I’m Mark, and I’m a Director at Cognosis. I joined Cognosis because I wanted to create strategies for clients that people are excited by, believe in, and want to deliver. As a result, I spend as much of my time thinking about how strategies should be introduced as what’s in them.

Click here to read more

In addition to helping clients grow, I’m also involved in the management and growth of our own business - everything from thought leadership to recruitment and new business.I joined as a Senior Consultant seven years ago and as a result of the company approach of giving people early responsibility for project and relationships have progressed quickly to my current level.

Duncan Campbell, Senior Manager

My name is Duncan Campbell, I’m a Senior Manager at Cognosis and have been with company since March 2008. My day to day responsibilities include the management and delivery of programmes for clients.

Click here to read more

Projects cover a wide range of areas including portfolio and brand management, innovation and market growth strategies. For most projects we tend to work in small client teams of 3 to 6 people. Currently I am getting to see a bit of the world as my key client operates in over 40 markets.

In addition to client work I am encouraged to get involved with the management and growth of the business. I really enjoy working for a mid-sized strategy consultancy as you get to see how the business works at all levels.

Andrew Cowley, Senior Manager

My name is Andrew, and I am a senior manager at Cognosis. Probably much like the person reading this now, I had never heard of Cognosis before a recruitment consultant slid a job description in front of me.

Click here to read more

The attraction of Cognosis for me was that the work they do is really used by clients to direct strategy as opposed to being a box that had to be ticked, (as in my previous job doing commercial due diligence), and that their projects are very varied, incorporating some of the softer elements of marketing and branding that I couldn’t find in a regular commercial role. My first project was working with a team to rejuvenate a major FMCG brand across several Eastern European markets, dealing with consumer insights, brand essence, drivers of choice… and many other things I knew little about. But whilst there was a steep learning curve in some areas, all projects had a grounding in commercial reality, and I felt I was able to add value from day one.

Cognosis small enough that I was given the responsibility of being a key client contact from an early stage, and got to fly all over the world delivering projects for them; big enough that you can feel the support of a lot of intelligent and experienced people, so you don’t feel too out on a limb.

They have also been extremely supportive and flexible with my career goals, and when I took a break to start a business and spend some time with my family in South America, they were happy to offer me regular contract work, which proved vital to keeping my head above water!

Donna Stevens, Senior Consultant

I joined Cognosis in March 2007 and so have been a consultant here for just under 2 years now. What struck me first about Cognosis was the responsibility I got from Day One. I had four years’ consulting / analytical experience at another larger firm prior to Cognosis but the exposure you get here is second to none.

Click here to read more

Even in this short time I have worked with a variety of large and small FMCG companies on a broad range of projects, from helping one client to shape and redefine their learning and development programme to helping another client activate their brands. Cognosis are really good at acknowledging when they recruit good people and they really let you get stuck in.

What is also really refreshing is the people you get to work with. We recruit from such a range of backgrounds that there is always an abundance of fresh thinking at hand – I love that (even if it does keep me constantly on my toes!)

‘A Day in the Life at Cognosis’

One of the best things about working at Cognosis is the wide variety of work that you’re presented with – every day is a different challenge. Today, I arrived at the office in time for a conference call with a client in Geneva at 8.30am to discuss a piece of analysis we’re doing looking at consumer switching between their brands.

The rest of the morning was split up between follow-up work from this meeting, a phone interview with a marketing manager in Lebanon, where we’re holding a workshop in a couple of weeks, and a couple of internal catch-ups with my managers to review progress on the different projects I am working on. After lunch I had a call with another client, this time in the US, looking at their global portfolio strategy.

The rest of the afternoon has been spent finishing off the morning’s analysis to send off to the client before his meeting tomorrow, with just enough time to squeeze in a quick meeting to discuss an internal training seminar I’m helping to develop before leaving the office at 7pm to get a round in...