When The Curiosity Current launched, the goal was simple. Build a place where the people shaping consumer research could think out loud together—about the work, the field, and where it's going. The conversation has earned the show its first major award.
The Curiosity Current is the 2026 winner of Best Business Podcast at the Quill Podcast Awards. It's a milestone we owe entirely to the listeners, guests, and industry friends who've shaped the show alongside us.
The Curiosity Current at a glance
- Award: Winner, Best Business Podcast—2026 Quill Podcast Awards
- Also recognized: Finalist, Best B2B Branded Podcast
- Hosts: Stephanie Vance (VP, Customer Experience & Research Strategy at aytm) and Molly Strawn-Carreño (Director of Brand Growth)
- Format: Weekly conversations with senior leaders across market research, insights, marketing, and consumer behavior
- Produced by: Kimberly Cutler (Growth Marketing Specialist) and aytm
Listen: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.
What is The Curiosity Current?
The Curiosity Current is a market research podcast from aytm built for the people who actually do the work—senior researchers, insights leaders, marketers, and the founders building around them. Stephanie and Molly bring a research-grounded, journalism-trained pairing to every conversation, with guests ranging from agency founders to in-house heads of insights at some of the most recognizable brands in the world.
Moments that have shaped the show
When the hosts took the mic themselves
Molly and Stephanie stepped away from guests to reflect on five lessons drawn from their conversations with researchers, strategists, and marketers. "Five lessons from a year of market research conversations" remains one of the most resonant episodes the show has produced—a reminder that the audience shows up for the hosts as much as the guests.
Crossing the 50th episode
The 50th episode brought aytm CEO Lev Mazin and President & COO Shanon Adams back behind the mic—a full-circle moment for a show that started as a small experiment between a few curious people. (Listen here.)
A Quill Podcast Award
And the one that anchors this milestone—Best Business Podcast at the 2026 Quill Podcast Awards, with a finalist nod for Best B2B Branded Podcast.
Favorite moments worth a re-listen
A few moments have become listener favorites—and ours.
Why LEGO belongs in market research — Garret Westlake
Garret made the case for LEGO Serious Play as a legitimate research methodology and shared what happens when teams literally build their workflow pain points out of bricks. Healthcare teams that built "pits of despair." Innovators who built Dante's Inferno. Visual, embodied insight that surveys couldn't surface. His line stayed with us. (Listen.)
“If it was just about the right answers, you wouldn’t need people.”
Running for donuts — Lindsey Goodman
Lindsey's ethnographic research at Wolverine Worldwide took her team from San Diego to Toronto to London, where they discovered something brand strategy couldn't have predicted: serious trail runners were, in her words, "running for donuts and beer." That cultural permission to play unlocked years of footwear innovation. (Listen.)
Why a CMO doesn't need a 50-page deck — Steve Olenski
Steve "The CMO Whisperer" Olenski put a fine point on what most insights teams keep getting wrong. The line became a recurring theme across the show. (Listen.)
“I don’t know of any human who needs a 50-page deck—unless you need a cure for insomnia.”
Sports fandom is a social signal — Ben Valenta
Ben (SVP of Strategy at Fox Sports, co-author of Fans Have More Friends) reframed an entire category. His research surfaced something we hadn't quite expected: fans watch for the community around the game. Fandom is fundamentally a social signal. (Listen.)
Forget the data, tell the story — Leyla Doany
Leyla built JOOLA's insights function from scratch and dropped the line that bruised every researcher's ego the right way. (Listen.)
“Just tell the story, forget the data, and you will be invited to so many more conversations.”
Episodes worth starting with
If you're new to The Curiosity Current—or sharing it with someone in your network—here's where we'd start.
- Five lessons from a year of market research conversations — Stephanie and Molly reflect on what surprised them, what made them uncomfortable, and where they still disagree.
- Leena Doshi (Electronic Arts) — Required listening for anyone working at the intersection of research, strategy, and the humans behind the data.
- Rand Fishkin (SparkToro) — Candor on audience research, zero-click marketing, and how brands can sharpen their understanding of buyers.
- Leonard Murphy (GreenBook) — A landscape view of where the insights industry is heading—from someone who's been tracking it for decades.
- Laurie Demeritt (The Hartman Group) — On the aspiration-behavior gap in food and beverage, and what GLP-1 adoption means for brands.
- Lev Mazin & Shanon Adams — 50th episode special — A reflective conversation between aytm's CEO and President on what the show set out to be, and what it's become.
What's coming next
More guests. More conversations with the people who define how research gets done. The same commitment to going deep on the work behind consumer insights. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.
Thank you to every listener, guest, and team member who got us here. The current keeps moving.
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