Company History
Founded in 2017, Echo Market Research provides a range of qualitative and quantitative services to researchers, marketers, insights professionals, and software companies. Woman owned and with offices in the US, UK, Australia, and across Latin America, our team has decades of experience being the client. We love what we do and we’re excited to partner with you.
Kerry Hecht
Founder & CEO
I’m one of the lucky people who fell into a career I loved. Market Research has been my work and my passion for over 25 years and Echo was founded out of that passion. It is my belief that the connections we make in our industry, between brands and consumers, make life better. I’m a vocal advocate for research participants and actively involved in many different industry initiatives. My experience, as a supplier and a researcher is the foundation…
for the service we provide. In addition to being a research geek, I’m a mother to a human and three dogs.
Jay Tye
COO
In his nearly 20 years of experience in the market research industry, Jay has honed his ability to see the big picture and identify opportunity spaces that will ensure every project’s success. Prior to joining the Echo team, Jay held leadership positions at well-known market research companies in Tampa, Atlanta and New York City building strong relationships with both clients and colleagues. He is passionate about research and is…
always looking for new and innovative ways to improve operational efficiencies and drive quality improvement initiatives. When he’s not working you can find Jay BBQ’ing, making music, biking around Portland, and playing with his two French bulldogs, Biscuit & Frank the Tank.
Bill Tucker
CFO
Bill is a seasoned financial professional with over 20 years of experience across various industries including CPG, Healthcare, and Automotive. His passion for data and the stories it can tell are the backbone of his career. Most recently Director of Operations Analytics with a Fortune 1000 company located in Dallas, TX, he brings a passion for entrepreneurial enterprise, hands-on leadership, and a can-do-attitude. While not pouring over giant datasets and…
spreadsheets to help guide companies to the next level, he enjoys live music, hiking, and the occasional output of the Lincoln County Process.
Steve Becker
Senior Vice President of Research & Strategy
Steve has worked in marketing research for 20 years. After finding his passion for this business as an intern and working his way through numerous roles, Steve has held leadership positions at several research and strategy firms including starting and running the NY Office of a small startup research firm and owning his own for 4 years. Steve jumped at the opportunity to join Echo. Steve’s passion is helping clients develop strategies and build on existing…
ideas using creative techniques to learn about consumer needs and behaviors.
Steve has helped develop qualitative and quantitative research approaches that have helped drive product, advertising and brand strategies across a wide range of clients in various categories including American Express, Apple, Barkbox, Dunkin’ Donuts, GE, Marriott Hotels, Pepsi, Pernod Ricard, Travelers Insurance, Twitter and YouTube.
Outside of work, Steve is a sports fan and still plays Ice Hockey. He lives with his girlfriend and his dog Duke. Steve has a B.S. in Marketing from Syracuse University (which is why he doesn’t like his dog’s name).
Ashleigh Purcell
Director of Research & Talent Development
Ashleigh has worked in Sydney, New York and Europe as a marketing insights consultant and moderator. Driven by a curiosity for people, she has led global research across markets using a range of methodologies, including focus groups, in-depth interviews, shop-a-longs, co-creation, and online ethnographies. With a passion for understanding the “why” behind human behaviour, she translates findings into tangible stories with clear business implications…
She has experience across categories, including health, beauty, beverages, and snack foods.
With so much transformation across categories, she is particularly interested in partnering with brands to tackle the challenge of keeping up with their consumer. Nimble approaches to insights has never been more important – it’s an exciting time to be in market research!
John Holcombe
Senior Vice President of Latin American Research
John started his 25-year+ research career conducting cable TV demand studies. Door-to-door. In Tijuana, Mexico. Over the years he’s worked in almost every country in the Americas: as the account planner for BBDO Miami/Latam, VP of Latin America with Synovate, and Principal at IMG, John he has conducted hundreds of quantitative and qualitative research projects in the region…
John authored five editions of the Latin American Market Planning Report and three editions of the U.S. Hispanic Market Study and served as co-Chair of the Multicultural Advisory Committee with the Advertising Research Foundation. He is a frequent speaker at conferences on international marketing and has contributed articles and interviews to Business Week, Advertising Age International, América Economía, Bloomberg Online, Latin Trade, The Wall Street Journal, and the EIU’s Business Latin America. He received M.A. in Latin American Studies from the University of Connecticut Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, as a Title VI U.S. Department of Education Fellow.
Alexander Perez
Operations Director & EU Lead
Over the last 10 years Alex has accumulated insights across several business sectors as a project manager, including entertainment, transportation and of course, market research. Since 2018 he has been coordinating and delivering successful B2B, Health Care and Consumer market research projects, leaving a wide variety of clients satisfied.
