Let’s Build Something!
Brian is currently considering consulting and full-time engagements with geographic flexibility.
- Fractional CMO. Branding, Growth Marketing, Partner Development, Corporate Communications, CRM Systems (Hubspot, Salesforce, SugarCRM), CX Ops, content management, and customer support systems.
- Fractional CFO. Bookkeeping & financial reporting (QBO), Quote-to-Cash, Revenue Management, Security and Risk, ITSM, HR, strategic changes and upgrades.
- Market/ing Research, UX, CX, Insights. Need to understand your users, your customers, the market, or your own internal processes? Qualitative and quantitative methods are supported here. IDIs / executive interviewing, survey, moderating and project management services available. Let’s break it down to build it up.
Quick Links
LinkedIn Testimonials (pdf) Resume (pdf)
The Brain Flower Experience
Non-Profit Leadership
20+ years of volunteer leadership experience
6 years of paid nonprofit experience
In December 2021, Brian launched the Insights Career Network (ICN), the job search and career community for insights professionals, with five like-minded colleagues. The ICN helps people working in UX, CX, Market/Marketing Research, and the Behavioral Sciences find their voice and their way. The 1,300+ member ICN is 100% volunteer-run and completely free.
Brian has been particularly instrumental in establishing the ICN’s web presence and co-hosting most of the 24+ Job Seekers & Allies meetups.
Insights Career Network website | LinkedIn Company
For more than 25 years, Brian Fowler has worked with non-profit organizations for 10+ hours each week.
Corporate Experience
25+ years Creating Offerings, Organizations, and Teams
in Market Research, Marketing, Research Technology,
Business Analytics & Operations
As Chief Operating Officer, Brian led CFMC, one of the original survey tech companies through a decade of evolution. Together, they brought to life new user-first interfaces, leveraged partners and open-source tech to grow creatively, and introduced the first cloud-based services for call centers.
Externally, Brian served as the voice of the company developing, caring for, and feeding the company’s customer and user base. Internally, he modernized almost every function in the company with help from within as the organization adapted to five CEO changes and continuous improvement.
Insights professionals may know his work as a long-time elected official with the Marketing Research Association/ Insights Association, a service that included two terms as President and earned the Volunteer of the Decade Award. Or it might be his four years with PAPOR, the West Coast chapter of the American Association for Public Opinion Researchers. He designed both organizations websites.
Those in Marketing, Advertising, and PR might recognize him from his 8 years with chapters of the American Marketing Association.
For 3+ years, he served as a transformational volunteer and Treasurer with two Alameda, California 501c(3) organizations including the Edison Elementary PTA who benefited from his energy and experience when the pandemic changed everything. He introduced electronic signatures and stabilized financial operations.
Simultaneously, he revitalized Bike Walk Alameda‘s web presence and Finance operations, re-launching the organization’s website and introducing new ways to leverage existing content, while updating the organization’s financial systems and reporting processes.
Brian Fowler was the senior insights market research manager and independent business owner subject matter expert for five years for the largest small and independent business membership organization in the United States. Through his dozens of studies with entrepreneurs and their teams, the small insights team worked strategic wonders for the marketing, human resources, and sales teams.
Creative Fit, a Las Vegas-based architecture firm, recognized in the area as a leader in designing modern, efficient commercial, industrial, and residential buildings was ready for growth and Brain Flower Services was there for them – and continues to be a key strategic, branding, and financial operations partner.
Startup foris.io, now defunct, was building an interface for farmers and ranchers to track and measure soil moisture and temperature, weather conditions, and then use those inputs, and others, to forecast output and the optimal use of resources. We didn’t quite get there, but Brian was engaged from early on with the founder defining the interface, specing the product, and recruiting tech help to build our first prototype.
Startup Buffalo Market began as a direct-to-consumer / prosumer marketplace for fresh & organic Central Valley, California produce and now is a direct store delivery (DSD) company for leading organic CPG brands on the West Coast.
Brian was instrumental in growing BM’s initial customer following, understanding their prospective partners and customers, developing the startup’s CRM and digital marketing programs, and helping them develop new CPG contacts through direct outreach and email marketing.
What About Brian?
A man of many talents
Raised in Nashville, Tennessee, Brian moved to San Francisco in 2000 several months after earning his MBA from Middle Tennessee State University at night while working full time as a market researcher and data analyst. He came searching dot-com gold and found an entrepreneurial playland where he could engage his curiosity in tech, retail, agriculture, healthcare, agriculture, and more.
A decade as a multi-mode research, marketing, and business analytics practitioner, along with his MBA prepared Brian to lead one of the original multimode survey software platforms, CFMC/Survox, Inc., through a decade of intense innovation and dramatic change as Chief Operating Officer. At the side of four CEOs, he took the company from stalwart to startup in their approach at every corner; and kept customers, users, employees, and “management” in the loop all along the way.
