Smarty Pants Hires to Boost Kids Insights Offer

US consumer trends specialist Smarty Pants has appointed Arielle Shanker in the role of Insights Illuminator, serving as a project leader and moderator on its children's media and entertainment group.

Smarty Pants leads foundational, evaluative and tracking research in more than 50 countries, helping clients with product innovation, brand positioning and marketing strategy. In April, the company began GENspiration, a series of free live focus group sessions promising attendees better understanding of consumers in a different generation each month.

Shanker (pictured) has a BA In Organizational Studies from the University of Michigan and an M.Ed. from Dominican University, and began her career as a pre-k teacher, learning firsthand how to engage children and build trust. She then founded and led Shanker Education Consulting, championing kids and their ideas to inform the products and media they consume, and working on end-to-end custom studies for a range of companies in edtech, children's media, and toys & games.

The company says Shanker 'thrives on translating messy-yet-magical 'kid-think' into clear, actionable insights,' adding: 'She effortlessly moves from moderating focus groups with preschoolers to presenting complex data to C-suite level executives.'

The company is online at www.smartypantsinsights.com .