March 11, 2024— Los Angeles, CA — Women in Research (WIRe), a global non-profit organization that champions diversity in the marketing research industry, has added four new members to its 2024 advisory board: Jackie Chan (Meta); Emma Cooper (System1); Alex Owens (Unilever); and Dr. Elaine Rodrigo (Reckitt). These new members will play a crucial role in strategically guiding the non-profit and further advancing its scope and mission worldwide.‍

Jackie Chan is an accomplished insights leader with 20+ years of experience in global B2B and B2C research and consulting in the Financial Services and tech sectors. Jackie joined Meta (formerly known as Facebook) in 2021 as Research Director. She supports a team of researchers focused on uncovering insights that drive product innovation and messaging experience optimization between people and businesses across Facebook/Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp. Prior to that, Jackie Chan was Vice President for Prudential Financial, where she was the head of Research and Analytics. Chan holds a master’s degree in Marketing Research from Baruch College Zicklin School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Binghamton University Harpur College of Arts and Sciences.  

She is also currently serving as Chair Elect, Board of Directors at the Insights Association.

Emma Cooper has been part of System1 since 2004, channeling her great energy to help it grow from a UK start up to a global industry leader. She treasures her diverse experience across the business, ultimately settling in global operations for over 5 years – which more than satisfied her curious and enquiring personality and her enjoyment of problem-solving. When Emma did her MBA she recognised her passion and clear talent for managing people. As a genuinely caring person it was a natural progression for Emma to join the Exec Team in April 2020 as Chief People Officer. Emma’s highly effective at spotting and nurturing talent. At every step along the way she supports people to be the very best they can be. Emma also advocates that a symbiotic relationship between individual growth and the growth of business leads to success for all. Additionally, Emma holds several volunteering roles, including Board Adviser for Surrey Business School and Ramsden Academy and Events Organiser for junior parkrun. She has 2 children and cherishes family time. Her adventurous spirit motivates her to experiment with different experiences and try out new hobbies and activities, particularly travel and exploring. Emma is also a keen runner, enjoying parkrun every Saturday, and regularly paddleboards. She’s also a member of a craft beer club.

Alex Owens is the CMI VP, Global Head of People Data Centre’s, Predictive Analytics, Shopping Insights, CMI Hive & Pricing at Unilever. He is also the Executive Sponsor of proUd, Unilever’s LGBTQI+ Community. Prior to joining Unilever, he was Head of Insight & Analytics at Sainsbury’s and before that had numerous Insight/Strategy and Analytics roles in Banking and Media. He started his career over 25 years ago at Millward Brown as Research Manager working across a range of large international FMCG clients e.g., Guinness Africa. After Millward Brown, Alex moved to the BBC where he formed part of the team that developed BBC iPlayer back in 2000 before moving to support the launch of Freeview.  He then moved to Sky during James Murdoch’s first reign before spending 5 years in banking, first with Capital One and then as Head of Strategy at Lloyds BankingGroup. Alex earned a first-class honours Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business & Economics from Aberdeen Business School, Robert Gordons University. He also completed his exec ed at Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Dr. Elaine Rodrigo is doing her 'dream job' at Reckitt, as Chief Insights & Analytics Officer. Known for her strong drive for impact, Elaine found her 'Why' evolving over time to be about People and Purpose. Today, she feels privileged to work on Reckitt’s efforts to drive positive societal impact and business growth via unlocking consumer behaviour change. With more than 20 years of FMCG experience, Elaine has transformed insights functions across Reckitt, Danone, and Mondelez/Kraft Foods, and currently sits on the Board of a Swedish tech start-up. A passionate champion of women's empowerment, Elaine feels strongly about diversity and inclusion. Starting from how she manages her own team, to building progressive company brands. She is the proud mother of two beautiful daughters, and committed towards raising them to be confident, forward-thinking women.

Upon announcement of the new Advisory Board positions, WIRe Managing Director Michelle Andre shared that, “our recent additions to the WIRe Advisory Board are outstanding reflections of the evolving identity of WIRe as an organization and the broader landscape of Market Research. Jackie, Emma, Alex, and Elaine have already provided critical leadership to our community as mentors, community members, and thought leaders, and we’re grateful to have their wisdom and expertise guiding us in the months to come.”

Babita Earle, Dyna Boen, Erica Van Lieven and Lynnette Cooke will retire as emeritus WIRe Board members in accordance with their term.

The new Board members join incumbent members Jo Brockhurst (Kantar), Laura Chaibi (Roku), Shazia Ginai (Catalyx), Tiama Hanson-Drury (Minna Technologies), Damon Jones (Burke, Inc.), and Cherie Leonard (Colgate-Palmolive). 

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For more information regarding Women in Research and the recent additions to their Advisory Board, reach out to Marketing Director Jessica Sage (jessica@womeninresearch.org)