Company Leadership

Brett Sciotto

Chief Executive Officer

Brett Sciotto is the founder and CEO of Aimpoint Research, a global, strategic intelligence firm specializing in agri-food that was named to the 2020 Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in the U.S. Brett leads a team of former military intelligence officers, agricultural experts, and market research professionals as they work to empower intelligence-driven organizations.

A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and a former Army Intelligence Officer, Brett Sciotto brings a practical, results-oriented approach to the civilian business world. His training in, and emphasis on, mission-critical information-gathering and targeted research methodology make him unique in his approach to problem solving in a corporate environment.

Brett's disciplined, vetted approach to research is coupled with his military precision in detailed analysis and final presentation to his clients. With nearly two decades of research expertise, he has had tremendous success advising corporate leaders, government officials and state and national organizations at all levels.

Scott Caine

President

As President of Aimpoint Research, Scott leads the organization in its mission to empower intelligence-driven organizations and give clients a competitive advantage. He's responsible for successfully achieving organizational goals including superior intelligence and operational excellence.

Scott is a tenured leader with more than 25 years of organizational leadership experience. He has served in organizations ranging from the United States Army, to small boutique data warehousing consulting firms and large enterprises with diverse roles including marketing, operation, business systems, and sales. Through these experiences he has honed and gained a diverse set of skills including: strategic and sector operations; marketing, marketing research, and competitive intelligence; enterprise planning and organizational development; business modeling and strategy; product development and delivery; and strategic business sales.

Mark Purdy

Chief Operations Officer

In his role as Chief Operations Officer, Colonel (retired)Mark Purdy is responsible for day-to-day operations, research oversight and accountability toward achieving organizational goals. He guides clients to strategically activate on their research results, assess impacts and develop business strategies. A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Mark brings 30 years of results-oriented experience leading organizations of more than 2,000 people.

Mark’s vast experiences range from leading combat units over multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan to managing multi-billion-dollar security assistance portfolios that included procurement, managing the supply chain and government regulatory compliance. Mark also served as Director of Wargames at the U.S. Army War College providing actionable solutions to top national security dilemmas.

Mark grew up on a farm in central Ohio where his family raised sheep, corn, soybeans and hay, and continues to operate the family farm today. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, as well as master’s degrees in Military Operational Arts from the Air Force Air University and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College.

Brice Civiello

Chief Administrative Officer

As Chief Administrative Officer, Brice Civiello works with a world-class team of researchers, administrators, data visualizers, and business development professionals to ensure Aimpoint Research provides unprecedented insight to their clients. He is at the forefront of helping the organization achieve its goals, facilitate strategic partnerships, and adopt innovative new systems and technologies.

Since 2005, Brice has worked with our diverse corporate, government, organizational and public affairs clients around the nation coordinating research and providing strategic insight and tools to ensure their planning, R&D, marketing, and communications efforts are focused, timely, and successful.

Ray Starling

Executive Advisor

In his role as Executive Advisor, Ray Starling serves as an invaluable resource on public policy and legal developments that have the potential to impact the agri-food value chain. He is available for special events, select client engagements, and speaking opportunities. He continues to serve as general counsel of the NC Chamber and president of the NC Chamber Legal Institute as well.

Prior to joining the NC Chamber team, Ray served as chief of staff to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue where he coordinated execution of the secretary’s policy agenda for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Ray focused on regulatory and deregulatory initiatives and acted as a point of contact for stakeholders throughout agriculture and rural communities. He has also served as a principal agriculture advisor to the President of the United States at the White House, chief of staff and chief counsel for U.S. Senator Thom Tillis, and general counsel when Tillis was Speaker of the House in the North Carolina legislature. Early in his career, he was general counsel for the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

Licensed to practice law in North Carolina, Ray has private practice experience and has taught agricultural and food law for several years. He has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural education from North Carolina State University and a law degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He grew up on a Century Farm in southeastern North Carolina and credits that experience as having more to do with his career path than any other influence or opportunity. His parents continue to farm as does his eldest brother. Starling was a National FFA Officer and is a former 4-H member. He resides in Raleigh, North Carolina with his family.

Gregg Doud

Vice President of Global Situational Awareness & Chief Economist

Gregg brings an unparalleled global perspective and economic expertise to the team. He works closely with members of the Executive Intelligence Network (EIN) and plays a major role in the development of its thought leadership priorities. Prior to joining Aimpoint Research, Gregg served in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative as Chief Agricultural Negotiator with the rank of U.S. Ambassador. He was one of the primary architects of the U.S.-China "Phase One" trade agreement.

