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Olivier Bows Out of Kantar
MR veteran Alexander (Lex) Olivier has retired after 20 years with Kantar-owned firms Millward Brown (MB), Research International (RI) and Lightspeed. However, he remains Director General of EFAMRO - the European federation of research associations which he helped found.
 Olivier began his market research career 33 years ago with Unilever, and then progressed to head the research department at Bergh Foods (now Unilever Bestfoods). After this, he moved agency-side as CEO of Centrum van Marketing Analyses (now Millward Brown/Centrum) and was then named CEO of RI Netherlands in Rotterdam. Latterly, he has been Senior VP of Business Development for Lightspeed Research, responsible for introducing online access and custom panel research programmes to both Kantar's and parent-company WPP's European clients.
In January 2005, Olivier took up the post of Director General with EFAMRO. During his tenure, he has presided over plans to develop an ISO Standard for Internet access panels, and more recently he has been vocal in his support of the MR industry giving consumers the right to opt out of receiving survey calls, saying that this is essential if research is to remain a self-regulating industry.
In 1997, Olivier received the Marijn Veraart Prize for his work as President of the Dutch Trade organisation of Marketing Research Agencies (VMO). Web sites: www.kantargroup.com and www.efamro.com.
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