In 2016, Alex finished with honors his PhD in Environmental and Agricultural Economics…
and worked briefly as university docent for master students. He speaks three languages fluently: German, English and Spanish. His hobbies are teaching Latin American couple dance styles and reading history and philosophy.
Izzy Nurdin
Marketing & Business Development Consultant
Izzy has a passion for cultural immersion and understanding which has led him to live in and contribute to communities around the world. Spanning over 20 years in Sales, Marketing and Client Development Izzy’s career has given him opportunities to work in cities as diverse as Cape Town, Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai. His thirst for figuring out what makes people tick, meant it was a natural fit when he joined the Market Research industry 6 years ago, passing on his knowledge and experience to help…
companies understand the people who matter most to them.
Outside of Echo, Izzy enjoys family time, rugby, travelling and has a love of cinematography, enabling him to capture human interactions and seemingly mundane life-stories with a unique perspective.
Mark Atty
Operations Director & APAC Lead
You can find Mark Down Under lapping up the Aussie heat riding his motorbike, wakeboarding and obsessing over his Maltese Terrier ‘Punk’. Originally hailing from the UK, Mark made the move to Australia 12 years ago to further his Market Research career, focusing growth within Asia Pacific.
Having previously worked with leading research companies worldwide, Mark thrives on projects that require out of the box ideas…
Bring Mark a project that he can sink his teeth into and he’ll be your new best friend.
Jake Castillo
Junior Research Associate & Ads Lead
Jake is a creative digital marketer/researcher with a passion for consumer behavior and market trends. After graduating from the University of Southern California with a Master of Arts in Communication Management, Jake began working for a small market research firm before moving on to a full-service marketing agency in Los Angeles. These experiences have helped Jake hone his ability to connect and engage with a wide array of consumers. When he’s not working, Jake enjoys traveling, surfing…
all over southern California, golfing and writing for the soccer blog, OneGoal.
Desirae Cox
Senior Project Director & Community/Panel Solutions Lead
Upon graduating with her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Rhetorical Communication from Bowling Green State University in 2015, Desirae’s market research career began in the greater Toledo, OH area. She now resides in Columbus, OH and will attain her Master of Arts degree in Strategic Communication and Social Media marketing in December of 2020. With four and a half years of Project Management experience from leading companies in the industry, her experiences include questionnaire…
design, quantitative recruitment, building client relations, survey programing, and drafting training documents to ensure her peers all utilize the best practices available. She strives on combining her professional experience with higher education to continuously add value to customer relationships and think creatively to make our organization stand apart. Her competitive personality enjoys challenges that require critical thinking and strives to learn all aspects of Market Research from her peers and mentors. Her desire to problem-solve, provide excellent service, and continuously learn makes Market Research the perfect industry with it’s ever-changing needs.
When she is not thinking about research Desirae is passionate about traveling the world, playing music, and training in the Martial Art of Kajukenbo. In her free time you can find her enjoying a local micro-brew, competing at trivia, or reading at home with her two beloved cats.
Jadah Chatterton-Richmond
Operations Manager
Jadah has over fifteen years in Customer Service, with a specialized focus on trend analysis and pattern recognition. She spent over a decade working in the insurance industry. During this time, she generated training and remediation techniques that improved customer tenure through the development of a behavioral auditing system that quantified how to create memorable experiences for customers, while still focusing on the corporate objectives of growth and profitability. Jadah has a strong grasp on…
both verbal and written communication with a Bachelors in English, and loves the fluidity of Market Research and it’s ever changing industry.
Greg Fain
Senior Project Director & Bid Coordinator
Greg is a seasoned market researcher with approximately 25 years of experience on both the agency and supplier side. He has a strong background in both qualitative and quantitative research among consumers and B2B in a wide range of industries – with a strong focus on international work. He continually seeks out new innovations and challenges in this industry.
Sean Kehoe
Project Manager
Sean began his market research journey as an interviewer while pursuing his Computer Science degree at Kent State University. What started off as a part time job quickly turned into a career. He quickly moved from interviewer, to supervisor, and then managed a local focus facility for the next six years. Throughout his schooling, he developed a love for problem solving and data which greatly helped him in his market research career.. Sean enjoys a challenge and finding unique ways to get a job done…
when things start to get tough.
In his spare time, Sean enjoys reading, playing and listening to music, agonizing over Cleveland sports, browsing Reddit, and spending time with his wife, daughter, two dogs and cat.
