Over the last 25 years, B2B International has grown from a single office in Manchester, UK, to a global business with more than 100 employees, spread over 13 offices and 3 continents!
As a result of this business growth, so too has our leadership team grown and now counts on 150 years’ collective experience working at B2B International and reflects a diverse set of backgrounds, knowledge, and skillsets.
We therefore wanted to share each of our leadership team’s stories with you, including their experiences working at B2B International and in the market research industry, the personal achievements they’re most proud of, and most importantly, the lessons learned along the way and their advice for aspiring leaders.
In part 2 of our ‘Meet Our Leaders’ series, we’ll be sharing the stories of:
To learn more about all our leaders, view the full PDF here.
Julia Doheny
President, North America | New York
How long have you worked for B2B International?
Over 17 years.
What’s your favorite thing about working for B2B International?
It’s difficult to limit it to one thing but I can narrow it down to three:
Variety: In the U.S. alone we work for around 60 clients per year spanning numerous industries and markets. We address a range of business objectives through custom research, from how to build differentiated brands to launching new products and enhancing the customer experience. I’m constantly learning something new and love the fresh challenges each day brings.
Specialism: Our USP revolves around our deep B2B experience and expertise. This has resulted in an impressive client portfolio of over 900 client companies including half of the world’s largest 100. We’re proud of what we have achieved through our unwavering commitment to B2B.
Culture: Given the amount of time in our lives that we spend at work, the company culture plays a key role in job satisfaction and more broadly business success. The culture at B2B International is very caring and collaborative. Several years after having been acquired by one of the largest advertising networks in the world, we still maintain the strong people-first focus we had as a much smaller, family business.
Why market research?
In full transparency I fell into market research by accident! My original career path was conducting research for TV documentaries, but I fancied a change and pursued a different direction of commercial research. I’m so glad I did as I then became passionate about B2B. With B2B research we get the opportunity to make an impact through insights that affect so many stakeholders – from the employees who power brands to the organizations and individuals that choose and use them.
What’s your favorite thing about working for a Merkle company?
As a Merkle company we’re a part of a much bigger, recognized brand with award-winning talent. Merkle is a frontrunner in enabling brands with customer experience transformation, so we have access to both the knowledgebase and skillsets that drive change, especially in the digital ecosystem. This also means we’re able to provide our clients with more integrated solutions that go far beyond insights, therefore making a much greater impact.
What’s the best advice you’ve been given?
A former boss once told me to try not to worry about things that are outside of my control. It’s easier said than done but I’ll often think of this as it’s saved a lot of energy!
Which personal achievement are you most proud of?
My biggest achievement by far is my daughter. It’s a deep, shared love with my husband that goes beyond words.
What advice would you give to aspiring leaders?
In my view, a key responsibility of a leader is to bring the best out of others to enable shared success. In other words, think rock band, not rock star.
Matthew Powell
VP & Executive Director, North America | Los Angeles
How long have you worked for B2B International?
18 years!
What’s your favorite thing about working for B2B International?
Working with a diverse bunch of very smart people – both colleagues and clients – to solve some of the biggest challenges in the B2B space.
Why market research?
We get to help our clients build their businesses around the needs of their customer – whether it be their brands, their experiences, their marketing content, or the products they create – research helps bring the customer into the heart of the business and makes businesses more human-centric. Research as a discipline also means that every working day is different – there is always something new to learn, and a new problem to solve.
What’s your favorite thing about working for a Merkle company?
Being part of Merkle B2B means we have such a wide array of B2B specialists all ‘under one roof’ – this gives us the opportunity to do some pretty exciting work for our clients, and to develop solutions for our clients that haven’t been done before in B2B.
What’s the best advice you’ve been given?
It’s better to be roughly right than precisely wrong.
Which personal achievement are you most proud of?
Running my first marathon a few years ago. It was something I felt strongly I would never consider doing – so going through the process of training, running further and further with each training run, and then finally running the marathon was an incredible experience, and impacted me in many more ways that running a race.
What advice would you give to aspiring leaders?
If there’s an element of your career that you really enjoy and are passionate about, follow that path – it is often a clue to what makes you unique. Take the initiative, help drive things forward, and always aim to build strong relationships.
Wendy Joice-Denhard
Research Director | Midwest
How long have you worked for B2B International?
3 years.
What’s your favorite thing about working for B2B International?
I really enjoy learning about organizations’ challenges and helping them meet their objectives through research. I get a lot of satisfaction when a project is successfully completed. The variety of research initiatives and industries we work in makes every day unique. Finally, the people I work with at B2B are amazing.
Why market research?
With each project I work on, I learn something new. I love that about research and it’s really what’s kept me here.
What’s your favorite thing about working for a Merkle company?
Learning more about what happens to a project both before and after the research is completed.
What advice would you give to aspiring leaders?
Work to build strong relationships throughout the entire organization, not just with your department, your peers or your managers. Take time to laugh with your co-workers. Make your relationship with your colleagues and direct reports a safe space and empower them to grow.
Adam Jones
Senior Research Director | New York
How long have you worked for B2B International?
10 years.
What’s your favorite thing about working for B2B International?
Spending every day with the diverse and highly skilled team that we have, and the opportunity to support some of the largest brands in the world in developing and optimizing their strategy in addressing a wide range of business challenges.
Why market research?
B2B market research presents a great chance to listen, learn, and adapt by leveraging direct feedback from a huge range and variety of decision-makers and internal stakeholders.
What’s your favorite thing about working for a Merkle company?
Leveraging the team of highly skilled and specialized individuals, to provide a comprehensive end-to-end offering and support clients.
What’s the best advice you’ve been given?
Every day is a school day and there is always a chance to learn and improve.
Which personal achievement are you most proud of?
Learning to ski and tackling some of the largest mountains in North America.
What advice would you give to aspiring leaders?
Be open to internalizing advice from all levels of the organization as capturing diverse and fresh perspectives is critical to personal and professional growth.
Further Reading
Meet the Rest of our Leaders
If you have any questions or want to discuss your research requirements with any of our leaders, the contact details for each office can be found here or by clicking below .
