People

Andy Crysell
Crowd DNA's founder and managing director, Andy Crysell has headed up a raft of noteworthy projects in research, strategy, PR, advocacy and content over the last decade. Previously he founded and managed Ramp Industry (acquired in 2007 by St Luke's, whose board he sat on) and even more previous still he worked in editorial, PR and insight for a wealth of media companies and brands. If you want to get really previous, he once sold tickets to lots of acid house parties. Given half a chance, he will talk too much about stuff like interviewing Wu-Tang Clan, Ken Kesey and even John Inman. These days, professionally, he gets to talk to the media and at conferences on subjects like content, co-creation, brand advocacy/word-of-mouth, strategic use of insight and audience segmentation - and not so much about Wu-Tang Clan.
James McLintock
James McLintock manages projects and business development at Crowd DNA, working with clients like Guardian News & Media and Sony PlayStation. He is equally at home creating research programmes, developing brand strategy, or even blogging. Before he was at Crowd DNA, James worked at Ramp Industry in a similar capacity, helping the agency to secure major clients and delivering creative project solutions. Further back in time he worked at a leading contract publishing agency, building their business development department from scratch and winning major clients from the public sector, leisure and travel industries. When he’s not in the office James likes to play records (which he does quite well) and play squash (which he does quite badly).
Paul Byrne

Paul Byrne is an account manager at Crowd DNA, working, among other things, on projects for Channel 4 and Kiss. Previously he worked within the digital sector, developing entertainment content channels, including overseeing syndication deals with content rights holders and managing partnerships with third parties. Before that, he served in the music industry for ten years, working on Underworld's million selling 'Born Slippy', signing hit records, managing numerous artists/producers and producing tracks for the likes of Lily Allen and MIA.

Jessica Street
Jessica Street is an account executive at Crowd DNA. She has recently graduated from Bournemouth University, where she studied Advertising And Marketing Communications. Previous work experience includes working as an account executive at direct marketing agency, Tullo Marshall Warren, in summer 2007. When free of the office, Jessica enjoys scuba diving and has so far dived in Turkey, Fiji and the Great Barrier Reef.
Kevin Braddock

Kevin Braddock has collaborated with Crowd DNA on research, planning and content projects for Orange, Sony PlayStation, BMW and Topman, among others. He works across journalism, consultancy and digital. His extensive experience includes reportage for GQ magazine, where he is Contributing Editor, and he has been published on social trends, health and fitness, business, technology, youth culture, relationships, music and travel in all leading British magazines and newspapers. Brand-wise, he has consulted for the likes of Absolut Vodka, Nike, Grolsch, Johnny Walker and Motorola. Kevin graduated with a First Class degree in European Languages from Goldsmiths College and was nominated as PPA Writer Of The Year in 2007. He enjoys triathlon, cyclosportive events and mountaineering, and is a qualified spinning instructor. His resting heart rate is 47bpm.

David Hollinshead
David Hollinshead works with us on digital strategy and online analytics/tracking. With years of experience consulting within the business, creative and digital spaces for agencies, brands, music and green organisations, he's a Jedi of online research techniques and recently helped BT segment their audience using his own data analysis method, called ViaSearch. He's researched peoples' attitudes to nuclear power for EDF, helped Lexus Hybrid enter social media and worked on improving Levi's EMEA e-commerce solutions. Fuzzy strategy, he calls it.
Grace Jacobson

Grace Jacobson works on research and planning, with Kiss and River Island among the Crowd DNA clients she's lent her insightful skills to. In previous lives she's been a journalist, a radio plugger and a promoter. She's coordinated press campaigns for clothing labels and she once danced in her underwear for an MTV channel launch in the window of HMV on Oxford Street. Money was tight that month… Grace loves three-inch heels, riding on the back of a Ducati and singing Fleetwood Mac songs at Japanese Karaoke bars (though not all at the same time.)

Samina Virani
Samina Virani travels the world, investigating street culture and unearthing fresh creative behaviours. Graduating from Georgetown's School of Foreign Service with a degree in culture and politics, as well as for Crowd DNA, she has consulted for WGSN, Sky TV, Youth Intelligence, Anomaly and Lowe, and has been published by Wallpaper, British Airways High Life, BPM, Remix and Time Out (she served as the editor-in-chief of Time Out Istanbul). Born in London, now based in New York, she’s also lived in Madrid, Istanbul, Washington DC and Houston, and has worked regularly in South America and Asia. She consumes copious amounts of salmon and is obsessed with following an elusive white rabbit wherever she travels.
Gavin Renz
Gavin Renz works with Crowd DNA on film content for brands like Sony PlayStation, Channel 4, Christian Aid and River Island, bringing insights to life and putting research findings into sharp context. He made the switch from graphic/motion design to film five years ago, forming Frizbee Films. 2009 will see Gavin moving further into the realm of broadcast projects.