CERC Talent

John Nienstedt, Sr.

President

• Questionnaire design and script writing
• Project development
• Analysis
• Sampling
• Pricing and invoicing
• All aspects of the business

Early in his career John Nienstedt (pronounced Neen-Sted) worked in local political campaigns, was an aide to a San Diego County Supervisor and managed a mammoth political phonecenter. He and a partner founded Competitive Edge Research & Communication, Inc. in 1987. John acquired sole ownership of the firm in 1991 and computerized the operation with predictive dialers in 1992. In 1994 Nienstedt earned his master's degree in Political Science with an emphasis in social science research. His thesis dealt with the challenges of predicting voter turnout and is entitled "A Practical Strategy for Predicting Voter Turnout in Pre-Election Polling." Nienstedt expanded calling capacity in 1995 and again in 1998 when he purchased CERC's current headquarters. John and his wife married in 2000 and have a son. Nienstedt is also an avid baseball fan and racquetball player.

The 41 year-old native San Diegan is a featured speaker at campaign seminars and is frequently called upon by the media and other organizations to shed light on political and polling issues. Nienstedt has written articles for the San Diego Union-Tribune and Campaigns & Elections magazine. He is a member of the International Visitors Council of San Diego, Envision San Diego, the American Association of Political Consultants and the American Association for Public Opinion Research, attending all but one of the organization's annual conferences since 1996. He received the SBA's Entrepreneurial Success Award for 2000. In 2003 Nienstedt launched the KPBS/Competitive Edge Research San Diego County Opinion Assessment which takes the monthly pulse of local residents.

Chad Harris

Director of Operations

• Employee management
• CATI programming and sample management
• Project direction
• Client liaison

As the Director of Operations, Chad is responsible for employee development and supervision, questionnaire programming, sample management, and project direction. Chad works directly with clients to ensure accurate and timely fielding of projects.

Chad started his phone center career in 1993, working as a low-level floor supervisor in his hometown of Louisville, KY. Since then he has acquired a wealth of experience at various research firms (including GfK-NOP and Total Research Corp.) as programmer, project manager, applications developer, assistant call center manager and call center manager.

Chad received his Bachelor of Science degree in Police Administration from the University of Louisville. Golfing and reading are some of his favorite interests.

Tracy R. Duben

Research Manager

• Data quality management
• Sampling
• Interviewer and supervisor evaluation
• Data preparation and coding
• Report compilation
• Presentation production

Tracy oversees the consulting and research activities with a particular focus on the management of data quality and works closely with John and Chad. Sampling; interviewer and supervisor evaluation; data preparation and coding using SPSS; report compilation; charting; presentation production and training are only a few of her important duties. Tracy is ultimately responsible for integrity of all the data collected and reported by the firm.

Prior to joining CERC, Tracy worked as a research analyst and consultant for several organizations including Intuit and Factor Technology Group. She conducted primary and secondary data communications research, developed segmentation models, evaluated consumer satisfaction and awareness and provided strategic recommendations to clients.

Tracy holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of California, Davis and an M.A. from Golden Gate University's Ageno School of Business, where she concentrated in Industrial/Organizational Psychology and more specifically, quantitative research methodology. Her interests include theater, live music and just about anything involving the beautiful San Diego weather.

Shari Ciancio

Office Manager

• Administrative management
• Maintains supplies and vendor relations
• Manages personnel and employment issues
• Qualitative Management

Shari Ciancio (pronounced CHON-cho) is CERC’s front office voice and face. She is responsible for managing all office operations, supporting the staff, handling special projects and managing Qualitative projects. Shari has 14-plus years of experience in the research industry as an Office Manager and Project Manager.

Ciancio studied business at Miramar College and accounting at Palomar College. She and her husband have a daughter who received her BA in English from CSU Fullerton.  She and her husband are avid readers, and are especially fond of historical mysteries.  She is involved in volunteer committee work and singing, and when time allows she creates jewelry.

Ronald Zavala

Call Center Manager

• Project management
• Quota control
• Supervision of support staff
• Personnel evaluation
• Recruiting

Ronald Zavala is CERC's newest talent.  He began his phone center career as an interviewer at Directions in Research in 1996.  Since then he has acquired a wealth of interviewing, supervisorial and management skills, having worked for Trotta Associates (qualitative research) in Orange County, SK&A (medical database) in Irvine, and Field Research (qualitative research) in San Diego.  In his most recent position, Ronald was Flagship Research’s (qualitative, quantitative and field research) Executive Director. 

Ronald received his BA in Classics from San Diego State University in 1993 with an emphasis in Greek and Latin.  He was honored as the Outstanding Graduate in his class, Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa.  Ronald also earned a Teaching Credential in the same subject from SDSU in 1994.  He was raised in Central America, is fluent in Spanish, and served honorably for two enlistments in the U.S. Navy as a Quartermaster (navigator's assistant).  His interests include Mexican History and music, being an avid collector of live bootleg recordings and Bob Dylan’s music, in particular.