Kantar, the marketing data and analytics company, has appointed Sam Curtis as head of its digital analytics to expand and develop the business’s work with major brands.
Digital analytics focuses primarily on making sense of big, unstructured search and social datasets to allow Kantar to advise marketers on brand opportunities and consumer engagement.
Sam – who will be returning to Kantar after spending the last six years in the digital data sector – will use his experience working with start-ups and growing software businesses to help Kantar drive its reach in sectors such as technology, healthcare and consumer goods, among other areas.
“Sam knows how to develop technology-based businesses and it’s great to welcome him back to the business as we expand our digital analytics offer for clients,” said Amy Cashman, executive managing director, Kantar insights division, UK & Ireland.
Subscribe to Marketing Beat for free
Sign up here to get the latest marketing news sent straight to your inbox each morning
“Like us, he sees the importance of finding the human insight in the data. Our emphasis is on using tech to get to the heart of how people think, feel and act so that we can be an indispensable partner for brands – guiding them through consumers’ changing priorities and making sure they continue giving people a reason to spend with them.”
In particular, Sam will look at giving clients a more well-rounded view of consumer trends and how they should respond to them, combining Kantar’s analytics expertise with its wider work across the marketing mix.
This latest hire marks a return to Kantar, where Sam previously spent 11 years between 2006 and 2017 working in both global and local consumer insight roles.
He has since held senior positions across the digital data sector, including at Moment10 and Streetbees where he led client engagement and developed new technology products. He was most recently CEO of artificial intelligence video analytics firm Lifestream.
The move is the latest hire from Kantar, which recently appointed Simon Bailey as senior partner as it looked to help clients tackle brand challenges and grow their businesses.
