category specific insights across a broad range of industries. Mr. Roman holds a Master of Arts degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Hofstra University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University at Stony Brook. He currently resides in New York City with his wife and daughter. KATHY DINI JAMES Consumer Insights Executive Meta Kathy Dini James is a consumer insights executive currently leading inclusion strategy insights at Meta. Formerly a brand planner, she has developed communications and new product strategies for products and services including hotels, fragrances, pasta sauces and dinners, natural personal care, and developed multi-cultural strategies for spirits and personal writing brands. Prior to Meta she led brand communications insights at Verizon’s wireless division, and worked at Time Inc. (now Meredith) leading brand, content and live event insights at Essence Magazine and People brands. She’s a big believer that what’s is good for people is good for business, and is deeply obsessed with what people want, why they do what they do, and how truly people-centric experiences and brands can move people and do good in the world. Kathy is a recent resident of Oakland, CA from downtown Jersey City by way of Brooklyn, USA. She was born in Toronto, Canada to parents from the twin-island of Antigua and Barbuda in the West Indies. JEFFREY G. SCOTT, PH.D. Director of Product Insights for Food & Bev Target Jeffrey G. Scott, Ph.D. is the Director of Product Insights for Food & Beverage at Target in Minneapolis, MN. Jeffrey has been working in Sensory & Consumer Sciences for 15+ years (spanning across CPG, Vendor/Agency, and Retail), designing customized research plans/strategies to effectively deliver key insights to the business and executive teams. At Target, Jeffrey leads a talented team of researchers that focus on qualitative and quantitative research. Her team strategically partners with product development and other key areas of the business to develop, improve, and launch high quality brands and products/packages that consumers will love! When she is not working, Jeffrey enjoys spending time with her husband and 3 children by cross-country skiing, hiking, dancing/singing, and much more! REGGIE ROMAIN, M.A. Talent Research Associate Manager Accenture Research Reggie Romain, M.A., is a Talent Research Associate Manager with Accenture Research where he helps lead and contributes to thought leadership research to support the work of Accenture’s Talent & Organization/Human Potential practice. He has a M.A. in Industrial Organizational Psychology with a concentration in Organizational Behavior from CUNY Brooklyn College — where he studied team dynamics and processes. In his current role, Reggie focuses on ways to build inclusive and equitable experiences in the workplace so that individuals can reach their human potential, as well as how to best enable employees to acquire skills necessary for the future of work.” ALEXANDRA HORNSBY Insights Manager Spotify Currently an Insights Manager at Spotify, Alex leads a team focused on user growth. Bringing over ten years of experience in insights and strategy, Alex has previously consulted for a range of brands including Snapchat, Apple, L’Oreal and Nike. Her projects have taken her to over 20 countries carrying out fieldwork, with a particular skew towards understanding the needs of users in the Global South. Alongside working with corporate clients, Alex has further consulted for a number of Foundations and nonprofits. Click Here to Learn More About Market Research and How You Can Find a Career in This Space RSVP

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A community for multicultural market research & insights professionals rooted in intentional disruption A DIVERSITY INITIATIVE FOR MULTICULTURAL INSIGHTS & RESEARCH PROFESSIONALS ENTER How Can We Help You? Select Contact Us

34331cce-1c89-4a6a-96e5-fe895883e8f2 MRMW VIRTUAL SUMMIT 2022 Wednesday, July 6, 2022 July 6th & 7th - 25+ Top Level Speakers | Case Studies from 20+ Industries | 1000+ Attendees Learn More MRMW Virtual Summit APAC/EU will bring together forward thinking clients, innovative agencies and technology disrupters to discuss the latest trends and innovations driving the insights and market research industry forward. MRMW will showcase the latest insight techniques - from planning and conducting, to analysis and the implementation of customer insights. This exciting summit includes presentations from top researchers from the world’s largest brands, interactive panel discussions and 1-2-1 meetings. This is a must-attend conference for researchers to learn, be inspired and network. Back to Full Menu

Beta A new way for clients to feel more confident about diversity and inclusion in their research methods, IIC forward is meant to fill the multicultural information gap in research and insights by enabling brands and agencies have a more in depth, and personalized way check the inputs and outputs of their research methods. Access Client Portal What's included in each type of request? Request types are defined by the number of pages in your submission. Clients can submit screeners, discussion guides, surveys, stimulus, reports and more to be reviewed in the IIC Forward Portal. Title Simple Request Intermediate Request Advanced Request Special Request Special Request II 15 minute briefing call Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 15 minute debrief call Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 2 Vetted IIC Researchers No Yes Yes Yes Yes Review Amount: up to 5 pages Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Review Amount: up to 15 pages No Yes Yes Yes Yes Review Amount: up to 25 pages No No Yes Yes Yes Review Amount: up to 50 pages No No No Yes Yes Review Amount: up to 100 pages No No No No Yes Eliglbe for 1hr consultation? Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Eligible for 1 month consultation? Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Page 1 of 1 Access Client Portal Explore Pricing Explore Packages Bundled Packages TIER 1: PREMIUM Offers the most amount of requests & consulting options Premium Plus & Premium Plans* TIER 2: VALUE Offers the a lower price point for each package option Value Plus and Value Plan* *Plus plans include on-going consulting A la Carte Options Just need one or two requests? Choose from our a la carte options below. $150 admin fee applies when purchasing more than 3 A la Carte options Clients purchasing more than 5 a la carte options at a time will automatically be enrolled in a starter-pack bundle. 0-5 pages INCLUDES: notes and review from 1 IIC trained, BIPOC researcher 15 minute briefing call 15 minute summary call with your researcher Assume a 24-48hr turn around from the point the request is answered. Simple Request $175 Purchase Intermediate Request 6-15 pages INCLUDES: notes and review from 2 IIC trained, BIPOC researchers 15 minute briefing call 15 minute summary call with your researcher Assume a 24-48hr turn around from the point the request is answered. $225 per researcher (2 researcher minimum) Purchase Advanced Request 16- 25 pages INCLUDES: notes and review from 2 IIC trained, BIPOC researchers 15 minute briefing call 15 minute summary call with your researcher Assume a 24-48hr turn around from the point the request is answered. $300 per researcher, (2 researcher minimum) Purchase Tier 1Special Request 26-50 pages INCLUDES: notes and review from 2 IIC trained, BIPOC researchers 15 minute briefing call 15 minute summary call with your researcher Assume a 24-48hr turn around from the point the request is answered. $425 Purchase Tier 2 Special Request 50+ pages INCLUDES: notes and review from 1 IIC trained, BIPOC researcher 15 minute briefing call 15 minute summary call with your researcher Assume a 24-48hr turn around from the point the request is answered. $550 Purchase See Product Store Client FAQs WHAT KIND OF DOCUMENTS CAN I SUBMIT? Anything associated with the research process: screeners, proposals, reports, discussion guides, surveys, stimulus, etc. WHO ARE THE BIPOC RESEARCHERS REVIEWING MY REQUESTS? Freelancers and contract researchers who are vetted through IIC’s onboarding process. WHY WOULD I NEED MORE THAN ONE RESEARCHER? Diversity and Inclusivity can be a moving target and can feel different to different people. It’s always best to get multiple opinions and prospective on anything dealing with inclusion to make sure you get it right. CAN I CHOOSE THE RESEARCHER(S) I WANT TO WORK ON MY REQUEST? No. However, all customers can input the parameters of the type of researchers they think would suit their project needs best based on experience, subject matter expertise, gender, ethnicity and more. HOW MUCH ARE THE RESEARCHERS PAID? Researchers receive 80-90% of the fees paid by customers. The remainder covers fees to keep portal functional and operating. WHAT ABOUT CONFIDENTIALITY? Along with IIC’s onboarding and vetting process, all researchers must sign IIC’s confidentiality and terms & conditions agreements before being considered for hire. In addition to that, all clients have the option of uploading their own confidentiality agreements into the portal. Researchers can not work on anything until all agreements are submitted. HOW LONG IS MY INFORMATION IN YOUR SYSTEM? All research request documents will be deleted after 30 days from the date of completion. WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT AFTER SUBMITTING A REQUEST? Researchers who receive and accept your request will add notes to the documents you submit through the portal and send them back to you. If needed, they will message you in the portal for further detail. WHAT HAPPENS IN A CONSULTATION? Consultations are set up for customers seeking live, one-on-one conversations with the researchers working on their projects. This can be for a duration of 1 hour or one month depending on your needs. Client Faqs

Resources and tools for BIPOC/ Multicultural research & insights professionals and brands and agencies seeking diverse talent. CAREER CORNER For job seekers and companies seeking new talent. For tips and tricks on diversity, equity & inclusion in market research, click here. Companies Brands, Agencies & Insights Departments Researchers BIPOC Market Researchers, Strategists & Insights Professionals COMPANIES Clients Multicultural talent solutions for brands & agencies Post Advertise a Role Post a role on our job board to recruit multicultural research talent. View More Hire Hire a Freelancer For short-term/ project based engagements consider reaching out to our freelancer database. View More Browse Freelancer Gallery Use our Researcher Gallery Wall as a free tool to find your next candidate. View More RESEARCHERS Researchers Career Resources for current and prospective BIPOC researchers Apply Visit our Job Board Find new career opportunities posted by IIC every week! View More Sign Up Sign Up as a Freelancer Join our freelancer database to be contacted for future work projects & IIC initiatives. View More Join Join the Researcher Gallery Add your face and name to our growing gallery wall. View More For tips and tricks on diversity, equity & inclusion in market research, click here.

