Amanda Van Giesen, B.B.A.’17

Attentive Analyst

Brand Research Analyst, Buick, GMC and GCS/OnStar

Amanda Van Giesen is an asset to any research and development department. After graduating from Western Michigan University in 2017, she started her professional career as a research associate for J.D. Power, the American consumer research, data and analytics firm where she was assigned a variety of studies ranging from the automotive to home improvement categories. From there, Van Giesen steered her career toward a greater focus on marketing.

She left J.D. Power for an optimization analyst role at McCann Relationship Marketing, personalizing digital experiences for brands across their websites—like General Motors, a company Van Giesen dreamed of working for. 

One successful project after another, and Van Giesen’s dream soon became reality when she was hired into General Motors as a brand research analyst in support of the Buick, GMC and OnStar brands. Since then, she has been a part of a number of marketing and advertising research projects, including campaigns for new vehicle launches. Van Giesen is excited for the possibilities to come in her career as it picks up speed at one of the largest auto manufacturing companies in the United States.

First Job:

“My first job ever was as a waitress, but I’ve also had a wide variety of jobs on the way to my professional career. I worked as a stablehand at a barn, fitting life jackets at a canoe rental place, a babysitter and a janitor at a gym.”