Keynote Address: What’s So Funny About Innovation?

About the Session

Topic: What’s So Funny About Innovation?

The media industry generates a tremendous amount of specific data about consumer profiles and behavior. That mountain of data can be both the key and the death to meaningful innovation. Research can hurt as much as it helps, and understanding research and how to extract insights from it is crucial to creating successful products, services, and experiences. Stand-up comedy has a lot to teach us about how to use and digest research findings.

About the Speaker

Paul Valerio
Principal, Insights, Method, Inc

Paul Valerio leads Method’s customer insights team in San Francisco, combining research and branding strategy disciplines to guide the creative process for Method’s clients. Paul is a branding strategy and market research specialist, with over 20 years of consulting experience for clients in retail, manufacturing, professional services, technology, pharmaceuticals, quick-service restaurants, and many other consumer and business-to-business categories.

Prior to joining Method, Paul was the Senior Director of Strategy at Interbrand San Francisco, and ran his own consulting and branding agencies, Group 19 and Addwater, Inc. Paul has also directed branding strategy and market research projects at CKS Partners, Hi-Tech Communications, Landor Associates, amd Foote, Cone, & Belding Advertising. His clients have included everything from small start-ups to major Fortune 500 companies such as McDonald’s, United Airlines, Exxon, Sears, Sun Microsystems, and QVC. A graduate of Cornell University, Paul is fond of hiking the National Parks, and playing with his son and daughter. He is also cursed with a life-long passion for the New York Giants.