Paula Varela Tomasco - Don't Forget to Think

Note: Anshul Dubey participated in his personal capacity. The views expressed are his own and do not represent PepsiCo. Welcome to AigoraCast. Conversations with industry experts on how new technologies are impacting sensory and consumer science. Anshul Dubey joins John Ennis to discuss practical AI adoption, helping skeptical teams, and using AI as a coach to strengthen human thinking and skills.  

Former Zevia COO Hank Margolis joins John Ennis to discuss the practical work of building a beverage company. They explore formulation improvements, culture shaped by employees, the risks of rigid strategy, and the relationships that help a small brand grow. Hank also reflects on making time for family and his work at Flavorchem's The Bench.  

Hi, I'm Dr. John Ennis, CEO at Aigora. In this episode, I enjoyed speaking with Rasto Ivanic, Co-Founder and CEO of GroupSolver. Rasto and I talked about where AI belongs in consumer research and why the answers still have to come from people, focusing on why he stopped his engineers for six months to fix survey data quality, and why he does not believe a synthetic panel can tell you what a person actually wants. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did, and remember to subscribe to AigoraCast to hear more conversations like this one in the future!   Social Links & Resources LinkedIn: Rasto Ivanic Company: GroupSolver Expertise Areas: Conversational and Open-Ended Survey Design Survey Data Quality and Respondent Fraud Semantic Clustering of Unstructured Responses Consumer Insight Technology Entrepreneurship  

Hi, I'm Dr. John Ennis, CEO at Aigora. In this episode, I enjoyed speaking with Thorsten Guksch, International Head of Data Science at SAM Sensory and Consumer Research. Thorsten and I share a lot of common interests, and I loved taking a deep dive with him on turning open-ended consumer feedback into structured sensory insight. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did, and remember to subscribe to AigoraCast to hear more conversations like this one in the future! Short Bio Thorsten Guksch is International Head of Data Science at SAM Sensory and Consumer Research in Zurich, where he combines sensory and consumer science with advanced data science. His work focuses on translating complex sensory and behavioral data into clear, practical insight about how people perceive and experience products. Over a decade with SAM, Thorsten has contributed to national and international research and helped develop innovative analytical approaches. His interests include multisensory interactions, drivers of liking, machine learning, synthetic data, and automated methods for turning open-ended consumer language into structured sensory information. Thorsten holds a Master's in Food and Beverage Innovation from the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) and previously studied Food and Nutrition at Albstadt-Sigmaringen University. His research and industry work bridge rigorous sensory measurement, consumer understanding, and modern statistical modeling. Social Links & Resources LinkedIn: Thorsten Guksch Expertise Areas: Sensory & Consumer Research Data Science, Statistical Modeling & Machine Learning Multisensory Product Experience NLP & Open-Ended Response Analysis  

In this episode, I'm speaking with Roberto Salas, a Global Consumer and Sensory Insights Executive based out of Princeton, New Jersey. With over two decades in the FMCG industry, his career has spanned the globe, starting in Mexico and taking him through South Africa, the UK, Latin America, and eventually to his current work at IFF. We had a fantastic conversation about bridging technical sensory science with deep consumer understanding, and how he translates complex human behavior into actionable commercial growth strategies. Please join me in welcoming Roberto Salas. Roberto Salas is a Consumer Intelligence and Growth Strategy executive with over two decades of experience in the food and beverage industry. Operating in the Global Consumer & Sensory space, he specializes in translating complex market, consumer, sensory, and behavioral data into strategies that fuel portfolio growth, innovation, and brand differentiation. Throughout his career, Roberto has managed global and regional projects for major corporations, including Danone, ConAgra, Cargill, Yoplait, and currently IFF. His expertise lies in bridging technical product design with a deep, empathetic understanding of human needs. Over recent years, he has pioneered the use of AI-powered tools to mine unstructured data for actionable intelligence. A passionate advocate for democratizing research, he frequently conducts workshops to coach cross-functional teams, ensuring that genuine consumer value remains at the forefront of the commercialization process. Roberto holds a degree in Food Engineering from Tecnológico de Monterrey (TEC) in Mexico and a Master's Degree in Food Science, specializing in Sensory Analysis, from Kansas State University. Social Links & Resources LinkedIn: Roberto Salas Expertise Areas: Growth Strategy & Commercial Impact Global Consumer Insights & Cultural Nuances Sensory Perception Modeling AI-Powered Data Analysis (Unstructured Data)  

