BAO-HUONG NGUYEN ACUNA
Glenview,IL
Summary
Results-driven Consumer Insights Leader with over 20 years of experience in uncovering strategic opportunities for billion-dollar global brands. Proficient in applying advanced methodologies to analyze and predict consumer behavior, leading to actionable recommendations. Skilled in navigating complex research landscapes to influence high-level decision-making and challenge established norms. Committed to fostering high-performing teams through effective coaching and mentoring while driving collaborative efforts to achieve ambitious goals.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
Work History
Director of Insights, Cookies Portfolio of Brands
Ferrara Candy Company/Ferrero USA
Chicago, IL
01.2020 - Current
- Drove the strategic direction of the Cookies Portfolio of brands by building a best-in-class Insights team that delivered customer-centric insights and solidifying brand foundation decisions instrumental to turning around the business
- Partnered with cross-functional teams to develop portfolio and brand strategies, resulting in in-market trend changes through customer focused learning plans
- Applied brand-specific consumer insights to optimize communication messaging and identify media spend optimizations, leading to the successful launch of three new campaigns
- Established the performance tracking protocol, including brand health, sales performance, and engagement measures
- Developed and institutionalized Ferrara's approach to Brand Building, training 100+ marketers in best-in-class practices and supporting the development of brand playbooks for 10+ brands
- Built brand new Cookies insights team, hiring and developing four Associates and Managers; team consistently delivered against results and considered during promotion cycles
Senior Manager, CRM & Customer Insights
Ace Hardware
Chicago, IL
01.2019 - 01.2020
- Devised the strategic direction for the CRM and Insights function by delivering fact-based insights and creating more customer-centric approaches to create competitive advantage
- Implemented best-in-class analytic and segmentation approaches, including attitudinal segmentation and drivers analysis models, driving robust action plans and effective test and learn strategies
- Collaborated with cross-functional teams to develop customer focused learning plans, identify leading partners in the industry, and deliver insights that influenced retail strategies
- Enhanced brand health measurement programs by bringing in first Marketing Mix model and optimizing brand health trackers to enable better marketing and media decisioning
- Restructured team of one Manager and four Senior Analysts, resulting in improved productivity and job satisfaction
Coors Family of Brands Insights Senior Manager
MillerCoors
Chicago, IL
01.2017 - 01.2018
- Steered the strategic direction for Coors Light and Coors Banquet brands by uncovering actionable insights and providing a holistic understanding of the business and the consumer, impacting both tactical and long-term decision-making
- Spearheaded category-wide segmentation analysis that drove product recommendations; collaborated with vendor to update methodology and improve survey sensitivity - recognized as a best-in-class example of rigor
- Directed team in fast-paced, focused learning plans that delivered optimized message strategy and the strongest campaign to date, closing gaps with consumers not previously achieved and realizing success across all markets
- Managed and developed four Managers; created a new Assistant Manager role, the first of its kind across the entire organization; team consistently rated high and were considered in succession planning
Consumer Experience Insights Senior Manager
MillerCoors
Chicago, IL
01.2015 - 01.2017
- Pioneered a new behavioral insights program, extracting deeper consumer insights from research and trends exploration and driving more engaging brand executions
- Applied modern behavioral science methods to develop cross-category knowledge of foundational consumer attitudes and key shopper behaviors to change for newly designed category strategy and brand planning process
- Led multidisciplinary teams in exploring forces impacting company performance, including a deep dive into the cannabis industry; influenced leadership move from inception to JV alignment within a year
- Implemented learnings and trained 600+ brand marketers globally, enabling brands and businesses to identify actionable imperatives within clear parameters; grew talent externally by presenting findings at conferences
Innovation and Analytics Manager
MillerCoors
Chicago, IL
01.2013 - 01.2015
- Enabled innovation and more informed decision making through optimized tools and data analysis
- Enhanced processes, fueled ideation, and improved functionality
- Created trend-tracking framework using macro-economics, consumer preferences, and industry performance data
- Drove innovation process by leveraging identified trends to provide actionable insights of the future consumer
