People

Elliot is Chairman of Perception Research Services, Inc. in Fort Lee, NJ. Prior to establishing Perception Research in 1972, Elliot spent 17 years as a marketing research professional with a number of affiliates within the Interpublic Group of Companies. These organizations included McCann-Erickson, Inc., Marplan Research, Inc. and the Institute of Communications Research.

Elliot has pioneered the use of eye tracking techniques in the consumer research field. PRS is widely recognized as the leading proponent of this tool to uncover the ability of packaging, print advertising, point-of-sale materials, and web sites to break through clutter and to draw shoppers’ consideration. PRS conducts studies on a worldwide basis, having numerous facilities in the U.S., plus testing sites throughout Europe, Asia and South America.

Elliot is a contributing author of the Handbook of Package Design, The New Products Handbook and The Marketer’s Guide to Successful Package Design. He has spoken at numerous packaging and advertising seminars (both domestically and internationally), and regularly judges packaging and advertising competition. He is also a member of the Advertising Research Foundation, and the Brand Design Association.

Scott Young is the President of Perception Research Services. He regularly authors articles on packaging and point-of-sale research for publications such as Brand Packaging, Package Design, Marketing at Retail and The Design Management Journal.  Scott also speaks at industry conferences, and is a Distinguished Faculty Member at the In-Store Marketing Institute.   

Joe Schurtz is Executive Vice President of Perception Research Services, Inc. Joe holds a BS degree in Business Administration from La Salle University, and has completed additional marketing and research courses at the City University of New York Graduate Center. He has been with Perception Research since 1977.

He has lectured to marketing and graphic design classes at NYU, Parsons School of Design, St. Joseph’s University and La Salle University, and participated in package design symposiums and tutorials.

Clients serviced on a regular basis include: Kraft Foods, Brown-Forman, Unilever, Bacardi U.S.A., Darden Restaurants, Reckitt Benckiser, IBM, Gerber, 3M, Johnson & Johnson, Nestlé, Motorola, Jack Daniel’s, GlaxoSmithKline, and Burger King.

Joe's professional affiliations include:

• Brand Design Association
• Judge for Packaging Gold Awards
• Former Editor of Package Design Council International (PDC) Newswrap
• American Marketing Association
• Advertising Research Foundation

Joe’s expertise covers both qualitative and quantitative communications research programs. He regularly moderates more than 300 packaging and point-of-sale materials focus group sessions each year.

Vincenzo J. Ciummo is Managing Director of Global Research for Perception Research Services International, based in Singapore. Vincenzo’s primary responsibilities include:

• Responsibility for the growth of PRS’ international business
• Marketing PRS to new international clients and expanding existing clients
• Management of the international business including supervision of global studies, proposal preparation, data analysis and recommendations, report writing and presentations
• Key client relationship manager for Asian based clients including presenting results of projects
• Building and managing the field capability globally and ensuring key global client requirements are met
• Improving presentations and other deliverables to meet client needs
• Management of and delivering the growth plan for the Singapore office

As Managing Director of Global Research, he reports to the CEO of PRS.

Vincenzo has been with PRS since 2002 and has played a key role in the development and growth of the international business. He has built the current international team and represents a key contact to international clients. Prior to joining PRS Vincenzo had seven years of experience within the global market research industry and has been an active member of ESOMAR (Global Association of Research Professionals) since 1997. He graduated with honors in 1995 from the University of Rome with a Masters Degree in Marketing and Finance.

Jonathan Asher has over thirty years experience in consumer goods marketing, beginning as a project director for Newman Stein, Inc., a leading custom research company. He has also held research positions with Thomas J. Lipton (now Unilever) and the Lorillard division of Loews Corporation.

Jonathan entered the design field by joining Gerstman+Meyers (now Interbrand) where he was vice president, director of marketing services. There he created proprietary research and brand naming services, and provided strategic direction for a wide range of diverse clients.

Jonathan went on to lead The Coleman Group (which became the Consumer Branding and Packaging group of FutureBrand) where he developed the company’s proprietary strategic services such as UpFront®, ConceptLab®, ShelfCheck®, and EnviroScope®, as well as its Name Development capability.

From there, he established the New York office of Dragon Rouge, a leading, privately held European design agency.

During his career, Jonathan has been engaged in brand building programs in every consumer goods category for every demographic group for both new products and revitalization programs and for both graphics and structural packaging initiatives.

As Executive Vice President at PRS, Jonathan oversees the company’s client services function including account management and marketing communications, and also manages client relationships for both qualitative and quantitative studies. His strength is in understanding the big picture within which the package must thrive. He is highly sensitive to the information needs of designers while also having a researcher’s ability to ask questions in an effective and appropriate manner. He is particularly adept at illuminating the risk of making wrong decisions as well as the opportunity cost of missing out on the right ones.

A frequent speaker and lecturer on topics pertaining to marketing and design, and onetime contributing columnist in Brand Marketing, Jonathan has been quoted in major publications, including Fortune, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Brandweek, and Advertising Age. Jonathan has appeared on "ABC World News Tonight," the "CBS Evening News," "CNN Headline News," "Fox Network News," NBC’s "Today" show, ABC Radio and CNBC’s "On The Money."

Debra is our Vice President of Quantitative Research with over twenty-five (25) years of experience in marketing research. In her current role, Debra is responsible for internal operations by acting as a mentor for team members through management, leadership and guidance of the research staff.  Additionally, as a member of Senior Management, she actively participates in creating, implementing and maintaining policies and practices in order to achieve the high standards PRS demands.  Previously as a Senior Research Director, Debra was responsible for all aspects of project implementation, from definition of marketing issues and client consultation to presentation of final results. Areas of concentration have included packaged foods, tobacco, pharmaceuticals (both OTC and Rx), household cleaning products, health and beauty aids, and the service industry. Prior to joining PRS in 1988, she was involved in segmentation and tracking studies, concept/product tests, and in-home use tests.

Debra is an honors graduate of Rider College in New Jersey and is a member of the Advertising Research Foundation.

John Stumpf has been a member of the PRS Senior Management team since 2006.  As Chief Operating Officer he is responsible for the financial functions of the company, human resources and training, information technology and eye tracking technology management, as well as new product development.  Prior to joining PRS John worked for over 15 years in the market research industry, including 10 years as CFO.