About

Copernicus Consulting is a social research firm. We help our clients understand the socio-cultural lives of their customers. Based in the amazing, multicultural city of Toronto, Canada, we serve Canada and the United States.

Our story
Nikolai Copernicus was an astronomer who shocked the 16th Century world when he argued that the Earth revolved around the Sun. This “heliocentric” view upended centuries of assumptions that the Earth was the centre of the universe. Copernicus Consulting offers clients the opportunity to enter a “customer-centric” universe.

We put your customers and their lives at the centre of inquiry. Typical projects include ethnographic field research, in-depth interviewing, and participant observation of everyday life. Our clients learn how to design better products services and how to communicate more effectively with their customers. If you want to understand how your customers think and what they think about you, Copernicus can help you.

Areas of expertise

• Financial services
• Pharmaceuticals and health care
• Consumer packaged goods
• Technology and telecom
• Government policy
• Not-for-profit and program evaluation

Segment experience

• Professionals: engineers; physicians
• Women
• Families
• Gays and lesbians
• Early technology adopters

Our approach

We employ a “design” approach by helping clients incorporate insights into the product, service, or communication design process.

When to use design research

Design research uncovers deep insights about products, people, communications, marketing strategies, and organizational structures. We have employed design research in:

• Product design
• Web site design
• Organizational change
• Mergers
• Go-to-market strategies
• Innovation programs

Our Team

Sam Ladner, PhD

Dr. Ladner is founder and principal consultant with Copernicus Consulting Group. Using a range of methods including interviewing, observation and ethnography, she consults on digital product design, organizational change, and the social aspects of technological innovation. She is an expert in the social aspects of technological change and mobile technology, and has published her research peer-reviewed journals including Time & Society and The Canadian Journal of Communication. She is also an experienced consultant, having worked with senior executives at companies like Citibank, Dell, Roche Pharmaceuticals, Smith Barney, GSK, Nokia, VeriSign and Genentech. She holds a PhD in sociology from York University. She is also a Postdoctoral Fellow at Ryerson’s School of Management.

Katherine Osterlund, PhD

Dr. Osterlund is a sociologist who specializes in the study of diverse communities, gender relations, and social policy. She has over ten years of experience managing large research projects using both quantitative and qualitative methods. This has included two federally-funded studies that involved community stakeholders (e.g. agency partners; workers; local activists) in research design, data collection, and developing policy and program recommendations. The most recent investigated the experiences of low income, diverse families in Toronto in collaboration with six community agencies. She is an experienced methodologist, with advanced training in statistical methods and qualitative analysis; she has also taught research methods and professional writing at York University.  Her research has appeared in the journals Social & Legal Studies, Computers & Education, Gender, Work, & Organizations, and The International Journal of Health Services. Dr. Osterlund holds a BA and MA in sociology from the University of Toronto, and a PhD from York University.

Sarah Rogers, MA, PhD (c)

Sarah Rogers has a BA sociology and women’s studies, and an MA in sociology. Ms. Rogers has passed her doctoral comprehensive examinations in feminist political economy and the sociology of work and labour, and is currently completing her PhD dissertation. Ms. Rogers has studied and practiced qualitative research methods in general, and feminist methodology in particular.  In former roles, she has served as a researcher on a variety of projects for Dr. Mark Thomas, associate professor of sociology at York University and a well-known expert in researching labour market change in Canada. Ms. Rogers has completed literature reviews and prepared summary reports for Dr. Thomas. She has also taught the sociology of work and labour to hundreds of undergraduate students.

Trish MacMillan, MA, PhD (c)

Trish MacMillan is currently completing her PhD in Sociology at York University. Her areas of specialization include the sociology of knowledge, the sociology of science and technology, and feminist science and technology studies. Ms. MacMillan has worked in both the private and public sectors and has over twelve years of experience in project management and qualitative research. Her areas of research have included technology and higher education, disability, social justice, and precarious work. She has 8 years of undergraduate teaching experience and has taught at York University and Ryerson University. Ms. MacMillan holds a BA in Sociology and Women’s Studies, and an MA in Sociology.