Harris Insights & Analytics Expands US Team

In the US, Harris Insights & Analytics has hired Erica Parker to lead its Harris On Demand omnibus business; Kenesha Brown as Vice President of Sample Acquisition; and Merrill Raman as Chief Information Officer.

The Harris brand was acquired in January by The Stagwell Group, the investment advisory company formed by Penn Schoen Berland co-founder Mark Penn. The business, since renamed Harris Insights & Analytics, is best known for The Harris Poll, one of the longest running surveys in the US - tracking public opinion, motivations and social sentiment since 1963.

Parker joins from Nielsen, where she served as Director, Project Development and then Client Director, Consulting. Earlier, she was Senior Research Director at Harris Interactive, and a director at Penn, Schoen & Berland. In her new role, Parker will lead the relaunched omnibus business (formerly known as QuickQuery). She is joined by Brown, who most recently served as Director, Sample Strategy at Carbonview Research, having previously been Sample Manager at MetrixLab. Raman was recently Chairman of The Hayat Group, having spent the previous seven years as VP of Technology at Penn Schoen and Berland, where he was responsible for all aspects of IT planning, implementation and support worldwide.

Commenting on the latter appointment, COO Jonathan Gardner said: 'Our analytic and reporting technologies are the key underpinnings of our data-driven consulting methodologies. Merrill brings a unique blend of technology and business acumen and will be instrumental in achieving our vision and strategy for the company. We are delighted to welcome him to the organization'.

Web sites: www.stagwellgroup.com and www.harrisinsights.com .