Sylvia Guo Email & Phone Number

Arlington, Virginia

- Oversee 30+ domestic and global (U.K., Australian, New Zealand, Canadian) higher education clients’ research accounts totaling over $1M annual revenue; upsold existing client account while maximizing client retention by creating long-term research strategies and ensuring short-term research deliverables meet client objectives and provide value. - Supervise the full lifecycle of primary, secondary, and data analytics projects including scoping the research with clients, designing the research (e.g., determining methodology, creating sampling/analytical plans), working with multi-methodological research teams to execute the research (e.g., data analysis, insights creation), managing project financials to ensure projects stay on budget, and editing deliverables to ensure insightful findings, visually appealing content, and strategic and actionable recommendations. - Serve as the primary client contact for research, and interface independently with senior- and executive-level clients at various touchpoints including project scoping, debriefing completed projects, and long-term research planning; collaborate with Client Solution team to conduct executive consultations to further understand client needs, priorities, and business goals.- Collaborate with teams specialized in different methodologies for a variety of projects simultaneously (surveys, in-depth interviews, focus groups, quantitative data analyses, desktop research, literature reviews, etc.) and responsible for quality control on all client deliverables.- Manage and mentor entry-to-senior level research analysts within different methodological teams and grow their research and project management skills; supervise direct reports and create growth plans.

College Park, Maryland

- Led the creation of the Finance Unit’s brand-new Drupal website ahead of schedule, saving 10%+ ($5K+) of budget by designing website layout, engaging 10-12 key internal stakeholders to gather content, streamlining troubleshooting process with vendor, and editing/proofreading content.- Built and optimized microsite for a campus-wide compliance reporting system in less than 1 week by researching similar initiatives and vendor background, creating web copy, and conducting user experience research. - Gained quick rapport and buy-in with 4 higher-ed executives on content prioritization and communication strategies via brainstorming, active listening, presenting detailed plans, and immediate problem-solving. - Managed 4 website projects simultaneously while creating detailed training modules for internal stakeholders.

College Park, Maryland

- Established research expertise by achieving 4 peer-reviewed publications (3 collaborative), 12 conference presentations, and 2 third-place research awards (highly competitive) from the Public Relations Division of Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) annual conference. - Supervised the full lifecycle of 14 research projects individually or in teams of 2-6 including conducting literature review, designing survey questionnaires/interview protocols, recruiting participants, interpreting/synthesizing data, drawing actionable conclusions, delivering research in conferences and to publication outlets.- Delivered best-practice insights by arranging and conducting nearly 40 in-depth interviews with public relations and communication leaders on topics of management, strategy, ethics, and leadership.- Trained and coached 2 junior research assistants on data coding and analysis; taught public relations principles, social media strategies, and research methods to 130+ undergraduate students.

Ann Arbor, Michigan

- Won the competitive fellowship ($5K) by writing the best research proposal among 10-20 candidates.- Collaborated with a team of 3 on a new social media tracking research product for a key client by designing customized monthly deliverable, identifying appropriate metrics, aligning key definitions, qualitatively analyzing top-performing social media content, and generating actionable insights.- Gained client satisfaction within 6 weeks by identifying client needs and objectives, clarifying requests and methodologies, communicating findings, and recommending actionable strategies to enhance digital presence. - Published a paper (by the Institute for Public Relations) on corporate rebranding using qualitative media analysis.

San Francisco Bay Area & Waltham

- Collaborated with teams of 2-6 for 3-4 research projects (surveys, customer segmentations, executive interviews, etc.) simultaneously on brand strategy, marketing/advertising, customer insights, and product innovation for 4 Fortune 100 clients across multiple industries while meeting tight deadlines.- Led a key project by responding to client inquiries, managing 2 junior analysts, debriefing the project manager daily, monitoring project financials and timeline, and ensuring timely delivery of client reports. - Ensured quality of client deliverables by checking data integrity, summarizing key insights, providing actionable solutions, translating complex ideas into easily digestible content, and editing for overall clarity.- Developed and mentored 2 junior analysts and peer consultants by offering constructive feedback on tasks.- Supported internal operations and growth by collaborating with IT staff and data scientists, exchanging best practices with other project teams, and executing on company-wide priorities.

- Supported the editor with the following tasks: outreached to potential authors for manuscript submission, solicited reviewers and built rapport, maintained databases of authors, reviewers and manuscript archives.- Prepared, edited, and proofread papers for publication.

Doctor Of Philosophy (Phd), Public Relations, Organizational Communication, 3.95

Activities and Societies: Chair of Fundraising at COMMGrads (September 2017 - August 2018) | Instructor of Record/Graduate Teaching.

M.S., Public Relations And Applied Communication Research

Activities and Societies: Recipient: Hugo Shong Full Graduate Scholarship, Boston University, 2009-2010

B.S., English, 3.9

Activities and Societies: Recipient: Xi'an International Studies University Scholarship, 2003-2007 | Recipient: Outstanding Student.