He was previously executive vice-president of Ipsos’s MarketQuest division. He has held a number of leadership roles at Unilever Best Foods including vice-president, marketing in the US, research director in Hong Kong and general manager in Singapore. He began his career at Maritz Marketing Research.

In his new role at GfK, Carter will guide the MOI quantitative research practice and support product development for the consumer, financial services, technology, retail and automotive sectors.

Audrey Rosen, GfK’s managing director of market opportunities and innovation in North America said: “He will help our clients sharpen their focus on identifying the next game-changing innovation for their businesses. John also has the skills to help companies make best use of a host of approaches, from MOI’s proprietary segmentation tool to market landscape studies that help clients grow their portfolios.”