IIC Researcher Gallery Wall THE FIRST EVER PHOTO GALLERY OF MARKET RESEARCHERS OF COLOR. Join the Gallery Scroll, click and learn more about each market researcher & insights professional LOAD MORE

IIC believes that all data is beautiful. Because of this, we are dedicated to sharing impactful research stories in ways that are meaningful and engaging. This platform was built to move research out of white papers and to the eyes of the next generation of BIPOC researchers. By doing so we hope to aid in growing the pipeline of multicultural research & insights talent. IIC believes that all data is beautiful. Because of this, we are dedicated to sharing impactful research stories in ways that are meaningful and engaging. This platform was built to move research out of white papers and to the eyes of the next generation of BIPOC researchers. By doing so we hope to aid in growing the pipeline of multicultural research & insights talent. Data is Beautiful Story Submission Purpose 1. Changing the way data and insights are socialized in the industry by reimagining insight outputs about BIPOC groups. 2. Appealing to younger generations of researchers in order to highlight the importance & impact of BIPOC groups being the architects of their own stories. 3. Shining a light on brands, agencies and insights suppliers doing the work to tell immersive, impactful multicultural insights stories View Site Process 1. DOWNLOAD the submission template, fill it out & save it 2. SUBMIT the information in the Data is Beautiful Form; attach the template from step 1. 3. PAY the submission FEE ($1500)* 4. FINALIZE & work with IIC to clarify any last minute touches & see your insights story on site in 10-15 business days! *due to the highly interactive nature of the data is beautiful platform, IIC must pay web design specialists to create each and every story in unique ways. We take a lot of time to liaise with each specialist throughout the story development process along with members of your team. The fee accounts for the labor of the web design specialists and the IIC team. More Details

Demystifying market research & insights to understand how you can begin a career here Demystifying Market Research To help demystify the market research and insights industry, we've started collecting the most frequently asked questions by students and young professionals in order to create more clarity around our industry. Falling into Insights A conversation about breaking into the MRX field. Click HERE To Learn More About the Speakers and Panel Members Learn more about MRX Explore Submit your own question Learn Question: What are all the roles in market research? Answer: Honestly, there are more roles than we have room to answer on this page. Take a look. However, we've written up descriptions for some of the more popular roles in Market Research below and provided a few links for you to explore on your own. First Hand Knowledge: Once you're done exploring, visit our Community Pillar to hear from market researchers themselves what they love about their careers. Qualitative Moderator Moderators are known for being the chattier, more colorful versions of researchers as their jobs, quite literally, depend on the conversations they have with others. Qualitative moderators typically lead one-on-one interviews or large focus group conversations to understand how people interact with brands and why. This method of research is used to gain deeper insights on the psychology of consumers in order to link that information to how they interact with their brand world. To get this right, Qualitative moderators often ask larger, loftier questions in order to paint a fuller, more comprehensive picture of the world and lives of the respondents they are able to speak with. Learn More Learn More Project Field Coordinator Think of this role as the glue that holds a project together. A Field Coordinator typically oversees the costs, logistics & planning of different qualitative or quantitative research projects, both globally and domestically. Their roles may include many tasks including identifying they right types of consumers the research should be focusing on, managing vendors or panel sample, creating comprehensive price elements, running the financial aspects of projects, and coordinating projects as they are won. Coordinators play crucial roles in the organization by ensuring the projects that come in are run smoothly and at a profit. Learn More Learn More Brand Strategist Similar to a Consumer Insights Strategist only their responsibilities also include developing strategies that enhance that brand itself to ensure it is easily recognized in its category and remains relevant for consumers over time. Sometimes brand strategy is only about building the brand identity which may include what the brand stands for, what it looks and sounds like and how it's meant to be perceived by others who see it. Or, sometimes brand strategy is also about creating the central idea from which ads, commercials and marketing campaigns are meant to come