When I first met Denis he was working for the Department of Trade and Industry and described himself as a ‘compulsive bureaucrat’. At that time he was responsible for administering part of the export guarantee scheme, which contributed funds to help businesses develop their exports, including support for a market research project to evaluate the potential success of entering a new overseas market.

However, I knew him as a leading light in the Industrial Market Research Association (IMRA), where he was an active member of the board for many years, including the period I was chairman, until it was absorbed into the Market Research Society, as the Business Interest Group (BIG) in 1993. At that point, Denis continued to support the interests of the research industry with activities on behalf of the MRS.

An important element of Denis’s contribution to our industry was his active promotion of the benefits of the Code of Conduct and he was probably best known for his advisory role with Codeline; where he not only provided an emergency advice service when required, but he also produced a regular ‘problem page’ in Research Magazine, describing recent examples of Codeline queries he had dealt with and thus increased awareness of, and compliance with, the code.

Other, more social contributions including setting crossword puzzles, organising quizzes and helping to run successful conferences for IMRA and subsequently BIG.

But I knew him best as the company secretary for the CMR Group, a post he took up in 1997, on leaving the DTI. Then, as now, the group included Sample Answers Ltd as a subsidiary and Denis’s contribution to the successful growth of that company over the following years ensured that our administration was impeccable. 

Sadly, after 10 years of successful growth, in common with much of the industry, we suffered a severe setback as a result of the economic turbulence of 2008 and Denis retired from the company in 2009.  His quiet contribution to the years of success was immense and his good-humoured approach to his responsibilities had earned him the affectionate title of ‘Wing Commander Pirie’ amongst his colleagues.

He was, indeed, a unique character who made an immense contribution wherever he offered his advice and efforts.

Tony Dent, chairman, CMR Group