Debra Kassarjian

Debra Kassarjian was a member of The Conference Board Marketing Research Council for a decade and was chair for many of those years.

Debra's other work is as an independent contractor providing services for clients who temporarily need a consumer insights director, project manager, or an interim consumer insights professional on site, or off-site, as part of a client’s team. Project areas cover research such as innovation and creating robust pipeline of new products, brand communication, or customer satisfaction research programs.

Debra was an instuctor at UCLA extension teaching Consumer Market Research, and a speaker at Innovate Pasadena as well as Springfield Business Journal Beyond Data Event.

In the role of Director of Consumer Insights, she worked for Fortune 500 companies such as ConAgra, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, IHOP, and Applebee’s. Additional CPG work included partnerships with Nestle, Whitewave, and Ventura Foods. Other experience  was in industries such as KBHome, Alcon, and Chevron. Her breadth of work included strategic projects setting the foundation for business building initiatives, as well as full innovation programs from ideation, concept testing, pipeline prioritization, and all product development phases.