Concurrent with his corporate and consulting careers, he has served for more than 20 years as a volunteer elected officer with nonprofit organizations. His strategic insights, marketing prowess, business administration experience, and hands-on leadership skills have had a positive impact on more than 12 nonprofits.
Through these organizations, he has mentored dozens of fellow insights and marketing professionals, co-produced 200 networking and educational events, and garnered several awards for his leadership. Most recently, Mr. Fowler has been recognized in the Insights sector for building the Insights Career Network, a peer-to-peer career community for UX, market research, CX, and all research professionals.
Brian lives in Alameda, California, an island city just outside of Oakland, with his wife, son, mother-in-law, and pandemic puppy “Odie”. He is an active member of his local community as a volunteer leader in a few Alameda organizations.
More About Corporate and Startup Experience
Survox/CFMC (2004-2017) – COO, CFO, and CRO for an established survey software platform that went from stalwart to startup to acquisition in a dramatic restoration and rebranding effort. Brian managed teams in Finance & Admin, Sales & Marketing, Account Management, Hosting Ops & ITSM, custom CX, and MRX research solutions. As second-in-command to five CEOs, he knew the users, the clients, and the staff better than anyone and played a significant part in the development and delivery of new products and services.
CFMC Services, Products, and Tools he helped bring to life:
- Navigator/Console: Full lifecycle from definition to full adoption of CFMC’s first fully integrated GUI for programming and managing surveys, measuring operational performance, and managing data flow
- Private Cloud Survey Hosting: Private and secure cloud hosting (ASP) for customer web surveys
- Fully Hosted webCATI: ASP for call centers, including VOIP-based telco
- Custom Services: Web and IVR (interactive voice response) survey services
Data-Driven Marketing (2001-2006) –– Qualitative and Quantitative Research Consultant offering complete solutions for qualitative and quantitative research: web surveys and mail surveys, customer profiling with multiple behavioral and primary research data sources, focus groups, 1:1 executive interviews, and SKU sales analysis. Survey/discussion guide creation, interviewing and moderating, arranging facilities, and deep-dive data analysis included. Conducted in-depth insight projects with energy efficiency and public health-minded clients like California Public Interest Energy Research, ERG, Bureau of Automotive Repair, California Air Resources Board, Energy Star, and others.
NextMonet (2001-2004) – Direct Marketing, Researcher, and Merchandise Analyst. List management, e-commerce, partner management, merchandise sales analysis, customer profiling, digital marketing, & artwork framing, shipping, and handling.
Socratic Research Technologies (2000-2001), Marketing and Panel Alliances Manager. Helped to build the Socratic Forum Panel and several proprietary panels, managed marketing and promotions for panel solutions.
National Federation of Independent Business (1996-2000), Senior Research Manager. Conducted ~50 studies with independent business owners (IDIs, focus groups, surveys), profiled marketplace and sales reps, developed nationwide sales results reports, and implemented their first Oracle database.
20/20 Research (1994-1996), Interviewer, Recruiter, Host, and Data Analyst. 20/20 provided an incredible foundation in both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Cheers to the 20/20 acquisition of 20/20 in 2020 by Schlesinger Group.
Nonprofit Leadership Roles
A Decorated Leader
Simultaneous with his corporate career, Brian Fowler has served as a volunteer leader for more than two decades with 501c6 nonprofits including the Insights Association, the American Marketing Association, the American Association for Public Opinion Research, and at least 7 other organizations.
Current Volunteer Leadership
- Co-Founder and virtual event host, the Insights Career Network
- Treasurer and Family Engagement Leader, Edison Elementary PTA
- Treasurer and Marketer, Bike Walk Alameda
- Alameda Soccer Club Youth Soccer Coach
Past Leadership
- 2015-17 Executive Council and Webmaster PAPOR
- 2006-2022 Insights Association Northwest Chapter (AKA NorthWest MRA), President (2x), Treasurer (3x), Events, Sponsorship, and everything else.
- 2006-2010 Pacific Chamber Symphony, Marketing
- 1998-2008 American Marketing Association, San Francisco and Nashville. President (2x), Treasurer (2x), Events, and everything but sponsorship.
Awards
- 2020 Volunteer of the Decade Award by the Northwest Chapter of the Insights Association after a year of creative service, including 11 virtual events and an annual 1.5-day conference for 10 years
- 2018 Chapter of the Year Award, Insights Association
- 2004 Chapter Event of the Year Award
Spotlight:
Active Insights Job Seekers
LinkedIn Campaign
In 2022 and 2023, Brian put his successful Pay it Forward Profiles LinkedIn Campaign to work for the Insights community branded as the Active Insights Job Seekers LinkedIn campaign. Between the two campaigns, the Insights Career Network delivered more than 100,000 impressions to 31 featured insights professionals who are actively seeking new career moves. Check out the most recent edition from Summer 2023.
Pay It Foward/ICN Awards
