In this episode of Insights from Elsewhere, host Cynthia Portugal talks to Sushma Panchawati, co-founder of Pre-Data AI, about her fascinating journey from robotics engineering to leading insights work across Asia Pacific, Brazil, and beyond.

What you'll discover in this episode:

• Advice for future researchers: Why openness, empathy, and embracing contradictions are critical skills for anyone entering the insights world today.
• Finding common threads in emerging markets: Hear surprising cultural parallels between markets like India, Kenya, and Brazil — and why these matter when building global strategies.
• The power of context in research: Why "GenPop" approaches fall flat in diverse countries, and how deep cultural nuances shape truly meaningful insights.
• AI beyond efficiency: AI as a tool to deepen understanding rather than just speed up processes — and the risks of Western bias in large language models.

This conversation challenges the idea of one-size-fits-all research, highlights the dangers of a “single story” narrative, and inspires a new way to think about technology’s role in insights work.

Nyambura Mambo, Head of Market Research & Customer Insights at Safaricom, shares valuable insights from her extensive career in research and trade across African markets.

With over a decade of experience, Nyambura has partnered with leading brands across diverse sectors to decode consumer behavior and uncover market trends.

Based in Kenya, she’s recognized for her innovative research approaches and her nuanced understanding of emerging markets—critical qualities when navigating the complex, varied landscapes of the African continent.

In this episode, Nyambura discusses some of the most pressing issues facing today’s market researchers:

• Evolving consumer behavior trends
• The impact of digital transformation on research methodologies
• The critical role of cultural context in generating meaningful insights across regions

She also speaks about the challenges of conducting research across multiple African markets, and how AI is increasingly being used to generate faster, deeper insights.

Nyambura emphasizes the importance of global teams truly understanding local consumer behaviors and cultural backgrounds in order to build authentic, impactful connections.

Note: We experienced a technical glitch and lost her video midway through the episode—but the conversation was too insightful not to share. We kept the audio going, and trust you’ll agree it was worth it.

In the first episode of Insights From Elsewhere, Cynthia Portugal talks to Rosana Martins, the Global Foundational Consumer Strategy Lead for Emerging Markets at Kraft Heinz.

Rosana shares her accidental journey into market research, her extensive experience with major CPG companies, and the unique challenges of conducting research across diverse emerging markets like Brazil, Mexico, Poland, and Turkey.

She talks about the importance of understanding local nuances, the integration of new technologies, and the potential impact of AI on market research.

Rosana emphasizes the need for customized and multilingual research tools, and her excitement about AI applications in decoding unstructured data and simulating consumer personas.

Hear about Rosana's experiences with new research technologies, the significance of AI in market research, and the importance of adapting global tools to local markets.