Jing Zhao - Rookie of the Year 2008

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Research Manager
MBA, Dip.Econ.; Dip.Mkting, BA

Jing brings an impressive range of qualifications and experience to Synovate.

Based in China until 2002, Jing obtained a Bachelor of Arts and a Postgraduate Diploma in Economics and International Trading, which led to a marketing role at an international trading company.

With an increasing enthusiasm towards marketing, Jing came to NZ and in the last five years earned a Graduate Diploma in Marketing from MIT; an MBA (hons) from AUT; and achieved the ASB Business Banking Award for the top MBA student in 2007.

This led to a successful research role at TNS, where Jing mainly worked on projects within the financial sector.  On joining Synovate in 2007 she has been able to quickly apply her financial research experience to the many clients that Synovate  also has in this sector – as well as branching out into other areas.

Winner of the Inaugural Rookie of the Year Award

The 2008 Market Research Effectiveness Awards introduced a new category, 'Rookie of the Year', open to those with less than two year's market research experience, proven effectiveness on major projects and nominated by senior researchers.

The finalists were Stephanie Mckenzie of Nielsen; Alicia Fox of Focus Research; Samantha Kattan of Nielsen; and Synovate's own Jing Zhao.

We are rapt that Jing Zhao won the inaugural award!

What the judges said ...

 

All of our finalists have been in the industry for less than 2 years but within that time had already demonstrated super-star tendencies that would mark them as industry leaders for the future.  In fact the applications from each of the four peoples managers were so compelling that we definitely needed to meet them all to help us make a final decision.

 

The three judges were drawn from a loose group of seasoned researchers called the Fellows. Joining me was David Fougere from Phoenix and Richard Dunbar from Nexus.  Our interviews with Samantha, Alicia, Stephanie and Jing were based on the idea that they were applying for a middle management role within a research company (NOT Phoenix) and that this would be quite a stretch role for someone still relatively new to the industry. The themes we were considering included team work, passion for the business, connection with the consumers and clients, innovation and long term commitment to the MR profession

 

David, Richard and I were all very impressed by the calibre of the answers,  questions   and the ideas that  all four applicants presented. We certainly  learnt some new ideas, particularly what the future for NZ’s MR industry might look like.

 

I think the standout for Richard was one of the finalist observation that MR companies and consulting companies like BCS are essentially the same , except the consultants don’t seem need to use any  data to substantiate their recommendations. I might try that for the upcoming political polls

 

It is never easy have to select a winner from such a talented group of people but one person did emerge as someone really special who we thought would be an inspiration for her clients and her colleagues, and could genuinely bring new perspectives to our industry .

 

The winner of the inaugural MRS Rookies Award is Jing Zhao of Synovate!

 

What Debra Hall of Synovate said...

Jing joined Synovate after what must have been a very upsetting start to a research career. Having joined TNS with stellar academic credentials, she was made redundant after just 3 months – a huge knock to anyone’s selfesteem.

Jing immediately applied herself to the task of learning about how Synovate does research. She fitted in well with our eclectic team, all working together in an open-plan environment, which can be a little overwhelming to anyone of a quiet disposition. She was immediately allocated to provide research analytical support on the Vodafone tracking projects, where she is responsible for providing regular client updates on complex data sets.

When we were looking for a second research executive on our Commonwealth Bank account, Jing was the obvious choice. I run this account with support from two researchers, who need to work very closely together not only to keep the project (an online tracker of 500 interviews each work) running smoothly, but to ensure that the regular change-outs take place accurately and on time. Jing has an amazing work ethic, and is always willing to put in extra hours as required – even staying behind one night to help me meet a deadline when, unbeknown to me, she had moved house that day, and went home close to midnight to start unpacking boxes! Late night shifts are not the norm for Synovate researchers, but we certainly appreciate it when people are willing to do the extra when required.

Most striking is Jing’s constant desire for feedback to help her improve. After each project, she pro-actively seeks feedback, asking specific questions about her performance in a way which encourages honest and direct answers. These she takes immediately to heart, and with every project, her work improves.  Most impressive is her ability to draw context from her academic learning to answer client questions or suggest views which may not have been readily obvious from the data. When CBA launched a new branding campaign, with a positioning line Determined to be Different, Jing prepared a short presentation for me to us talking about how this strategy could potentially soften their association with category leadership, based on theoretical principles. This type of thinking sets her apart from other young researchers and has identified her, in my mind, as one of the future stars of our industry.

At a time when she could easily have walked away from research and pursued a wider business career that her qualifications so clearly fit her to do, she stuck with research, and my hope is that we’ll be able to maintain her commitment for the long term.