[ press Release ]
KNOWLEDGE NETWORKS APPOINTS NEW CEO: EXPERIENCED EXECUTIVE WITH OUTSTANDING GROWTH TRACK RECORD
Kooyman previously guided Ipsos North America to industry-leading financial performance; led VNU's Entertainment Information Group
Menlo Park, CA; July 6, 2006: Knowledge Networks has named Simon Kooyman, who led Ipsos North America to record annual growth and also held successful key leadership positions at VNU, as its new Chief Executive Officer. He is succeeding John Lewis, who left Knowledge Networks in December 2005 to become President and CEO of AC Nielsen USA. Kooyman assumes his new role today and will be based in the company's New York office.
"Knowledge Networks has established a firm identity as an unmatched source of marketing insights that drive the strategies and tactics of several Fortune 500 clients," said Kooyman. "I see exciting growth opportunities for KN in its proven areas of expertise – new product development, brand health, advertising effectiveness and measurement, government and public policy studies, and analytics. With its talented team of research professionals KN can leverage these opportunities while continuing to provide the service and exceptional online survey accuracy that its clients have come to expect and that make the company unique in the marketplace."
"We are thrilled to have a dynamic, innovative veteran of the marketing information and research industry as the new leader of Knowledge Networks," said Fred Harman, General Partner at Oak Investment Partners and a member of the Knowledge Networks Board of Directors. "Simon is expert at cultivating business growth that is sustainable and adds key innovations to established brands and points of difference. We look forward to supporting him as he helps KN fulfill its potential for leadership and customer service."
From 2001 to 2005, Kooyman served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Ipsos North America and Chairman of Ipsos-ASI worldwide. During his tenure, through a combination of acquisitions and organic growth, Ipsos North America revenues nearly quadrupled. For three years in a row, from 2001 to 2004 the company was named the fastest-growing research firm in the U.S. by Inside Research.
While at Ipsos, Kooyman led the company's worldwide efforts to move market research to the Internet, including the development of a leading North-American Internet panel with accompanying Web-based project delivery systems.
Kooyman also was the first President of the VNU Marketing Information Entertainment Group, bringing the Group within three years to its leading position. There he pushed the Internet-based collection of data about consumer use of entertainment products and implemented online delivery of the Group's products.
Before moving into marketing information, Kooyman served as President of Campina Melkunie's Industrial Ingredients Division, one of the world's largest dairy ingredients companies; he was Corporate Controller of Royal Wessanen; and he started his career with Arthur Andersen Management Consultants (The Hague).
The CEO search was successfully completed by The Weldon Group.
Knowledge Networks delivers quality you can use—superior methodologies, design, and analysis that give you an edge when it comes to understanding consumers and making business decisions. KN's unmatched consumer research resources include the only projectable Web-based consumer panel. The company leverages its expertise in brands, media, advertising, and analytics to provide insights that speak directly to clients' most important marketing issues. In addition, Knowledge Networks has built a substantial practice in government and academic research, an area notable for its rigorous methodology standards.
