Simmons Research Appoints Andrew Feigenson as CEO

Former Nielsen executive brings over 20 years of experience in digital research and technology to drive growth and innovation

NEW YORK, November 1, 2017 -- Simmons Research, the leading source of essential consumer intelligence, today announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Andrew Feigenson as Chief Executive Officer. Simmons was acquired by Symphony Technology Group in late 2015, after 11 years under the umbrella of Experian Consumer Research and now runs as an independent company.

Feigenson was most recently the Chief Revenue Officer at Nielsen Catalina Solutions where he led the company’s commercial functions, including sales, client consulting, marketing and programmatic. Prior to Nielsen Catalina Solutions, Feigenson ran Nielsen Digital for 6 years, transforming it from a panel-based research business to a real-time data and analytics business which achieved high double-digit growth. During his tenure, he successfully launched Nielsen Digital Ad Ratings, Nielsen Audience Segments and Nielsen’s programmatic business, and participated in the acquisitions of Vizu and eXelate. Prior to Nielsen, Andrew ran sales and product for private equity and venture backed companies, including ECI Conference Call Services (sold to West Corporation) and Rave Mobile Safety. Feigenson’s addition to the executive team signifies an intent to expedite innovation, in a world of big data and machine learning.

Simmons is in a strong position and undergoing a rapid technology transformation to become further integrated into the digital and traditional advertising ecosystem,” said Simmons Chairman and Symphony Technology Group Operating Partner John Ouren. “With his accomplishments as a leader and significant digital experience, this is the perfect time for Andrew Feigenson to become Simmons’ CEO. Under Andrew’s leadership, Simmons will continue to build on its strong relationships with leading media companies and agencies, while expanding relationships with advertisers and new media companies.

Simmons has a long, tenured history as the leading provider of insights into the US Consumer,” said Feigenson. “With the right investments in technology and data, it is on the way to radically changing the way marketers understand their customers. I’m honored to have an opportunity to work with Symphony Technology Group and John to lead this transformation. Symphony Technology group has an amazing track record with companies like IRI, Symphony Health Solutions, AlphaImpactRx, and Symphony EYC, among others, in driving transformation to the benefit of customers, employees and investors.

Pat Pellegrini, previous President and Chief Research Officer, will be leaving the company. “We appreciate Pat’s service to the company and leadership in the transition of Simmons from Experian to being an independent company in the Symphony portfolio” said John Ouren.

About Symphony Technology Group

Symphony Technology Group (STG) is a strategic private equity firm with the mission of investing in and building great technology and services companies. In addition to capital, STG provides transformation expertise to enable its companies to deliver maximum value to their clients, to drive growth through innovation, to retain and attract the best talent and to achieve best in class business performance. STG's current portfolio consists of 19 global companies. For more information, please visit www.symphonytg.com.

About Simmons Research

Simmons Research is the leading source of cross-channel consumer intelligence. Simmons measures American consumer psychographics, preferences, attitudes, and media behaviors by closely overlaying survey and passively measured data using advanced measurement sciences. For more than 60 years, Simmons has helped leading brands, agencies, and media companies effectively engage with consumers, providing measurement of over 60,000 consumer elements, including all major media, 600 attitudes and opinions, 500 product categories, and 8,000 brands. For more information, please visit www.simmonsresearch.com and follow @simmonsresearch on Twitter.


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Matt Cumello
Senior Director, Marketing
press@simmonsresearch.com