Yogesh Chavda on Career Reinvention, Resilience and AI
ICN Researcher on Research Aditi Tandon
November 2 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET: Yogesh Chavda will join Insights Career Network for his upcoming session, “The Future of Insights: Four Scenarios and One Career to Navigate.” The conversation will explore what happens when the need for intelligence grows, even as the traditional insights profession changes. The Zoom can be found in our members-only LinkedIn group.
A career spanning P&G, Kimberly-Clark, Spotify, Pinterest and WS Audiology might look like a carefully planned progression. But for Yogesh Chavda, the journey has been anything but linear.
After more than two decades in corporate insights and marketing roles, a layoff in February 2023 marked a turning point on the Next Frontier in Insights podcast. Today, his work spans consulting, teaching, research partnerships, and AI entrepreneurship.
Ahead of his upcoming Insights Career Network session on the future of insights, we spoke with Yogesh about navigating career uncertainty, finding a distinctive area of expertise, and building new opportunities in a changing profession.
Q1. You’ve worked across very different organizations and industries. Looking back, what’s been the biggest lesson from your career journey?
Yogesh Chavda: My career wasn’t entirely by design. I followed opportunities, worked with people who influenced my thinking and moved across industries and geographies. For a long time, I saw myself as a generalist, and I valued that breadth of experience.
But a mentor once told me I needed to find my “swim lane.” I wasn’t convinced. Why limit myself when I could contribute across so many areas?
Over time, I understood his point. Being a generalist gives you versatility, but it doesn’t necessarily make you distinctive. People need to know what they can come to you for.
I also learned that a big company name or impressive title doesn’t guarantee the right fit. The culture, people, and opportunity to contribute matter just as much.
Q2. When did you finally find that swim lane?
At WS Audiology, I worked on understanding the stigma associated with hearing loss and hearing aids – why people delay seeking help even when they recognize a need.
That experience helped me see stigma as a fascinating and often overlooked dimension of consumer behavior. It became my first swim lane: hearing healthcare and the stigma surrounding it.
It was an area where I could develop deeper expertise and a distinctive perspective, rather than simply applying research skills across different categories.
Stigma remains an important area of interest for me today. I’ve learned that you don’t have to give up being a generalist, but you do need something that makes your expertise recognizable.
Q3. Your corporate career took an unexpected turn in February 2023. How did you navigate what came next?
Being downsized after years in corporate roles was a significant transition. It meant thinking differently about where and how I could apply my experience.
I explored teaching, initially as an adjunct professor and later with an opportunity to teach full-time. I also started publishing newsletters more consistently.
I already had a lot of content on my website, but it wasn’t getting much traction. So I kept building, week after week, sharing ideas and gradually developing an audience.
One realization was that having experience and expertise isn’t enough. You need to make your thinking visible, demonstrate your value, and stay open to opportunities you may not have anticipated.
Q4. How did AI become your next swim lane? Was there a particular turning point?
It started with curiosity and experimentation rather than a deliberate plan to build an AI business. I began by using ChatGPT for SWOT Analysis, Segmentation, and scenario planning, and tapping into the power of these AI models.
One of my earliest experiments was creating an AI-powered mock interview tool for Insights Career Network, which is still available on the website. It was a practical way to explore what AI could do beyond generating content.
A defining moment for me came in August 2023, in a conversation with Mayank Agarwal about synthetic data. Looking back, I realized that was when my transition into AI had really taken shape. The idea of finding a swim lane had stayed with me and AI was my second lane, alongside my work on stigma.
My approach is to spend weeks or months immersed in a subject — studying it, experimenting, speaking about it, and developing a perspective. That’s how an interest gradually becomes an area of expertise.
I studied and tested the basics of LLMs and AI for insights, which prepared me to excel in understanding the use of synthetic data, the application of custom GPTs and agentic workflows, all the way to the ultimate purchase point: agentic commerce. But I didn’t try to do all of these things at once; I became a recognized expert on the topic and then moved to something else.
Choose one area of AI in data or insights or marketing that interests you and get to know that one area really well; you’ll be surprised where it takes you.
Q5. You’ve now built a portfolio spanning consulting, contracting and AI entrepreneurship. What has that transition been like?
Today, I work directly with clients through Y2S Consulting, take on contracting assignments with SIVO, Responsive Research, and Decision Point, and participate in market research agencies’ consultant rosters. I’ve also developed Yogi AI in partnership with QuestionPro.
It’s a different way of working from being part of a large organization. You have to establish credibility, build relationships, find clients, and demonstrate the commercial value of what you offer.
There isn’t necessarily one route to building an independent career. For me, combining direct consulting, agency partnerships, and AI solutions creates different opportunities to apply my experience.
The challenge is not just developing expertise, but translating that expertise into something people recognize, trust, and are willing to invest in.
Q6. How have professional communities such as Insights Career Network and South Asian Marketing Insights (SAMI) supported you through your career transitions?
Communities like Insights Career Network and SAMI provide meaningful support, particularly when you’re navigating a career transition or exploring something new.
They offer opportunities to exchange ideas, learn from others, build relationships and stay connected to the wider profession.
One piece of advice I strongly believe in is: “Share your desires.”
Tell people what you’re interested in, what you’re working toward, and where you want to go. Not everyone will be able to help, but someone might connect you with the right person or open a door you hadn’t considered.
It’s not just about networking when you need something. It’s about contributing to the community, sharing your knowledge, and earning people’s trust over time. Those relationships can create opportunities in unexpected ways.
Q7. What three pieces of advice would you give insights professionals who are facing uncertainty or wondering how to stay relevant?
First, find your swim lane. Develop something distinctive that people can associate with you. Your experience gives you a foundation, but focused expertise helps you stand out.
Second, make your value visible. Share your knowledge and communicate what you bring to the table. If you have a strong value proposition, opportunities can find you — but people need to know what you offer.
Third, play to win, don’t play to not lose. Don’t become so focused on protecting what you’ve already built that you stop exploring what comes next. Keep learning, experimenting, and taking risks, regardless of your age or career stage.
You cannot stop, sit back, and expect things to happen. You have to keep moving forward.
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