Sara Mcdonald Email & Phone Number

St. Louis, Mo, Us

- Support insights for innovation, brand, and customer marketing across the full Kraft Heinz Away From Home portfolio, including Heinz, Philadelphia, Kraft, Lunchables, A.1., Grey Poupon, Primal Kitchen, and more- Spearhead consumer and operator-led innovation for the business unit expected to deliver the most growth over a five-year period- Play a pivotal role in shaping brand and product strategy by translating platform brand guidelines to the foodservice space- Bolster external engagement by leading presentations to key customers such as Burger King and 7-Eleven on food insights and trends, establishing the company as a thought leader in the industry- Inform customer marketing and sales on consumer and operator needs and whitespace opportunities, enabling more productive conversations with external partners- Selected as a distinguished speaker at the 2023 Restaurant Leadership Conference to present insights on the origin and evolution of food trends in the Away From Home space- Lead the tracking and analysis of relevant culture and food trends, delivering actionable insights to guide organizational decision-making and driving business growth- Develop and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders, fostering collaboration and ensuring a deep understanding of market dynamics

Greater St. Louis Area

• Responsible for establishing and developing the consumer insights function from the ground up, and growing it from a service provider model to a strategic partner and source of competitive advantage• Consumer Insights team leader, with direct reports who conduct research and strategy work across all four business units• Informs cross-functional strategy through consumer insights up to senior leadership, including the CEO and board of directors• Drives change across the organization, as we shift from a retailer-lead to a consumer-centric business model• Leads innovation in partnership with marketing and R&D through product user experience and strategic product development• Establishes best practices for all consumer research needs, including innovation, concept testing, attitude and usage, brand positioning, brand equity, segmentation, path to purchase, packaging, ad testing, sensory research, and more• Builds and maintains an internal library that houses brand, industry, and custom research• Explores and evaluates cutting edge research methodologies, technologies, and partnerships• Acts as an educator, thought leader, and strategic business partner to support the brand teams and drive growth

St. Louis City County, Missouri, United States

St Louis, Missouri, United States

Greater St. Louis Area

Greater Chicago Area

Custom research development, project management and analysis totaling more than $1M annually for a variety of industries• Shopper insights research to understand various drivers of grocery retail choice in a localized market, and an in-person research project conducted in a simulated retail setting to test the effectiveness of various in-store test displays• Coordination of a large nationally representative brand tracker for a premium cable television channel that included deliverables of more than 25 unique reports each year, as well as numerous ad hoc reports throughout the year • Management and deep-dive analysis for a market segmentation study, as part of a marketing over-haul for a quickly growing children’s programming network• Hosting of a short-term online community with a qualitative focus, in conjunction with an online quantitative survey, to understand media consumption trends of Millennials, for a widely syndicated study• Spearheaded a series of internal research-on-research projects to understand the demographic and psychographic makeup of an alternate sample source to provide significant cost savings for the company

Greater Chicago Area

Blackstone Group is a full-service, custom marketing research firm with over 23 years of experience providing our clients with actionable insights using state-of-the-art, in-house resources.* Responsible for project management throughout the entire duration of the project, from conceptualization and execution to data analysis and reporting* Analyze data and prepare results, recommendations and solutions for clients in variety of industries, including advertising and public relations, financial services and insurance, technology and consumer packaged goods* Project work experience includes a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative methodologies, B2B and B2C projects, international research in 23 countries and multicultural focuses* Featured projects include the 2011 Edelman Trust Barometer, Nationwide's "On Your Side Tour" with Tavis Smiley, Banker's Life Retirement Preparedness Study and New Road to Retirement Study

* Conducted professional research, media analysis, content filtering, and report production on a daily, weekly, quarterly and ad hoc basis * Produced client deliverables for top decision-makers at Microsoft to help them gain insight on influencers, brand placement, competitive landscape, and communications strategies * Prepare and present findings and moderate discussions based on these deliverables, including recommendations on how to create, improve, and/or sustain company brands and values

- Managed client orders through every stage, from business lead to post-order follow-up - Formatted and prepared client’s artwork regarding placement, color, size, and imprint method for item production - Assembled product presentations for clients by scanning, downloading, and manipulating images

- Developed and managed carrier accounts through daily negotiations for services - Worked with carriers and customer entities to solve logistical problems in a manner that satisfied all parties involved - Continuously worked to find effective and creative solutions to unique logistical needs

Masters Of Science, Integrated Marketing Communications

Activities and Societies: - Beta Gamma Sigma High Honors Society - Strategic Consulting Group at Loyola University - Marketing Club.

Bs, Applied Psychology