NAME: Jack MacKenzie

OCCUPATION: Media Research Professional

As executive vice president of a national media research consulting firm, I know the importance of understanding group dynamics. Our office is made up of teams that work together to provide valuable information about marketing and design for a diverse client base. These clients include broadcast networks, cable channels, Internet start-ups, and video game producers, as well as product providers of everything from apple juice to mobile phone features.

Our research is conducted by two teams of highly qualified people. The quantitative team crunches the data and the qualitative team focuses on the majority of the in-person interaction with consumers (meaning interviews and focus groups). These groups work together as an even larger team to generate the feedback we give clients. Obviously, it is important that they work together smoothly.

Our teams are mainly self-directed, meaning that they take the responsibility for producing high-quality work without a lot of supervision. My part in encouraging this outcome is to hire independent, efficient, and responsible employees. If I’m successful in picking the right candidates, then I don’t need to step in and supervise too closely. Some of the skills I would say are most important for self-directed work teams are flexibility, ability to process and analyze information, mindfulness of fair treatment of others, and a sense of what responses are appropriate in any given situation.

Another important aspect of self-directed teams is that teammates are able to figure out their roles and arrange their workflow based on work style and intellectual or emotional compatibility. As team members work together, they negotiate responsibilities, demonstrate their strengths, and rely on one another to get the job done in the most efficient way possible. If you’ve ever worked in groups at school, work, or in your community, you may have experienced some frustrating behavior: group members not listening, hogging the floor, or not doing their share of the work. I remind my teams that a lot of people pay more attention to what comes out of their mouths than what comes into their ears and that they should be doing the opposite. Listening is what makes a good consultant—and a good team member.

Research consulting is a fast-paced business that requires the ability to listen, acquire information, and share that information with clients—all within a team setting. One of the most rewarding parts of my job is hearing that a client has found one of our teams so helpful that the client has requested to work with the same group for further research and analysis. When this happens, I know the team has functioned very well.

I’ve studied generational groups at length: Millennials, GenXers, Baby Boomers, and the emerging Pluralist Generation. I enjoy opening the eyes of our clients to seeing the world through a generational lens—how to understand generational transition and how it affects program development and revenue streams. On a personal note, the results of this research are comforting to me. I have confidence in the young adults who are going to lead us in the future; I understand where they are coming from and where they will lead us. Perhaps because of this, society makes more sense to me than it does to other people.

My job does not get old. Conducting research on human behavior and attitudes necessarily means the information is changing every day. Sharing that information with our clients and helping them make smart business decisions with our information is very rewarding.