Microsoft word - xenia apena resume, consumer experience & brand strategy.doc

XENIA APENA Brand Strategist and Qualitative Consumer Insights Specialist +44 (0) 744 616 8086 • xenia@nowronganswers.com • www.linkedin.com/in/xeniaapena • blog: www.manycutethings.com • Skype: xenia.apena A seasoned, international brand strategist/consumer insights professional looking to take my career to the next level in bringing brands to life through rich, multi-sensory experiences. I’m a holistic consumer experience architect in pursuit of the best practices in all aspects of omni-channel retail, from insights (qualitative – brand, new product development) to international retail planning and strategy. I believe that consumer journeys should be intuitive, as consumers are no longer just a voice; they are co-creators conspiring to make the brands they love great. Brand Strategist / Qualitative Researcher with 8 years of industry experience in Fashion & Beauty,
CPG/FMCG, Retail, EComm, Technology, Hospitality, Finance/Insurance, and Media.
Riva Institute trained moderator, fluent in English and Russian; spoken languages: French, Italian, Latvian
Crafting consistent brand experience across multiple disciplines & channels:
Consumer experience and consumer journey design
Approaches: Focus/discussion groups, mini-groups, IDIs (one-on-one interviews), ethnography, co-
creation, design research (participatory), online panels and surveys, mobile research, shop-alongs &
shopper intercepts, consumer diaries, customer persona development, retail audits
Setting and refining research objectives, tailoring research methodology and stimulus, arranging &
monitoring recruitment & logistics, developing screeners and materials (discussion guides, activities,
homework), selecting respondents, analysis & synthesis of data, delivering findings/reporting
Project management & client communications for international scope projects
Organizing and leading workshops, brainstorming and ideation sessions
Ipsos MORi, Associate Director, Qualitative, (6 mos contract), London, 07/2013 – 12/2013

Clients projects include: Nestle, Unilever, Diageo, L’Oreal, Lloyds Bank, Visa, Bordeaux wines, Barilla
• Scoping (proposal stage), planning, project management and fielding of international qualitative research • Management of fieldwork in other markets for Ipsos Global No Wrong Answers, Consumer Experience & Brand Strategy Consultant, NYC – London, 2009 – present
Clients include: Pitney Bowes (New York, NY), Mod Advisors, LLC (Columbus, OH), Fitch, Inc. (Global), Sachs
Insights (New York, NY), Mylogy (Columbus, OH), GudvinLand (Nice, France), CMH Magazine (Columbus, OH)

Working with clients on planning and execution of omni-channel consumer insights (mobile, online, brick &
mortar), global retail planning & strategy, brand-focused projects, competitive assessments, usability, information
architecture, social media
Pitney Bowes
• User experience and persona development research for pb.com via online methods
Mod Advisors, LLC
• Secondary research (financials, competitive assessment, growth strategies) for a Fashion brand client.
Fitch, Inc.
• Strategic initiative scope definition, research planning & execution, global retail audits (Fortune 500 client).
• Pitch and POV development, budgeting and planning, client communications.
Sachs Insights:
• Consumer research and strategic digital identity repositioning for a Fortune 500 client: redesign and relaunch
• Recruitment and location strategy, research methodology and fieldwork planning.
• Moderating ethnographies and focus groups, strategic modeling, persona development and collaboration on
Mylogy:
• Creation of a new brand identity for a consumer-centric online product and its’ web presence.
• Conducting stakeholder interviews, brand identity workshops to develop a common brand vision and take-
away documents. Collaborating on promotional video materials, partner presentations, and events. • Providing strategic direction for a creative agency partner on expressing brand visual identity, including logo and business collateral, website design and architecture. Lextant Corporation, Senior Design Researcher (12 mos contract), Columbus OH, 2010 – 2011

Clients included: P&G (FemCare), CNH (Farming Equipment, Division of FIAT), Diebold, Bob Evans

• Participatory design research (co-creation methods) for new product development projects
• Collaboration on research methodology, analysis, client workshops and deliverables. Preparation of research
Flamingo International, Senior Research Executive, New York, NY, 2008 – 2009
Clients included: PepsiCo (7Up), InterContinental Hotels Group, Reckitt Benckiser (Clearasil, Lysol), Diageo
(Guinness), Unilever (Vaseline), GMAC
• Management of multi-country qualitative consumer research studies, alongside foreign partners to accomplish project goals. Coordination of study content, methodology development and recruitment; moderating focus groups. Delivery of topline and final reports. • Co-management of strategic work on brand repositioning, new product development, new campaign development, concept testing, advertising testing, packaging design work.
FITCH Inc. (WPP), Brand Strategist, Columbus, OH, 2007 – 2008
Clients included: The Coca-Cola Company (Sprite), Johnson & Johnson, HSBC, WPP Corporate, Humana,
Pernod-Ricard (Olmeca), HON, MPowerLabs, Mango Financial, San Francisco Giftcenter and Jewelrymart, SBA
Furniture, Godfry’s

• Leading of collaborative, strategic initiative to reinvent Fitch’s Brand Positioning Model and coordinating prototype and methodology development, client communications, project planning, and research. • Co-management and execution of insights and strategy work, including such initiatives as global product innovation, brand repositioning, new product retail strategy, redefinition of brand & environments, new brand identity, naming, and consumer experience strategy.
User Insight, Data Analyst / Usability Professional, Atlanta, GA, 2005 – 2007
Clients included: Turner Broadcasting, AT&T, Bank of America, Landing Tree, CDC, InterContinental Hotels
Group, Celebrity Cruises, Beazer Homes, CheckFree, John Deere, I4Commerce

• Leading company’s market expansion strategic research; co-management and co-hosting of multi-city product development projects and their deliverables. • Administration and moderating of online research communities: crafting content and managing the influx of client and respondent input; quantitative survey design, implementation, analysis and reporting. EDUCATION

MBA, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA. International GRSP Scholarship, 2005
BA, Economics and Finance; University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia, 2003
BA, English Philology, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia, 2003

Advanced Moderating, Qualities of a Master Moderator, Fundamentals of Moderating, Qualitative Analysis
and Reporting, RIVA Institute, Rockville MD, 2011-2012
Fashion Design Pattern Making, CCAD, Columbus, OH, 2011
Advanced Business Writing, New York University, New York, NY, 2009

FOREIGN LANGUAGES

Fluent in English, Russian; good working knowledge of French, Italian, Latvian

AFFILIATIONS

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