Director of Research / Senior Moderator
Debbie Fischer is genuinely fascinated by people, especially the ways we’re so uniquely different yet somehow still so alike. She loves hearing people’s stories and feels honored to be invited, even briefly, into their lives and experiences. That sense of connection is at the heart of everything she does as Research Director at IOI, where she enjoys partnering with clients, moderates conversations with consumers, and continuously explores emerging qualitative methods to uncover the right approach for every project.
Debbie began her career as a food scientist and product developer at Frito-Lay, an experience where she balanced her time between the corporate office and the lines at the manufacturing facility. She later transitioned into consumer insights, leading product research for multiple billion-dollar brands at PepsiCo and eventually kids’ and teens’ research for the Lunchables brand at Kraft Foods before moving into customer experience research in insurance and financial services.
Debbie lives in Madison, Wisconsin with her two sons and their three pets: two cats, Penny and Maisie, and a chocolate Lab, Ozzie, who has a dog bed in her home office so he can nap through interviews. Outside of work, she does the NYT crossword daily, kayaks and hikes when the weather cooperates, and is always on the hunt for a good book recommendation.