- Ingrained innovative mechanisms for knowledge sharing and collaboration; incorporated findings and new frameworks into corporate planning processes to ensure that human-first thinking became a core competency
Senior Product Insight Manager
Procter & Gamble
Cincinnati, OH
01.2010 - 01.2012
- Led several key initiatives that enabled Secret brand to grow for 18 consecutive quarters
- Managed consumer insights program that drove design of upstream products and delivery of downstream projects
- Generated $40 million incremental sales and continued brand growth in a saturated market through consumer and technology guided launch recommendations developed with multifunctional team
- Directed team in annual concept creation sessions to define future projects and innovation pipeline; created the highest scoring concept for the brand, estimated to deliver +$20 million incremental sales in year one
- Applied real-time and non-traditional consumer research methods to lead a disruptive technology initiative validating concept-product fit and consumer acceptance, resulting in a new source of demand for the category
Senior Product Developer
Procter & Gamble
Cincinnati, OH
01.2008 - 01.2010
- Managed consumer understanding and product launch recommendations for Olay global whitespace expansion into Southeast Asia, ANZ, Arabian Peninsula, Mexico, and Russia, driving global brand presence
- Designed regional product launch models that delivered consumer delight and best-in-class technology, enabling competitive advantage and growth in saturated and established markets
- Enhanced global consumer attitudes and usage understanding in multiple regions; guided team to develop marketing communication and messaging strategy based on regional practices
- Managed and developed a researcher and senior researcher; guidance resulted in promotions within a year
Lead Process Engineer
Procter & Gamble
Cincinnati, OH
01.2005 - 01.2008
- Directed qualification of new manufacturing site and making systems
- Defined and integrated a new semi-continuous process that increased capacity by 2x, reduced required inventory on hand, and enabled flexibility
- Coordinated with engineering and floor teams to oversee design, validation, and production scheduling; planned runs ahead of schedule, resulting in no missed cases and extra time for optimization studies
- Created technical guidance and training modules; implemented coaching and training programs to develop staff, facilitate efficiency, and improve performance; managed 20+ non-exempt staff and trained 50+ plant operators
Education
B.S. - Chemical Engineering
The University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX01.2005
Certification - Predictive Analytics
DePaul University
Chicago, IL01.2013
Skills
- Strategic Planning
- Innovation
- Consumer Behavior Insights
- Creative Development
- Research Management
- New Market Development
- Project and Vendor Management
- Skill Development Coaching
- Team Leadership
Websites
Leadership Experience
- Ferrara Candy Company/Ferrero USA, Fearless Women Who Lead (FWWL) Resource Group Participant, 01/01/20, 12/31/22
- Ferrara Candy Company/Ferrero USA, Leadership Lounge Elected Participant, 01/01/20, 12/31/21
- MillerCoors, Asian Employee Assistance Network (AsEAN) Resource Group Participant, 01/01/13, 12/31/18
- MillerCoors, Women in Beer Elected Participant - Inaugural Program, 01/01/16, 12/31/17
- Procter & Gamble, Site Leader, P&G Female Asian Pacific American (APA) Network, 01/01/05, 12/31/12
- Junior League of Chicago, Member, 01/01/14, 12/31/18
- Junior League of Chicago, Sponsorship and Solicitation Chair, 01/01/17, 12/31/18
Accomplishments
Ferrara Candy Company/Ferrero USA | Fearless Women Who Lead (FWWL) Resource Group Participant, 2020-2022
Leadership Lounge Elected Participant, 2020-2021, NextUP Participant, 2023-present
MillerCoors | Asian Employee Assistance Network (AsEAN) Resource Group Participant, 2013-2018
Women in Beer Elected Participant – Inaugural Program, 2016-2017
Procter & Gamble | Site Leader, P&G Female Asian Pacific American (APA) Network, 2005-2012
Junior League of Chicago | Member, 2014-2018; Sponsorship and Solicitation Chair, 2017-2018
Timeline
Director of Insights, Cookies Portfolio of Brands
Ferrara Candy Company/Ferrero USA
01.2020 - Current
Senior Manager, CRM & Customer Insights
Ace Hardware
01.2019 - 01.2020
Coors Family of Brands Insights Senior Manager
MillerCoors
01.2017 - 01.2018
Consumer Experience Insights Senior Manager
MillerCoors
01.2015 - 01.2017
Innovation and Analytics Manager
MillerCoors
01.2013 - 01.2015
Senior Product Insight Manager
Procter & Gamble
01.2010 - 01.2012
Senior Product Developer
Procter & Gamble
01.2008 - 01.2010
Lead Process Engineer
Procter & Gamble
01.2005 - 01.2008
B.S. - Chemical Engineering
The University of Texas at Austin
Certification - Predictive Analytics
DePaul University
Similar Profiles
Omarr BradleyOmarr Bradley
Panning HMO at Ferrara Candy CompanyPanning HMO at Ferrara Candy Company
Irma GutierrezIrma Gutierrez
Team Lead at Ferrara Candy CompanyTeam Lead at Ferrara Candy Company
Crystal MedellinCrystal Medellin
Lead Clerk at Ferrara Candy CompanyLead Clerk at Ferrara Candy Company