Transforming Insight Podcast

What does it look like to walk into a new Insight leadership role with a clear vision, a structured playbook, and the determination to shift a team from tactical to truly strategic? In this episode, we find out - as Joanne (Jo) Dealtry, Head of Customer Insight at Admiral, shares the thinking and approach she's bringing to one of the UK's most recognisable brands.

What separates a good Insight professional from a truly impactful one? It might come down to something deceptively simple and yet surprisingly difficult: the willingness to form and express a confident opinion. In this episode, we take a step back from our recent conversations with Insight leaders at Sage and eBay to focus closer to home, on the individual mindset and behaviours that define how Insight professionals show up in their organisations. Joining host James Whycherley is Jane Woolley, James’s colleague and senior adviser at the Insight Management Academy, whose 20 years of guiding Insight teams give her a sharp and empathetic view of what holds professionals back.

What does it mean to lead through Insight in a world that never slows down? In our fourth episode of season 12, James welcomes Eddie O’Brien, Senior Director, Global Customer Insight and Experience at Sage. From navigating the pace of the SaaS industry to reimagining what Insight professionals can and should be, Eddie brings a refreshingly candid and forward-thinking perspective to the conversation.

In our second episode of season 12, James talks to Rhea Fox, Marketing Director at Moonpig Gift Experiences, former Insight Director at eBay and Aviva, and long-time Insight forum participant. Rhea shares her journey through 15 years in Insight roles, emphasising that research only delivers value when effectively embedded within business decision-making. She advocates for Insight teams to move beyond seeing Insight as a separate function and focus on becoming integral partners across departments, building strong stakeholder relationships that ensure research directly influences organisational strategy.

It’s the last episode of 2025, and James celebrates his birthday while wrapping up Season 11 with a special Christmas roundtable discussion featuring his colleagues and regular guests - Lisa and Emma. We dive into the insights gathered from our recent forums in Manchester and London, where we engaged with numerous Insight leaders about the evolving landscape of corporate insight teams. As they discuss the key themes from these forums, James introduces the concept of the "Insight Professionals Pyramid," which outlines the essential skills and roles that Insight professionals should embrace as we navigate the future. The pyramid emphasises the importance of evidence-based activities, the generation of insights, and the need for Insight professionals to act as growth consultants, foresight pioneers, insight influencers, and knowledge stewards. And the apex of the pyramid is an ambition: an aspiration for all corporate Insight professionals to see themselves first and foremost as Insight activists. Much more on this to come in future episodes!

Over the last 3 seasons of our podcast, we’ve explored 8 of the 9 Ps of the Insight Leader’s Playbook. In season 9, we looked at Purpose, Profile and People, in season 10 at Partners, Prioritisation and Products, and in this season at Processes and Performance.

Towards the end of each business year, everyone in corporate life starts to think about the success they’ve enjoyed during the past 12 months. Which objectives have been hit, which pieces of work have received the most praise, and which things haven’t gone so well? Will our line manager see those issues in the same way as we do? What will that mean for our performance rating? And what about our colleagues? How will our team members be assessed and rewarded? Knowing how our contribution is going to be judged will be top of mind for everyone towards the end of a period. But how the success of any project is going to be measured is also a determinant in what we focus on in the first place.

It’s the last episode on Season 10, and a chance for James, Emma and Lisa to reflect on the IMA’s latest best practice research, the challenges recently shared by Insight leaders, and our emerging thoughts about the future of Insight roles.

In this week’s episode we begin with an analogy I’ve drawn many times drawn between the responsibilities of an Insight leader and the roles performed by the director of a small business. Michael E Gerber, author of the E-myth books, says that it’s a small business owner’s primary responsibility to work on their business rather than in it. And I believe that it’s an Insight leader’s role to work on their Insight team, rather than just in it. It’s to help achieve that goal that I’ve been suggesting that senior people in corporate Insight teams might write their own Insight leader’s playbook. To document and develop your ideas for Insight team transformation, whenever you get the chance, and to build up, over time, a plan for how you can optimise your team’s impact in your organisation.

Welcome to episode 72, the third of season 10, and we’re moving onto the 5th P of the Insight Leader’s Playbook – P for priorities. We all know the 80:20 rule: that 80% of the value of pretty much anything will be generated by only 20% of the things we do. So it stands to reason that selecting the most valuable projects for our Insight teams to work on, allocating the right proportion of resources to them, and working on them in the optimal sequence, is going to be critical to the impact we can make.

It’s episode 70, the first of season 10, and we’re going back to the Insight Leader’s Playbook. Having looked at the importance of working on Insight’s purpose, profile and people in season 9, we’re now going to explore why we all need a plan for building better partnerships with the internal departments and external companies on whom we rely.

In our Transforming Insight podcast this season, we’ve introduced the idea of the Insight leader’s playbook, and James has recommended it as a tool for helping all corporate Insight leaders and aspiring leaders who want to transform their teams' impact this year. In the previous episode, we focused on the on the 3rd P of the Insight leader’s playbook – P for People – and today we’re going to continue this theme, but focus on a very particular aspect of it.

In our podcasts this season, we’ve introduced the idea of the Insight leader’s playbook, and James has recommended it as a tool for helping all corporate Insight leaders and aspiring leaders who want to transform their teams' impact this year. In the previous episode, we focused on the second P of the 9Ps playbook framework. Today, we’re going to continue our discussion on the 2nd P – P for Profile.