from. No matter the scenario, brand strategists must be able to take the data and insights they learn about consumers, culture and the marketplace to create a strategic plan to achieve specific goals for the brands they work with. Learn More Learn More Semiotician Someone who takes the theories from the field of semiotics and applies it to how consumers assign meaning to the signs, shapes, symbols and messages they receive from brands. Semioticians use their ability to break down signs and symbols to determine how brands can more effectively resonate with consumers while remaining culturally relevant. To do this effectively, semioticians must be able to stay in touch with culture at all times. They have to be well informed with the things happening in their countries- from politics to pop culture. And, more than anything, they have to love advertising and branding. Learn More Learn More Quantitative Analyst Analyze large quantities of numbers and data in order to extract insights in away that quantifies, measures or validates specific insights that brands need before making key decisions. In market research, Quantitative Analyst are the ones who build the surveys that companies make and distribute on their behalf. Their interaction with respondents is limited as they only see finished survey answers. Unlike qual, Quantitative Analysts often deal with large sets of data because the surveys they create are often meant for hundreds and thousands of people to take them. Because of this, Quantitative Analysts have to understand how shifts in demographics and identity labels (gender, ethnicity, age, etc.) may or may not impact their work. Learn More Learn More UX Researcher UX is short for "user experience". This role is all about how people navigate the internet and the ease at which they are able to do so. UX researchers work to create the best possible experience for the users of a website, or digital platform by researching user behavior and analyzing design elements to make the experience more intuitive and seamless. Learn More Learn More Cultural Strategist Very similar to a brand strategist only this person creates strategy with state of culture in mind. Essentially he/she is tapped in to culture at all times and uses this to inform how clients should go to market vs. only relying consumer data and competitor trends. Because of their relationship with culture, the role of Semiotician also sometimes falls beneath this practice area. This practice area is not to be confused with a "Multicultural Strategist" which is a different role all together. Click the links to lean more. Learn More Learn More Design Strategist Born from the newest fields of design thinking, design strategy is a combination of insights, brand strategy, and, where applicable, UX design. While the utility of this career role is still being explored and understood, overall, a design strategist is needed to ensure that the products companies build, the spaces we create and the way we manage our organizations are, at their core, centered around the way consumers will use and interact with them. Learn More Learn More Statistician Similar to Quantitative Analysts, Statisticians play a big role in understanding data through numbers. However, what makes them unique is that they can apply statistical methods and modeling to real-world problems to help brands understand consumers and, in some cases create predictive factors and correlation models to increase the likelihood of sales. Essentially, their ability to understand numbers means that they can track trends in consumer and purchasing behavior to create new tools for brands to rely on when building new go-to-market strategies. Learn More Learn More Consumer Insights Strategist Use the insights gained from different research methods (qual, quant, social listening and more) to create strategies that appeal to a brand’s target audience. This also means that a consumer insights strategist must be proficient in at least one research method. Typically, a Consumer Insights Strategist has to know how to take the outputs from the data and insights they receive and create a story for brands to better understand the consumers they spoke with. Essentially, a good strategist is a great storyteller. They know how to pull the most important pieces of information to the front- information that helps clients gain clarity and understand the world of their consumers with more depth. Finally, strategists identify the steps required to ensure clients know how to connect with their audience, authentically. Learn More Learn More Multicultural Strategist Someone who dedicates their research to BIPOC populations and becomes an expert in the behaviors, habits and trends in multicultural groups and audiences. A Multicultural Strategist can exist across various research specialty areas (qual, quant, stats, strategy, etc...) and uses their skillsets to tell the stories of consumers of color, how they interact with different brands, products an services and why. Learn More Learn More Have Questions You'd Like to ask? Submit them here: Email Area of Inquiry What would you like to know? Anything Else? Submit Thanks for your Question! Are you a Market Research Professional who wants to provide answers to some of our inbound questions? We are always looking for fresh perspectives. Let us know here. Submit A Question

