Team
Meet Our Team
Darlene Campagna
President & OwnerBefore joining Direct Opinions, Darlene spent 11 years working for a national IT consulting company took its’ Cleveland operation from approximately $2 million in annual sales to over $27 million in just six years. And so, her love and passion for growing a business began . . .
Darlene has been a member of Entrepreneur’s Organization (EO) since 2007 and has served on the Cleveland Chapter Board for over seven years in various positions. She has also been a Mentor for the EO Accelerator (EOA) program for over five years and is currently EOA President. She also participates as a committee member on the Women’s Entrepreneurship Advisory Council for John Carroll University and is on the Thomas More University’s Sales Executive Roundtable.
Darlene and her story were featured in Soar to Success magazine December 2021.
Darlene was thrilled to receive the honor of being recognized for Crain’s Cleveland Business Notable Women in Entrepreneurship 2019 award. Twenty-one women were honored for their incredible leadership, drive and talent.
In September 2018, she was awarded the Partner of the Year Award from The DiJulius Group at their annual Customer Service Revolution Conference in Cleveland.
In 2012, Darlene was honored by NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners) having received an award as one of the Top Women Business Owners of Northeast Ohio.
She graduated from Bowling Green State University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications.
Casey Newmeyer, PHD
Director, Market ResearchCasey began her career working in marketing roles for such prestigious companies as FedEx, XM Satellite Radio, and Northrop Grumman prior to transitioning to a career in academia in 2011. This unique combination of experience allows her to draw from both the corporate and academia worlds in her current roles today.
In her role as the Director of Market Research for Direct Opinions, Casey helps to select the appropriate methodology to achieve the defined business objectives of each client initiative guiding the development of the survey instrument and assisting with the analysis and reporting to deliver insight and drive actionable results.
In addition, Casey is the Assistant Professor of Marketing, Design & Innovation, for Case Western Reserve University Weatherhead School of Business. In this role, she focuses her research work linking consumer attitudes to managerial decision making for brand partnerships and alliances such as co-brands and brand acquisitions. From the perspective of a marketing manager, she outlines how such brand pairings impact the firms involved and their existing branded products and services. Additional research focuses on brand and consumer relationships and identities.
Casey received her PhD from the Katz Graduate School of Business, University of Pittsburgh, and her MBA from the Crummer Graduate School of Business, Rollins College. Her publications have appeared in the Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice and Journal of Academy of Marketing Science. She has received the Nancy and Joseph Keithley Fellow in Business Marketing and has presented on numerous occasions at the American Marketing Association Winter Educators Conference.
Rich Varos
Research Project ManagerRich joined the Direct Opinions team in 2019 as a Research Project Manager. In this role, he manages project-specific responsibilities to facilitate the efficient and thorough implementation and execution of new research initiatives. Rich works closely with clients assisting in developing the survey instrument, ensures successful data collection throughout the project, and delivers actionable insights by providing thorough executive analysis reporting based on research findings.
Rich received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Denison University in 2015, majoring in Economics and History. In 2019, he graduated from a 24-week Data Analytics and Coding Bootcamp at Case Western Reserve University.
In his spare time, he is an avid board game player, and enjoys cooking, traveling, and exercise classes.
RYAN ANDERSON
Manager, Client SuccessBefore joining Direct Opinions, Ryan spent 12 years in the Market Research Industry, beginning as an interviewer, moving into team supervision, and eventually, field management.
Ryan began his career in 2000 with a recognized market research group based in Canada. What started as a part-time job to pay for broadcasting college, soon turned into a career in management, as he was promoted to supervisor within the first year of employment.
Over his time as a supervisor, Ryan received several staff awards which recognized him for project management, staff development, documentation, as well as client services.
In December of 2012, Ryan was hired as interviewer at a Winnipeg based market research company, being quickly promoted to assistant field manager within 3 months. The field center would see the highest productivity in its history over the 2 years Ryan was managing the call center.
In February of 2015, Ryan became a contract interviewer once again. Within 3 years, he was brought on by Direct Opinions. After 3 years of working as an interviewer, Ryan was promoted to Manager of Client Success in June of 2021.
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