Alan Patrick
Senior Project Director & Lead Trainer
Hands-on leader with years of achievement in market research, financial and marketing services with developed flexibility to lead across multiple industries. Alan’s market research career includes Project Management, Client Executive and Sales with extensive knowledge of the entire research process regardless of the maturity model of the client. Alan possesses a proven ability to successfully managing strategic vendor relationships by setting strategy, driving profitable growth, and creating strong partnerships with vendors.
Christy Ruegamer
Senior Project Director & Team Lead
Christy brings to Echo and our clients 20 years of market research experience. Having successfully managed thousands of qualitative and quantitative projects, she offers a wealth of experience to draw on that allows her to lead projects through their life cycles in the most efficient and effective way possible. Christy is committed to the role of partner with clients and enjoys working with them to ensure project success. Throughout her tenure in project management, she has collaborated…
with a variety of clients across diverse markets including technology, utilities, consumer package goods, healthcare, and government agencies. Through this wide expanse of project exposure, she has developed an outstanding perspective on understanding how to trouble shoot and creatively exceed client expectations.
Christy is frequently found traversing an ever present maze of Legos her son leaves behind, whipping up new culinary creations and planning her next travel adventure!
Tim Tauber
Senior Project Director & QA Lead
Tim began his market research career at the age of 16 starting as a mall interviewer, and eventually working his way up to supervisor and then assistant manager at a local research firm. Eager to advance further, Tim joined a larger market research firm in 2003 as a mall manager. After finishing college and gaining valuable experience, Tim decided to pursue his dream of being an entrepreneur and launched his very own market research company in late 2005. From there, Tim quickly learned all aspects of…
running a small mall intercept business with multiple offices on the East Coast. He credits his success to the core values he learned along the way – to deliver a quality project, with the highest ethical standards, on time! Tim earned his Professional Researcher Certification (PRC) from the Market Research Association and continued professional education. In May of 2012 an opportunity came about for Tim to join Opinions, Ltd. Opinions, Ltd took over Tim’s former company and Tim came on board as a location manager. Over the past few years he has dabbled in many different roles before landing as a project manager in 2017. This role allowed him to use all of his experience to successfully manage projects by following the appropriate protocols with the highest level of integrity. Wanting a change of pace, and intrigued by the unique recruiting methods, Tim joined Echo Market Research in 2019. Tim holds a degree in Business Administration from Mercyhurst University and resides in Erie, PA with his wife Amy, and two daughters.
Ana Maria Vanegas
Full Service Research Director
Ana has 15 years of market research experience leading accounts across multiple countries and industries in Latin America. Ana developed her career in a large multinational market research company in Colombia, managing global and local accounts and helping brands to connect with their consumers by identifying opportunities for brands’ growth.
Her experience includes clients like…
Diageo, Pepsi, Nestle, British American Tobacco, Pfizer, Mondelez, L’oreal, and Alpina.
She also has experience managing department projects for Latin America, developing new procedures and improving operational efficiencies, ensuring every project’s success.
Her passion is to understand clients’ needs, to find the best market research approach and transform data into actionable insights in order to create opportunities for consumers and brands.
Outside of work, she enjoys aerobic exercise, and spending time with her two young kids and family in her native city of Bogota, Colombia.
Laura Hunnicut
Project Manager
Laura loves data. Sifting through what motivates the mind and reacting to that information is where her passion lies. With a Bachelors degree in Liberal Studies and a Masters degree in Educational Psychology, she found herself drawn to researching human behavior. With years of experience in the realm of special education, her Masters degree in Educational Psychology ironically led her to the world of market research, which sparked a sense of joy she’d not yet found in her career…
In her free time, she enjoys reading and hiking, and finds traveling to be what settles her soul. She also sincerely appreciates puns, so send those her way, always.
Alex Norman
Project Manager
Fernanda Scarpari
Project Manager (LATAM)
program while achieving her bachelor’s degree in social sciences. Since then she has been passionate about helping clients achieve their research goals and objectives by successfully managing their projects end-to-end.
Having left her hometown in Brazil to build a family in Chile, Fernanda likes to spend her
time analyzing the differences and similarities of both cultures, when not binge-watching
Netflix series. With a toddler to call her own, she has just recently mastered the art of
stepping on Legos.
Thania Torres
Project Manager
Based in her hometown of sunny Los Angeles, Thania brings immense enthusiasm for market research, which has only grown stronger over her last five years in the industry. After graduating with a Sociology degree from Cal State Northridge, Thania found her passion for the field by exploring careers that would fulfill her intrigue in analytics, puzzle-making (and solving), and behavioral trends. What she enjoys the most about research is tracking the influence that society has on consumer decisions, and…
then, the stories that begin to form.