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Training are Highly Suggested There seem to be a lot of unknowns in your research process. There may be a need for diversity training for your team to better understand how to setup and think about research in a way that doesn't produce insights and outputs through a restrictive lens, effectively muting diverse consumer narratives. Based on your responses, your research is likely already entrenched in cultural biases which automatically prevents your work from being as inclusive as it needs to be. Contact the IIC team to schedule a diversity consultation below. Without additional diversity considerations, your project will not yield accurate results. NEW! Download IIC’s Standards for Inclusive Research! UNIVERSAL TRUTHS CHECK YOUR BIASES & ASSUMPTIONS AT THE DOOR There will always be things that you won't know, or won’t know to ask yourself. Ensuring that your team is diverse will ultimately help to solve for these blind spots. Never assume that respondents will voluntarily (or honestly) reveal all of the tensions that exist within the intersectional parts of their identities. Always ensure the right probes and researcher dynamics are in place to promote information sharing in a way that fits the diverse needs of your respondents. Never assume that a person of color is as affected, or as impacted by racial trauma as other BIPOC consumers (this includes the BIPOC researchers on your team/client team). Race and identity are complex. The dynamics of American racial tensions are not the dynamics as BIPOCs in other countries. The experiences of minorities and minority immigrants should never be generalized or categorized as the same. CONTEXT, CONTEXT, CONTEXT Given the diversity of the new mainstream, no research can be done without integrating cultural context into the process. Without this, your outputs will struggle to maintain relevancy and will miss opportunities for richer, more nuanced storytelling. Always ask yourself, "why is this the case?" and find the historical data, context or BIPOC subject matter expert to back up and support your insights. TELL THE STORY CORRECTLY Always interrogate your story tellers. Research is often commissioned based on vendor-client relationships, and not on capability. If your research supplier or research team is not diverse enough to support or guide your projects, seek outside BIPOC resources, teams and/or experts to play lead roles in your work - from commission to completion. Interrogate your storytelling methods. Utilizing old frameworks and outputs to tell complex, multilayered consumer stories will often fall flat with audiences who may not be able to see the bigger picture. Along with utilizing more BIPOC researchers, creative & dynamic storytelling techniques are encouraged. THINGS TO CONSIDER We highly recommend that your organization set up a diversity and inclusion training to better understand how lack of diversity not only impacts your work, and internal processes. There may be a need to increase diversity within your organization, your research team or your client's team. Hiring diverse talent may take a while but using outside resources & experts could potentially solve some of the issues you may be running into or, that you may not be aware of. Reexamine your screeners, surveys and overall research approach to ensure your project is setup to capture the full breadth of diverse responses from your consumers. Ensure & insist that diversity is included in all touchpoints of your projects as much as possible, including the teams who will receive your outputs. Ensure that diverse talent is present to tell the story of the consumers in your research, especially if your work has a multicultural focus. Researching the new mainstream can be expensive, and when budgets get cut, so do opportunities for unique consumer stories & outputs. Make sure to push for, and insist on budgets that can guarantee the necessary over recruitment and readable base sizes to yield relevant solutions and truly accurate recommendations. If your project is not focused on multicultural consumers, continue to interrogate your findings to see if there are any nuanced stories that may stand out on their own based on consumers' identity (race, ethnicity, cultural background, life experiences, disability, acculturation, sexual or gender identity), a part from the mainstream findings and then investigate those stories. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES CULTURAL RELEVANCE IN MARKETING NOW MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER NON-INCLUSIVE AD TESTING: REAL CULPRIT BEHIND TONE-DEAF ADS DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE SUPPORTING A CAUSE THOUGHT LEADERSHIP FROM TOUCH OF WHIT CREATIVE INTERESTED IN A RESEARCH CONSULTATION? EXPLORE IIC FORWARD Up

