Powers replaces Joel Rubinson, who quit the ARF in July to set up his own consulting practice, Rubinson Partners.

During his career in market research Powers has been president and owner of a research and consulting firm, held analyst positions in private and public industry, and served as an adjunct faculty member at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

ARF president and CEO Bob Barocci said: “Todd brings a unique skill set to this critical industry leadership role that includes a passion for quality rigour rooted in his academic background; a full understanding of the ingredients of successful buyer-seller partnerships from his research consulting days; and very importantly, perspective on today’s challenges through his last twelve years working where the rubber meets the research road at IBM.”

Barocci has tasked Powers with providing “the leadership vision for industry topics including advertising ROI, leveraging data analytics for insight, establishing research-guided roadmaps to better manage decision-making complexity, digital measurement, and the real marketing role of the social media movement.”