Kristen Balisi

Don’t let her title fool you: Kristen may sound super left-brain on paper, but her creativity and insights into human behavior are what make her reports such a big hit with clients. Kristen’s research bootcamp started at the University of Chicago, where she earned her MA with a focus on narrative and autobiography, philosophical and religious thought, and served as a writing mentor. In the process, Kristen learned the importance of gathering, interpreting, and communicating evidence to make an effective argument.

Which is essentially what she does for Thinkpiece clients. As the Senior Analyst (and Thinkpiece’s first official employee way back in the day), Kristen works side-by-side with our moderators to craft the right questions; shape the research design; extract the maximum insight from respondents; gather, track, and think through the collected data; then weave the findings together in a comprehensible report that generates action instead of gathering dust.

For Kristen, one of the many rewarding aspects of her role at Thinkpiece is the process of clarifying the messy realities of the audiences our clients are trying to understand. She embraces this mess, enjoying the plethora of unique voices, experiences, and motivations respondents bring to each study. She thrives on piecing these different perspectives into a clear, accurate, and honest narrative that the client can trust and use to make better business decisions. For Kristen, the goal isn’t to water-down the complexity of the research, but rather to make it accessible and applicable.

Fun fact: Kristen has a creative side, which she expresses by signing, gardening (sometimes both at the same time), and cooking without recipes.

“Answers are often complex. Good research communicates that complexity without dumbing it down, skewing it inappropriately, or opening the door to misunderstanding.” — Kristen Balisi