Shields (pictured) was the most recent chair of the industry relations committee of the Qualitative Research Consultants Association (QRCA) and became a charter beneficiary of its Professional Researcher Certification (PRC) programme as a result. Prior to her three years with Advanced Focus, she spent 14 years as vice president of operations at California-based full service firm Nichols Research.

In her new role, Shields will be based near Dallas and will be responsible for developing and implement marketing research standards and creating online training programs. She will also coordinate internal research and oversee data collection, analysis and reporting of industry metrics collated by the MRA.

David Almy, MRA’s CEO, said: “Amy will be making the best use of her longtime research and industry expertise to expand MRA’s resources to support MRA member success.”