Outside of the industry, Thania enjoys traveling, getting creative with her fiancé on his screenwriting, or playing “fetch” with her German Shepherd named “Stimpy” – yes, after the cat from Ren & Stimpy.
Latin America
Leticia Barrera
Recruiter
Leticia has been a recruiter with Echo since 2020. She excels in customer service and has worked in various industries such as insurance, financial services, medical equipment and medical transportation. She loves to spend her free time watching TV, dancing and trying new food. She also enjoys spending time outdoors with family and friends, and is always looking to be better and succeed in this road we call life.
Mario Beltran
Junior Project Assistant
each project. He is currently living and working from El Salvador, and is able to assist on English and Spanish projects.
Luciano Benedetto
Recruiter
Luciano is a 24 year old graphic designer who has always dedicated his professional career to customer service. Starting from a young age in an experiential marketing company, he acquired the necessary tools and knowledge to carry out all the assigned tasks for his role in market research, and he carries out each task with an amazing level of responsibility and predisposition. Any task is accepted with seriousness and he loves a good challenge.
Marjorie Canizalez
Recruiter
Marjorie lives in San Salvador, ES. After spending years working in customer service, sales and interpretation, she made the transition in 2020 to join Echo. She is in the process of getting her Bachelors in Business Administration. She spends her free time with her family and friends, doing things like spending time outdoors, running and climbing, watching Netflix series, and playing and enjoying new adventures with her daughter Sophie.
Fabricio Clemente
Junior Project Assistant
Fabricio is a project assistant who works to execute administrative assignments. His has 10 years worth of experience in customer care and sales, which has brought him success in the field of market research. He started his career in BPO in 2009, and it is here that he developed the skills necessary to escalate as quality assurance member, Team Lead, and workforce analyst. Fabricio holds a degree (English Language Oriented) from University Catolica De El Salvador and is currently on his way…
to get certified in Social Media Marketing from Brigham Young University (Idaho).
When he’s not in the office, he loves to enjoy time with his 2 daughters and his beloved wife, either in an outdoor activity or just taking a weekend trip as a local tourist. He also spends his free time playing the trumpet with his ska band.
Laís Fonseca
Project Assistant
Laís is a Brazil-based Project Assistant who’s currently getting a degree in International Economic Relations at the University of Minas Gerais. Laís is mom to the sweetest girl, loves playing sports, singing in the shower, reading books, and watching Disney movies. In addition to Portuguese, she speaks English, Spanish and currently learning French. Prior to Echo, she worked as a Project Manager Assistant for one year and two years consulting with clients around the globe.
Roxana Guzman
Junior Project Assistant
Roxie has been part of our Latam Echo Team since November 2019. She received her degree in Marketing in her country and is interested in how consumer behavior and market trends constantly change. She is kind of shy when you first meet her, but once you get to know her she is very friendly. She is a dog lover even though she recently was gifted with a cat! She loves to express her mood by dyeing her hair, so don’t be surprised if you see her with blue hair one day and then she has a pinkish tone…
the next!! She also loves to travel and go to the beach, but she also enjoys staying home and spending time with her parents and hanging out with her friends.
Fernando Hernandez
Junior Project Assistant
Monica Hidaldo
Project Assistant
Monica is a Bilingual Project Manager. She has extensive knowledge of implementation of CRMs, through good practices according to the PMI and with agile methodologies. Monica has two international MBAs, with three years of experience in project management and experience in multinational companies. Monica also has experience in outsourcing projects and process improvement projects, with extensive knowledge in software tools for project management. She has worked in-person…
and virtual with multicultural teams. In her spare time, she loves trying new recipes in the kitchen, jogging, reading, and watching movies and series on Netflix with her husband.
Jonathan Leon
Recruiter
experimenting with new dishes for his friends and family.
Yesenia Leon
Junior Project Assistant
Yesenia has worked in the customer service field for over 8 years. She received her degree in teaching but soon discovered that market research was where her passions lie. Outside of work, she enjoys doing outdoor activities, dancing and cooking.
Matilde Mejia
Junior Project Assistant
Matti is a multi-faceted, efficient, and reliable administrative professional with 10+ years of experience in customer service, sales, virtual assistance and tech support.
She is proficient in CRM applications and has a diversified skill set covering administrative support and client relations. She has excellent interpersonal, phone, and digital communication skills, and has been part of the Echo family since 2020. It has been quite an adventure.