Gregg has previously served as President of the Commodity Markets Council, the leading trade association for commodity futures exchanges and their industry counterparts, where he worked to lead the industry in addressing global market and risk management issues. As a senior staff member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Doud helped craft the 2012 Senate Farm Bill working on international trade, food aid, livestock, and oversight of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Doud served as Chief Economist for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association for eight years and is a former market analyst for the U.S. Wheat Associates.

Raised on a dry-land wheat, grain sorghum, soybean, swine, and cow-calf operation near Mankato in North-Central Kansas, Doud continues to be involved in his family’s 100-year-old farm and is a partner in a commercial cow-calf operation. He received a B.S. in Agriculture with an emphasis in animal science, as well as a M.S. in agricultural economics from Kansas State University. He currently resides with his family on their horse farm in Lothian, Maryland.

Susan Frede

Vice President and Head of Research

In her role as Vice President and Head of Research, Susan Frede leads a team of researchers and consults with clients to develop and execute innovative, actionable research. Susan is a market intelligence veteran with over 30 years of experience. She performs and consults on all phases of the research process including design, execution, and delivery. Her analysis experience includes both multivariate statistical and cross-tabulation analysis with the goal of telling a story and delivering actionable insights with solid recommendations. Frede’s experience also extends to global, online, and mobile research as well as sampling, data quality, and online panels. In addition to her technical expertise, Frede is passionate about educating the next generation of research professionals, and she leads a Consumer Insights class as an adjunct professor at Northern Kentucky University.

Susan received her master’s degree in adult education from the University of Georgia. She completed her undergraduate work at Northern Kentucky University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. degree in marketing with a minor in mathematics.

Ken Gilliam

Vice President of Predictive Analysis

In his role as Vice President of Predictive Analysis, Ken works to build systems and tools that fully capture the predictive power of complex data sets and leads the organization's capabilities in modeling and simulation. Ken also leads the team in wargame design and implementation.

After graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Ken embarked on a 27-year military career in the U.S. Army where he gained extensive experience in analytics, systems design, modeling, and wargaming. Immediately prior to joining Aimpoint Research, Gilliam served as the Director of Strategic Wargaming at the U.S. Army War College and was the founding Associate Editor of the Wargaming Room, a U.S. Army War College online journal and podcast. He holds a Master of Science in Operations Research from Georgia Tech, Master of Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College and is a credentialed Assistant Professor at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and the U.S. Army War College.

Ken grew up in a farm community in South Georgia surrounded by watermelons, peanuts, cotton, and cattle.

Sarah Tveidt

Director, Executive Intelligence Network

Sarah Tveidt brings over a decade of experience in agriculture to the Aimpoint Research team. As Director of Aimpoint Research's Executive Intelligence Network, Sarah works with network members to provide collaboration and ongoing insights on the trends, disruptions, and innovations impacting agri-food.

Prior to joining Aimpoint Research, she held multiple roles during her tenure at the South Dakota Soybean Council, and previously served on staff for South Dakota Governor M. Michael Rounds. Sarah holds a degree in journalism and mass communication from South Dakota State University.

She grew up on a farm near Humboldt, South Dakota, where her family raises soybeans, corn, and beef cattle.

Jennifer Coleman

Director, Communications

As Director of Communications, Jennifer is responsible for the development and implementation of a communications and marketing strategy and overseeing initiatives including brand development, messaging, positioning, go-to-market strategies, and integrated communication plans.

Prior to joining Aimpoint Research, Jennifer served as the Director of Communications for the Ohio Soybean Council and Ohio Soybean Association and managed all communication programs and budgets including media relations, communication research, farmer awareness campaigns, and consumer outreach.

She attended Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky where she received a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in organizational communication. Jennifer grew up on a small farm in western Kentucky and now resides in Columbus, Ohio.

Jenna Lansing

Director, Agri-Food WatchDesk

In her role as Director of the Agri-Food WatchDesk, Jenna manages a team of analysts collecting and analyzing intelligence for clients across the value chain. She also leads and executes research efforts for the company's ag industry partners.

Jenna grew up on a cattle feedlot and row crop farm near Dyersville, Iowa. Before joining Aimpoint, Jenna launched a specialty fertilizer division in the wholesale fertilizer space and conducted market research in the animal health industry. Her expertise lies in production agriculture including inputs, retail and distribution, livestock, crops, and processing. Jenna graduated from Iowa State University with an undergraduate degree in agricultural business.