uSamp Growth Fuels Expansion of North American Team

Encino, California-based uSamp announced a series of personnel hires and internal promotions--all resulting from the record growth the company has experienced this year, and all pointing toward continued expansion.

On the heels of its recent announcement of 167 percent revenue growth year-over-year in 2010, uSamp has now added a CFO, promoted two executives, and doubled the number of sales directors in its North American operation.

“We’re developing a strong reputation in the sampling industry for exceptional customer service and highly competitive pricing,” said Matt Dusig, co-founder and CEO, uSamp. “We’ve been investing steadily in our next-generation sampling platform and in hiring for strategic areas of our business, particularly in the U.S.

“Today, we have 145 team members worldwide, with approximately 92 based in North America. It’s a deeply experienced team comprised of market research experts, driven by an unparalleled focus on customer service.”

John Woolard was named uSamp as CFO. He brings more than 20 years of financial leadership experience in entertainment, retail, manufacturing and distribution. He has held positions as CFO, vice president of finance and controllership at companies ranging in size from emerging growth through the Fortune 500, with solid operational involvement in rapidly changing environments and through international assignments in the United Kingdom, Netherlands and the Middle East. Woolard possesses deep expertise in internal controls with full company wide risk assessment, creation and documentation of internal controls, and implementation of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) programs.

In addition, Dave Gaston has been promoted from senior director to regional vice president of survey solutions, assuming responsibilities for assisting revenue growth in a regional capacity. With more than 12 years market research experience, Gaston’s focus is on developing strong partnerships with many of the top market research companies in the industry, applying his in-depth consultative knowledge. Prior to joining uSamp in 2009, Gaston held positions at Greenfield Online, Yankelovich Partners and NFO.

Melanie Courtright has been promoted to senior vice president of client services, from her prior position as vice president. Her responsibilities include quality initiatives and employee training, with an emphasis on developing new relationships and ensuring the satisfaction of existing clients. As VP Marketing for DMS, which uSamp acquired in June, and at a full-service research firm in Dallas prior, she served customers in the research sector for more than 15 years. Courtright’s specialty areas range from client acquisition and the design and implementation of research solutions to the presentation of findings across topics and industries.

uSamp also has doubled the number of sales directors working in its offices throughout the United States, adding new hires to concentrate on market research clients across the nation to lead the expansion of the company’s sampling business.

The company previously announced plans to double the rate of investment in its next-generation technology platform. uSamp commenced building its panel platform for market research companies in 2008, resulting in product releases such as PanelNet, SampleMarket and PanelBook Search.

For information on uSamp, visit www.usamp.com.