The North West Insights Powerhouse
27 October 2022

Something is afoot in North West England, writes FlexMR’s Chris Martin, as MRS heads to a new city for a new type of event.

It’s clear to see that, across the country, working patterns have been fractured by a global pandemic, remote hiring practices and a struggling economy. Yet the past few years have also presented massive opportunities to forward-thinking firms. The emerging digital, tech and creative boom taking place in the North West counties of Lancashire and Cumbria is a prime example.

Local hubs, such as Lancaster’s Fraser House, are bringing diverse groups of professionals together in creative and engaging ways. Clusters of shared expertise are forming around electech, martech and restech. Innovation and talent pipelines are growing through belief in the region’s growth potential. In short, the pace of progress is accelerating.

For FlexMR, as an insight agency and tech firm with a global reach, and roots firmly within the North West – that has been an exciting journey to be a part of. And it deserves to be celebrated. That’s why we want to bring research and insight professionals from across the region together in a new style of event to explore one of the most complex conundrums our industry faces in the data-driven age; how decisions get made.

Today, an insight professional isn’t just an expert researcher. We’ve adapted to the modern business environment, embracing all forms of feedback. We’ve grown fluent in the language of CX, UX and big data. We interpret, analyse and tell stories. Most importantly of all, we represent customers in both quantitative detail and qualitative technicolour.

But as we adapt, a new challenge emerges. How do we cut through the noise that surrounds today’s decision makers? How do we create self-sustaining cultures of customer centricity? And how do we guide stakeholders to the right decisions not just one at a time, but every time?

Join us at Lancaster tech hub Fraser House on 1 February 2023 to collaboratively explore the ways businesses and stakeholders currently make decisions, examine the role of research, data and insight in the decision-making journey and identify the skills insight professionals need to positively affect decision making.

The past few years have taught us a lot. But perhaps no lesson has been more significant than the demonstrable power of cooperative problem solving. As a sector, we have the technology, the innovative spirit and ambition to be a leading voice at the decision-making table; it’s up to us to harness that.

Thanks to the support of FlexMR, the MRS North Roundtable on 1 February 2023 is free and open to all, though space is extremely limited. Register here.