Elliot Simmonds

Originally joining DJS Research in 2007, Elliot has spent his entire career in the research industry. He was part of a team of DJS Research staff which implemented the agency’s re-brand in 2014. He's a regular blogger and you can find links to recent articles below.

Elliot works with organisations across a range of sectors across the public, private and third sectors but has particular experience in:

• Education (from nursery to higher, including vocational, apprenticeships and education systems outside the UK)
• Culture and heritage (Museums, Libraries, Archives and other visitor attractions)
• Software & technology
• Sport and physical activity

Elliot is experienced in the full range of research methodologies, including qualitative and quantitative approaches as well as complex desk research studies and international research. He is focussed on delivering actionable research through partnerships with clients.

Alongside his research role, Elliot leads the VoicED Education Research Panel as well as having a focus on innovation within the agency. This includes roles within many of our proprietary tools, including Alumnus (alumni affinity, experience and benchmarking) and MoVE (Measure of Visitor Experience), our retrospective experience measurement tool for cultural and visitor attractions.

Some of his key clients include:

Public sector: the Home Office (Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism), The European Commission, the Competition and Markets Authority, the National Audit Office, Bank of England, Houses of Parliament

Education: RM Plc, Cambridge Assessment International Education, Firefly Learning, numerous universities and colleges, Penstripe, UniPol Student Housing, Farming and Countryside Education (Countryside Classroom), CompTIA, Education Support Partnership, GL Assessment, Pearson Plc, Ofqual, CASCAID, Investors in People, Sparx, Loop.io, Maths No Problem!

Culture, Attractions & Heritage: Kew Gardens, National Archives, Royal Museums Greenwich, National Galleries Scotland, City of London Corporation (Tower Bridge, the Monument), British Airways i360, Natural History Museum, Horniman Museum and Gardens, DCMS consortium of museums and galleries.

Software: Sky Business, Unit4 Business Software, Microsoft, Adobe, Sparx, Loop.io, MACH Alliance

Sport and physical activity: English Cricket Board, Football Association, Sport England, Sports Leaders UK, Sustrans

Elliot is enthusiastic about the value of education and has appeared as a marketing expert for students at the University of Manchester for several years, has spoken at the same university on the value of an arts degree in the job market and also worked as a mentor on the Manchester Gold scheme – working with Manchester University students to develop their business skills.

He has appeared as a Marketing and PR expert on the Guardian Small Business Network and was a judge for the UK Blog Awards 2014. In 2014, he also trekked Mount Kilimanjaro to raise funds for CLIC Sargent, a charity which supports children with cancer and their families.

Elliot attained a full scholarship to read History at The University of Manchester and in his second year attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He has Market Research Society's Advanced Certificate in Social and Market Research Practice and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA). 

Thinking...

Words to live by? How the language we speak influences our behaviour

Searching for meaning: a tongue-in-cheek look at trends on Trends 

Why are we so bad at social distancing?

Human after all: data doesn't have all the answers

System 1 thinking and some thoughts on democracy