Date: 31/01/2018

PRESENTER: PETE LUNN

On Wednesday 31st January 2018 we held a Masterclass which was attended by 27 ACESA members. A follow-up survey revealed that 100 per cent of those attending rated the event as excellent or very good.

Our speaker, Dr Pete Lunn (ERSI) is an economist, author and former BBC journalist who joined the ESRI in 2006. Originally trained as a neuroscientist, his primary research interest is economic decision-making. He has a Ph.D. in Neuroscience and an M.Sc. in Economics, both from the University of London.

Pete is the Principal Investigator of PRICE (Programme of Research Investigating Consumer Evaluation) Lab where he develops experiments designed to test the abilities of consumers to choose between complex products. PRICE Lab is supported by the Central Bank of Ireland, National Consumer Agency, the Commission for Energy Regulation and the Communications Regulator (ComReg).

Pete Lunn proved to be an excellent speaker, very informative and interesting. The experiments were thought provoking and the session was inspiring in that it drove home the practical application of behavioural economics. The presentation was well contextualised for CEOs of public sector bodies, designed as it was to help participants stretch their thinking, particularly on the application of some of the behavioural economics theories about how one interacts with customers and stakeholders. There were some lively interactions between Pete and the CEOs and some great learning outcomes from the discussions and questions.

Many of the participants commented positively on the interactive nature of the session which was a change from the usual briefing format. Members of the audience brought their own experiences to bear and they were able to tease through the benefits and challenges of alternative approaches. The engagement of the group and the findings from the experiments were excellent.