2025 GRIT Business & Innovation Report

Turning Data into Decisions: A Day in the Life of an Insights Leader

Behaviorally’s AI-powered testing tools turn data into actionable guidance, helping brands convert shopper behavior into winning purchase moments.

Katie O’Connor

Senior Vice President of Key Accounts, UK

Behaviorally

From Task Automation to Transformation: Aligning Leaders and ICs in the GenAI Era

Economic strain meets AI opportunity: GRIT and Qualtrics data show researchers adopting GenAI to automate tasks and sustain insights performance.

Ali Henriques

Head of Market Research

Qualtrics

The Expanding Constellation of Insights Collaborators

Insights no longer flow top-down. GRIT data shows a connected, data-literate ecosystem where analytics, marketing, and research collaborate to learn.

Rick Kelly

Chief Strategy Officer

Fuel Cycle

Empowerment Isn’t a Tool. It’s a Partnership.

The DIY boom gave research speed but not clarity. Learn how aytm helps brands blend technology with expertise for smarter, strategy-driven insights.

Stephanie Vance

VP, Customer Experience & Research Strategy

aytm

From Efficiency to Empathy: Reclaiming What Makes Insights Strategic

The GRIT Report reveals shrinking budgets and rising pressure. Insights leaders must balance AI efficiency with empathy to stay connected and relevant.

Aneesh Dhawan

Co-founder & CEO

Knit

Who Really Decides (For Now)? Mapping the Power Structure Behind Insights Decisions

Technology is transforming who knows the customer best. Amid AI and data floods, human-centered insights remain brands’ strongest advantage.

Andrew Reid

CEO and Founder

Rival Group

Innovation Isn’t About Being First, It’s About Removing Friction

The 2025 GRIT Report shows true innovation isn’t just about AI—it’s about reducing friction between data and decisions through clarity and collaboration.

Matilda Sarah

Co-Founder + VP Sales & Marketing

Displayr

Rebuilding Trust: Why “Good Enough” Insights Aren’t Good Enough Anymore

The insights industry faces a trust crisis. GRIT shows it’s not a tech issue but a relationship one—authenticity must replace efficiency.

Laura Pulito

Vice President of Research

Recollective Inc.

Strategic & Financial Implications for Market Leaders

AI adoption drives a permanent market shift. GRIT 2025 reveals tech-led growth and steep declines among service-led research providers.

Elaine Riddell

Managing Director

Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips

Beyond the Divide: Why Integration, Not Specialization, Defines the Future of Insights

Tech and service models are converging. GRIT reveals that true innovation now depends on integrating technology, data, and human interpretation.

Mary Lois Smith

VP, Market Research

Suzy

Bias-Free and Insight-Rich! Why Conversational AI Is the Future of Market Research

Even great moderators carry bias. Discover how phrasing and group dynamics quietly steer conversations and influence research outcomes.

Hanna Krazhan

Chief Commercial Officer

Yasna

The Learning Professional: Redefining the Architecture of Human Intelligence

AI is reshaping research, but the biggest shift is human. Borderless Access explores how empathy and analytics unite in the age of intelligence.

Dushyant Gupta

Chief Operating Officer

Borderless Access

Owning Our Destiny: A Strategic Response to Supplier Pressures

The insights supply side faces structural shifts, not trends. Agencies must prove their value through sharper connection, creativity, and innovation.

Matthew Lintern

Global CEO

MMR Research

Brand Side Roles and Teams – A View of Today and What Is Ahead?

AI is blurring lines between researchers and analysts. GRIT reveals analysts driving AI adoption while researchers uphold methodology and quality.

Alain Briancon, PhD.

Vice President of Research & Data Science Research Sciences

Dynata