Hector Molina
Junior Project Assistant
Hector has always been a vehicle enthusiast. He hit the tracks at a young age, which lead him to vehicle mechanics as teenager. From there, he worked in various fields, from Medical services to telecommunications, to insurance to translation and then to customer service and mechanics. All of these things have prepared him to work in the market research field. He has been with Echo since 2020, and looks forward to his next steps within the industry. He is a passionate dog lover with a beautiful…
Golden-Shepherd. He has various hobbies such as walking, hiking, swimming, listening to music and is definitely a food lover.
Marilia Monteiro
Recruiter
Marília joined Echo as one of the first Brazilian recruiters when the company had just started expanding into the country. She is currently completing a degree in Civil Engineering. She loves to spend time on art and learning about cultures through movies and reading in order to discover interesting facts about the world. At Echo, she works as a recruiter and is currently working towards becoming a projects assistant. Marília is fascinated with traveling and expanding her horizons, meeting…
new people, and learning about different cultures and languages outside of Portuguese, her mother tongue. She speaks English, Spanish and is currently learning German. She also loves pets, going to the beach and spending quality time with the people she loves.
Marco Paredes
Junior Project Assistant
Marco has been working in the customer service industry for more than 10 years. His experience includes Social Media Games, Prepaid Debit Cards, California Worker’s Compensation and Medical Records. He is now learning a lot in the Market Research Industry thanks to Echo. When he is not busy at work you can find him crafting Origami or in the kitchen cooking a dessert. He likes to read and discover general information about the world itself, which means you can have light conversations with…
him, but also very deep ones about the universe as well.
Vanessa Quadros
Recruiter
Vanessa is a Brazilian music student who is passionate about people and their complexities. She is trying to learn as much as possible about market research, so she can continue to grow in her career. When she joined Echo, she fell in love with data and spreadsheets just as easily as when she fell in love with the guitar. Prior to Echo, Vanessa was a psychology student at Universidade Federal da Bahia.
Claudia Reyes
Junior Project Assistant
Human interaction is one of the things that inspires and directs the course of Claudia’s thoughts. She is passionate about all forms of language. Claudia is from Mexico City, born and raised, and she absolutely loves her country. She graduated with a degree in communications, with a specialty in digital communication. She has a deep interest in how to find the story within all things, and working with data management has helped to reinforced that idea. Claudia loves her career, and her goal…
is to continue to learn and develop her creativity and innovation for the purpose of helping society. She believes that there is still hope in this world. She is interested in human rights and loves discovering all the cultures that surround her. She has worked as a freelancer since the start of her career, and she had that start as a designer, marketing consultant, and soon found other things she was good at and enjoyed. Claudia’s dream is to become a children’s book illustrator.
Alfredo Rivera
Junior Project Assistant
Alfredo is a project assistant, researcher and engineer who assists in carring out a variety of tasks to provide customers with what they need. After spending more than 7 years working in the call center industry and working with project coordination companies, Alfredo knows what truly drives customer service oriented projects. Alfredo holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechatronics Engineering, enjoys playing video games and learning about new technologies.
Daniel Ruiz
Junior Project Assistant
Daniel loves learning, mastering, and sharing new skills. He joined Echo after working for over 7 years in Customer service roles, including 3 years as a Trainer for different lines of businesses. He has an Associates degree in Graphic Design and found his passion along the way. In his free time, he enjoys playing video games, watching television, anime, and he absolutely loves going to the beach.
Isabela Sangiorgi
Recruiter
Bela joined Echo to help the company expand its horizons into South America. She is a Brazil native and is currently completing a degree in Psychology, while also having completed a research assistantship on a Psychology of Work and Organizations research project. In her free time, she is deeply interested in human behavior and how culture influences conduct.
At Echo, she works in English to Portuguese translation, as well assisting with administrative work, recruitment, and other general…
tasks. In addition, Bela helps our company by consistently offering insights into Brazilian culture and customs, which is essential in understanding how to approach target audiences in the country.
When not at work, Bela has a passion for traveling, especially when it involves seeing her brothers and nephews who live abroad. She also likes cooking, making music, and spending quality time with family and friends.
Osvaldo Vasquez
Junior Project Assistant
Osvaldo is a project assistant committed to helping project managers with various activities to ensure success on each project. He has more then 10 years of experience in the call center industry working with customers and industry-related KPI´s. Osvaldo grew up in a small city in California where he completed most of his initial education and is currently working towards his Cisco CCNA Certification. He enjoys hiking, extreme sports and Networking.
Joana Wiering
Recruiter
Joana is known for being talkative and likes to engage in deep conversations. She enjoys getting a glimpse of the many things people around the word can teach her through her job, even if those lessons are as simple as being patient, clear, assertive, or kind. She likes to play sports, enjoy the sun and the beach of Salvador, and also loves art and science.