Hi, I'm Dr. John Ennis, CEO at Aigora. In this episode, I enjoy speaking with Dr. Paula Varela. Paula and I shared a fascinating conversation regarding the role and risks of AI in consumer research, before discussing how sensory science can help drive healthier and more sustainable food choices. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did, and remember to subscribe to AigoraCast to hear more conversations like this one in the future. Social Links & Resources LinkedIn: Paula Varela Tomasco Organizations: Nofima & Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) Expertise Areas: Sensory & Consumer Sciences Sustainable and Healthy Food Behavior Cross-Cultural Consumer Research Food Science & Engineering  

"In this episode, I'm speaking with Michael Nestrud, a dedicated researcher of the human experience who uniquely bridges the gap between rigorous sensory science and the culinary arts. Based in Chicago, Michael is currently with First Position Training and Consulting, where his driving mission is to make 'product evaluation and sensory science for everyone.' We had a fantastic conversation about how his culinary background informs his research, and why democratizing product evaluation is so critical for modern food innovation.  LinkedIn: Michael Nestrud Company: First Position Training and Consulting Expertise Areas: * Sensory Science & Product Evaluation Culinary Arts & Human Experience Research Training & Education Accessible Consumer Insights

Hi, I'm Dr. John Ennis, CEO at Aigora. In this episode, I enjoyed speaking with Greg Fodor, an innovator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Greg and I had a fascinating conversation about the future of immersive experiences, the limitations of current VR hardware, and how headset-free technology could completely transform the way consumers interact with digital environments and products.  I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did, and remember to subscribe to AigoraCast to hear more conversations like this one in the future! Social Links & Resources LinkedIn: Greg Fodor Company: Portal VR Expertise Areas: * Headset-Free Virtual Reality Spatial Computing & Immersive Technology Next-Generation HCI (Human-Computer Interaction) Technology Innovation  

Hi, I'm Dr. John Ennis, CEO at Aigora. In this episode, I enjoyed speaking with Nicolas Pineau of Data Insights. Nicolas shared a lot about his experiences both applying and teaching AI within sensory and consumer science, and I heartily agreed with his perspective that we are just at the beginning of an exciting change in our field.  I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did, and remember to subscribe to AigoraCast to hear more conversations like this one in the future!  Social Links & Resources LinkedIn: Nicolas Pineau Company: Data Insight (Founder) Expertise Areas: * Sensometrics & Advanced Statistics R&D AI Strategy & Leadership Food Product Innovation Data Science Consulting  

Hi, I'm Dr. John Ennis, CEO at Aigora. In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Josh Cook of FlowAltDelete, a Microsoft MVP and true master of M365 Copilot.  Many of our clients and students use copilot as their daily driver, so it was great to have an expert on Copilot on the show to share his excitement about the powerful new way of working it enables.  I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did, and remember to subscribe to AigoraCast to hear more conversations like this one in the future!  Josh Cook is a Microsoft MVP in Business Applications and a prominent expert in the Microsoft AI and Power Platform ecosystem. He specializes in designing enterprise-grade solutions that bridge the gap between people, data, and intelligent workflows using Power Apps, Power Automate, Dataverse, and Microsoft 365 Copilot. As a community leader, Josh directs the Calgary Biz Apps community and hosts workshops and hackathons designed to empower the next generation of builders. Under his content brand, FlowAltDelete, Josh focuses on making complex AI and low-code technologies approachable and actionable. He is widely recognized for his ability to help organizations move beyond the initial hype to design governed, scalable systems that connect people and intelligent agents in the next era of work. Social Links & Resources LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/flowaltdelete/ Content Hub: https://flowaltdelete.com/ Expertise Areas: * Microsoft 365 Copilot & Copilot Studio Power Platform Architecture (Power Apps, Automate, Pages) Low-Code Governance and Scaling Enterprise AI Implementation