Escalent, a human behavior and analytics firm based in Livonia, announced six new vice presidents. Five were promoted from other roles at the firm.
Liz Wagner will be vice president and health insurance sector lead for Escalent’s financial services division. In the role, she will manage major research programs and help clients translate findings into business strategy. She brings more than a decade of academic and market research experience in consultative and analytical roles.
In her eighth year at Escalent, Wagner has been an analyst, supervisor, moderator, and part of the Health Insurance and Delivery Systems team. She holds a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Missouri with an emphasis in public health.
K.C. Boyce will lead the development and delivery of cogent syndicated energy studies and new products, helping energy companies to create relationships with customers. Before Escalent, Boyce was senior vice president at Chartwell, where he led industry and consumer research, conference production, and marketing. He has a Master of Business Administration from Georgia State’s Robinson College of Business.
Pam Cooper is taking the role of vice president of the energy division, serving as the company’s Qualtrics partnership manager. She will oversee business development, customer experience, product development, and branding programs for electric, gas, and water utilities in the U.S. She has a Master of Business Administration in marketing from the Eli Broad Graduate School of Management at Michigan State University.
Responsible for the company’s information security, regulatory standards compliance, and vendor management efforts, Matt Benard will be the vice president of compliance and privacy. His role includes reviewing client compliance requirements, negotiating on behalf of the business for compliance matters with clients and vendors, ownership of client audit response, and providing leadership to the internal strategic sourcing team.
He is also responsible for conducting oversight activities for internal auditing, maintaining HITRUST certification and leading the company’s annual SOC2 reporting process. He has a master’s degree in archival studies from Clayton State University.
Dave Mangold is vice president of the automotive and mobility division, leading the development and delivery of global brand tracking research. Mangold joined Escalent in 2006 as an analyst on the automotive brand team and has helped grow the global reach of the automotive division, launching programs in more than 50 countries. He has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and philosophy from the University of Notre Dame.
A business development leader, Rick Naff will be vice president of the consumer and retail divisions. Naff has worked with several research firms, helping clients in tech, internet, consumer packaged goods, retail, advertising and branding, and financial services.
“We are thrilled to welcome Rick to the Escalent family and recognize Liz, K.C., Pam, Matt, and Dave for their growth and contributions to the company,” says Melissa Sauter, CEO. “Each has demonstrated their unique abilities, bringing leadership skills and deep subject matter expertise to the table. We look forward to supporting them in their new roles as they continue to help our clients navigate an ever-changing market.”
