Andrew Reid President and Founder

Vancouver July 13th – Interactive research and technology firm Vision Critical is proud to announce that Andrew Reid, President and Founder of Vision Critical, is a Pacific finalist in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of The Year Award.

Andrew Reid, the son of Canadian market research icon Angus Reid, was one of the pioneers of online market research. With a background in internet advertising, a lifetime exposure to the market research industry and inheriting his father’s “firecracker” ambition and visionary tendencies, Reid saw the opportunity to use the web as a way to improve market research for both the client and the respondent.

Reid started Vision Critical in 2000 and the company has since become a leader in online research; its Sparq research platform is being used by 25% of the world’s top brands. Vision Critical was the first company to leverage online branded panels, recruiting consumers as members of brand-sponsored research programs. Unique among its competitors, Vision Critical is a technology driven research company with veteran researchers working side-by-side with technologists to develop and shape products and services for the market research industry.
TITLE: Andrew Reid is Pacific finalist in Entrepreneur of the Year 2010

Andrew Reid leads a company culture that embraces passion, diversity and quirkiness. More commonly found in a t-shirt than a tie, Andrew believes that outperforming the competition doesn’t require outspending them, just outsmarting them.

Reid believes there is a better way to undertake market research – making it more accessible to researchers and more engaging for respondents. “Everyone should be able to make an informed decision.” said Reid. “We saw a huge opportunity to speed up and simplify our clients’ research experience and deliver visual online surveys that are fun and easy to understand.”

Now in its 10^th year Vision Critical has expanded well beyond it original Vancouver headquarters with over 400 employees and offices across Canada, the US, Australia, and Europe.

The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards recognizes high-achieving entrepreneurs in Canada and around the world who drive growth, transform industries and build communities. The Canadian program is in its 17th year of honoring the country’s most impressive entrepreneurs from all areas of business.

The names of the Pacific winners will be announced at a gala banquet in Vancouver on September 28, and the overall winner will represent the region at the national banquet in Toronto on November 17.