30Under30 Nominee: Aminat Iriafen

Great to hear from Significant Insights Global 30 under 30 nominee  Aminat Iriafen, a researcher at GitHub who leads pricing and packaging studies across the GitHub product suite. She is passionate about helping brands make informed, data-driven decisions. With a strong grasp of diverse research methodologies and a proven track record of successful studies, Aminat excels at translating complex data into actionable insights. She is dedicated to making research accessible and understandable for all stakeholders, delivering valuable insights through quantitative surveys, qualitative interviews, and secondary research to drive business growth.

The 2024 Global 30 Under 30 List will be announced on November 29th!

So, how did you get into the industry, and take us through how you got to this point?

I’ve always been passionate about data and fascinated by how people make decisions. Even as a child, I loved gathering information and creating stories from my observations. Right out of college, I had the chance to turn this passion into a career, starting on the supplier side in pharmaceuticals. For five years, I managed end-to-end research for Fortune 100 clients. Eventually, I wanted to bring my experience in-house and help a team conduct research efficiently and impactfully. This led me to GitHub, where I joined as their first in-house pricing and packaging researcher.

Why should anyone consider a career in market research, data and insights?

If you’re passionate about understanding how people think, make decisions, and ultimately drive business success, market research, data, and insights could be the perfect fit. This field is rewarding because it sharpens both quantitative and qualitative skills—one day you’re analyzing data, and the next, you’re speaking with real people about their experiences and challenges. It’s an intellectually stimulating career where you continually grow both hard and soft skills, making a real impact along the way.

Career paths are rarely without challenges. Can you share an honest moment from your career when things didn’t go quite according to plan, but the lessons remain with you to this day?

In a previous project, I faced a challenging stakeholder who was skeptical of my research findings, trusting their intuition over data-driven insights. I took a collaborative approach to address this, offering to walk them through my research methodologies, data sources, and analysis in detail. By fostering a better understanding of the rigor behind our findings, the stakeholder grew more receptive to our recommendations. I also encouraged them to review the data independently, which helped build their confidence. Ultimately, they embraced my recommendations, and the project moved forward with alignment from all key players. This experience taught me the importance of being patient and open—sometimes, helping stakeholders understand the ‘why’ behind our approach is what makes all the difference.

What two things should junior researchers focus on as they progress in their careers?

Build Your Network: As you grow in your career, it’s essential to build a community of researchers around you. Your network truly can be your net worth. Seek out mentors and sponsors who will advocate for you and share their insights. Don’t hesitate to share your thoughts on platforms like LinkedIn or engage with others on topics you’re passionate about. Investing in your network is a two-way street—the more you give, the more it will give back.

Embrace Failure: Early in your career is the perfect time to take risks and learn from your mistakes. Don’t hold back if you have a new idea or a valuable insight—speak up! Mistakes are inevitable in a field where we work with complex human behaviors. When you do make a mistake, use it as a learning opportunity, get back up, and keep growing.

Do you have any advice for our sector?

When I first started in the industry, I worked in an “old-school” way—spending hours in Excel and manually calculating data. My perspective shifted completely when I moved to a martech agency with its own consumer intelligence platform. Suddenly, I realized there were tools that could make research ten times more efficient, not just for me but for my clients too. Yet, as I shared this excitement with others, I encountered hesitation.

My advice? Don’t fear change. As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly central to our field, we have a duty not only to question these tools but also to embrace them. We must grow and learn alongside LLMs and emerging technologies. Other industries are already adopting these tools, and we can’t afford to be left behind. Our expertise needs to guide the development of these AI models; we can’t let it be drowned out by scepticism. Let’s use our voices to shape the future of research.

And do you have anyone who has helped your career so far that you’d like to acknowledge and say thanks or give a shout out to?

I’m incredibly grateful to the many people who have helped shape both my career and my life. A huge thanks to my friends and family for indulging all my questions and taking countless surveys! I’d like to thank my WIRe mentor, Pam Harrison, for sharing invaluable insights into client-side research and her guidance on thriving in this field. I’m also grateful to Sequoyah Glenn, co-founder of CultureMRx, for creating a safe space for Black researchers—a community where I’ve built lasting relationships and learned how to stand out while staying true to myself. And finally, a big thanks to my manager, Becky Madison Kier, for taking a chance on me and giving me the freedom to creatively tackle our most challenging questions.