McCrindle
At McCrindle, data isn’t the end point—it was the beginning of understanding. The team turns research into stories that shape how leaders think, plan, and act across sectors. Joining the firm in its early growth years, Annie helped shape that story: developing its suite of demographic products, co-authoring the groundbreaking Faith and Belief in Australia report, and leading the research team in delivering more than 200 projects that equipped organisations to see culture and build the future with clarity.
At McCrindle, Annie helped leaders make sense of complexity — translating research into clarity, and clarity into confident action. She shaped direction, upheld quality, and guided a growing team to deliver projects that equipped executives to make informed, future-focused decisions in their contexts.
Led with scale and intention — Directed a team of five researchers to deliver over 200 projects, balancing methodological rigour with responsiveness to real-world needs.
Turned data into strategic foresight — Oversaw large-scale national studies and deep qualitative work, distilling patterns into clear, actionable insight.
Built frameworks for understanding change — Developed McCrindle’s suite of demographic tools and mapping resources that helped organisations anticipate and adapt to population shifts.
Bridged sectors and stories — Partnered with leaders across government, corporate, education, and non-profit sectors, translating data into direction within each unique context.
Brought insight to life — Worked closely with McCrindle’s design team to transform reports and visuals into narratives that didn’t just inform—they inspired and were easily digestible and translatable.
The Approach
Across the portfolio, Annie and the research team were guided by one conviction: data only matters when people can understand and use it.
Every project balanced rigour with accessibility, translating complexity into clarity that leaders could act on. What emerged was a body of work defined by insight that didn’t stay on the page, but shaped culture, conversation, and decision-making.
Stories told through design — Reports that once spanned dozens of pages became concise, visually led narratives. Wenona School’s annual report, for instance, was distilled from 36 pages into a single, double-sided infographic — turning information into impact.
Research that shaped national conversation — Thought-leadership studies such as Woolworths’ Trolley Trends and HelloFresh’s Cooking Behaviours captured public imagination, influencing how brands understood emerging lifestyles and values.
Tools for seeing the future — Annie led the development of McCrindle’s demographic product suite, enabling organisations to visualise population shifts, identify emerging opportunities, and plan strategically for what’s next.
Insight for innovation — From Optus’ home wireless broadband to Connoisseur Desserts’ “faux-cialising” campaign, segmentation and consumer insight informed product design, service delivery, and storytelling.
Breadth with depth — The team’s work spanned education, aged care, retail, finance, and government, each project grounded in clarity, excellence, and tangible impact. The Hills Shire Business Performance Sentiment Index, for example, was later adopted by other councils across Australia.
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Research spanned government, corporate, education, churches and non-profit sectors, many projects integrated multiple research methods and outputs, creating holistic insight rather than isolated data points. Research has informed executive decision making across all of these sectors and shaped public discourse through national media.
Thought leadership projects included the Australian Community Trends Report, The Future of Sydney Report and Faith and Belief in Australia report which captured the pulse of the Australian faith and belief landscape in 2017 for the Australian church.
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Projects such as Synovum Care’s Lifestyle Tool earned international recognition, while indices like the Urban Living Index became sector-wide benchmarks.
The Hills Business Performance Sentiment Index—designed to capture local business performance, costs, employment, and future growth sentiment—was later adopted by councils across Australia.
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The suite of tools Annie developed became a core McCrindle offering, enabling organisations to embed population data directly into strategy, planning, and community engagement. Demographic analysis enabled organisations such as Anglicare, Uniting AgeWell, Wenona School and publishing houses, to have better visibility over their target markets, key competitors and more to better serve their customers, clients and stakeholders.
Outcomes and Impact
“Annie is one of the most competent individuals I have ever had the privilege of working with. She works with excellence, ease, thoroughness, and a deep understanding of the complexities of the social fabric of our communities. This complexity does not paralyse her, rather, it spurs her towards excellence and action.”
Eliane Miles, Director of The Curious Co, former Research Director at McCrindle
By leading McCrindle’s research team, Annie played a central role in shaping how organisations across Australia interpreted demographic change, understood consumers, and communicated with clarity.
The Bigger Story
The work demonstrated how rigorous research, paired with compelling design, can not only inform strategy but also capture the public imagination—helping clients make confident decisions in a fast-changing environment.
If your organisation is rich in data but needs help turning it into story, strategy, and change, we’d love to help you bridge that gap.