Whitney Dunlap-Fowler, Founder, Insights in Color & Owner Touch of Whit Creative. Who We Are A diversity initiative for researchers founded by a researcher Whitney Dunlap- Fowler FOUNDER Whitney Dunlap-Fowler is a semiotician and seasoned brand strategist with nearly 10 years of experience building culturally intelligent brands through cultural insights, brand strategy and multicultural strategy. Before founding Touch of Whit Creative , she co-lead the Cultural Insights practice at Kelton Global where she used her knowledge and expertise to aid in deepening the company’s brand strategy engagements. Her ‘brand strategy roots’ were honed and polished during her time at Kantar Added Value, where excelled as in dual strategic roles across the brand and cultural insights teams while earning a Masters degree in Media, Culture and Communications at NYU. Before leaving the company, she took on an additional role as the Multicultural Practice Lead for North America and started an initiative called “Insights in Color” for minority professionals seeking to connect with others in the research community. Since starting her own business, she’s restarted the IIC initiative in order to pursue her passion of creating a more connected network of researchers of color and a platform built to serve their needs. Industry Partners Clients We've Worked With

IIC Partners with Mimconnect, Adthrill and Thinknow Research IIC & Friends NYC In Partnership with Toasted Life Sponsored by Forward & C-Space Can you make it? Details Gallery DETAILS: WHY to align with our pillar centering on creating a greater sense of connectivity through community , we will be going to meet our members in person. WHAT IIC will host an intimate event for members of the community and our supportive allies! WHO check out some of the friends who will be joining us below! DATE: Wednesday, 6/8 New York Location: Sentry Flatiron (located in the Henri hotel) Register The Sentry Penthouse Lounge & Bar 1/1 Sponsored by Forward is an insights-driven brand consultancy based in New York City. We’re qualitative researchers, cultural thinkers, and brand and business strategists, working to implement empathetic, future-facing strategies for our (mostly) corporate clients. We work on engaging briefs spanning all kinds of questions about people and culture, from an exciting client roster that includes Jordan, Nike, Spotify, L'Oréal, PepsiCo, YouTube, Disney, and more. Learn More Our clients call us their customer agency. We create rapid insight and business change, putting customers at the heart of companies and solving problems from the customer’s perspective. We keep our clients relevant by building real, ongoing relationships with customers that in turn help them deliver superior experiences, launch successful products and build loyalty. Our customized approaches are tailored to specific business needs and include online insight communities, immersive storytelling, data and analytics, activation events, innovation projects and business consulting. We do this for many of the world’s best-known brands – like Bose, Walmart, Jaguar Land Rover, Mars, Samsung, IKEA and more – to create “Customer Inspired Growth”. Learn More Friends Our Friends AdThrill is an HBCU focused ad and insights platform dedicated to better connecting brands with multicultural audiences. Best known to HBCU students as the “World’s Easiest Side Hustle”, AdThrill pays college students to watch and rate ads online for the purpose of providing brands on-demand focus groups of these coveted audiences. AdThrill also works with brands to connect with HBCU student through on-campus activations via its Brand Marketing and Brand Ambassador programs. Highlight is a venture-backed, woman and minority-owned in-home product testing platform. The agile IHUT platform streamlines everything from recruit to data set, including all the logistics of getting your product to your target customers. Whether you’re targeting cat-owning millennials or retinol-using women over 50 in California, with Highlight you can get projects moving with just a few clicks and receive insights in weeks. Book a demo with us here. A key IIC partner, Mimconnect is a diversity consultancy helping companies recruit, retain, and develop diverse talent. Mimconnect works with a variety of companies from Fortune 500 to startups and nonprofits, and offers a variety of services and partnership levels designed to help an organization accomplish their DEI goals. ThinkNow enables companies and government agencies to discover the cultural drivers that influence consumer decisions. We provide insight solutions to help organizations thrive in a changing demographic environment. ThinkNow also owns and operates one of the largest and most representative Hispanic online panels in the industry, DigaYGane.com, which is used to service our own research as well as provide samples to the leading market research companies in the world.