Late Night Opening for Dunn and Laver

In London, research veterans Paul Laver and Douglas Dunn have opened a new consultancy, One Minute to Midnight, focusing on what it calls 'the 4 Dimensions of being Human'.

The agency aims to focus on 'putting the understanding of humans and their values at the centre of everything they do', allowing brands 'to connect in the most powerful and authentically human ways'.

Laver has more than 20 years of research experience, largely focused on brand development. For the past decade he has worked for Olive Insight, which he co-founded with Nick Pye and Justin Wright and which has been bought out as part of the 'One Minute' launch. Prior to this, he spent a decade at HPI Research, latterly as Partner, after a brief spell at Headlight Vision.

Dunn founded and built Tuned In Research, and as CEO established offices in both London & New York. After nine years with the company he left to work as a consultant and to 'plan the next business'.

The new company starts with eight employees, boasts 'senior backers from the marketing world, including an ex P&G marketeer', and says it is 'already in talks about launching local offices in the USA & China'. It is also working on a study, due for publication soon, called the Dimensions Project, described as 'a global exploration into human values and how they guide relationships with some of the world's biggest brands from Nike to Facebook'.

The name of the company stems from the idea of a 24-hour clock representing the history of the Earth, on which human beings appear only at 11.59pm. Dunn says of his new firm's philosophy: 'If you look at the best brands they connect with people on a deeply human level. There is an authenticity to those relationships. Our mission is to give marketeers insight with real meaning to shape and strengthen these connections. To achieve this we believe we have to firmly anchor everything in the human. We do this by understanding the 4 Dimensions of being Human, our actions, our feelings, our thoughts, and the most important dimension, our values. We believe Human values are like a powerful compass that guide the other three dimensions and ultimately our brand relationships. Through this understanding we can enable brands to create the most meaningful connections based around authentic human values'.

Web site: www.oneminutetomidnight.life .