Dione Say has 20 years experience as a bookkeeper and office manager for small healthcare and research firms.  She lives in Seattle with her family and enjoys hiking and camping.  Dione graduated with a BA from California State University, Long Beach.

Tom Quillin joins FSG from Intel as a public policy and government affairs leader and a veteran of policy and political campaigns for think tanks, trade associations, and technology leaders. Tom understands that above all else, companies need to achieve goals and outcomes as efficiently as possible, with strategy tuned to real world facts. Tom negotiated Intel’s multi-billion dollar CHIPS award, the largest award provided under the CHIPS program, and played a pivotal role in strategy and campaign planning for the successful bipartisan passage of the CHIPS Act.

Whether driving specific policy objectives or defining a product to meet customer requirements, Tom is committed to helping clients ruthlessly reprioritize and return results. With deep expertise in government affairs, security, and product planning, Tom leverages his insatiable curiosity for learning how things work, into advocacy efforts that help both policymakers and business leaders drive growth.

Tom holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

Ian Stewart is an opinion research expert, joining FSG after 26 years at EMC Research.

Ian has led hundreds of projects from concept to conclusion on a wide variety of topics for clients of all types across the United States. His expert strategic guidance has helped inform critical decisions on a wide range of public opinion topics including politics, satisfaction, branding, government relations, and advocacy.

Ian’s work has led to landmark policy changes, provided funding for major public infrastructure projects, and elected political leaders from local to statewide office.

Ian’s clients know they can count on him to deliver honest, straightforward, and useful insights that lead to real results.

Ian has a degree in political science from Western Washington University, and is based in Seattle, where he lives with his wife, two children,  and two very good dogs.

Tom Patras joins FSG after nearly 21 years at EMC Research, helping clients solve critical problems and advance their strategic objectives. He is looking forward to continuing this work, serving clients across a broad range of topics including energy, transportation, education, land use, and general business reputation. Tom has also led important political efforts, having helped to elect leaders across the U.S., and helped hundreds of communities secure needed funding for libraries, parks, schools, and transportation improvements, or improve the planning and design of large-scale development projects. A strategic thinker, Tom is skilled at helping clients gather research insights and translating those findings into real-world applications.

Tom has experience on political campaigns in Ohio, was a Legislative Service Commission Fellow, and also worked in the banking industry. Tom has a BA in Economics from Macalester College and currently lives in Columbus with his wife, two children, and their dog, Pepper.

Having served in various capacities throughout his career, Alex is one of the country’s foremost experts on public opinion research. He is a leading expert on utilizing research and analysis to build community consensus and voter and constituent outreach. His work has led to the adoption of hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for critical infrastructure projects, elected leaders from the local level to the highest offices in the land, and helped hundreds of companies, non-profits, public agencies, and other organizations better understand and improve their standing with their customers, constituents, donors, and members.  

Alex holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Berkeley and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

An avid sports fan, when Alex isn’t working you can often find him in a stadium somewhere in the world, supporting his various rooting interests. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and enjoys traveling to spend time with his children and grandchildren. 

Shani McElroy has worked as a public opinion researcher for the past 24 years. She believes that understanding public opinion is critical for leaders, decision makers and a thriving society. She spent the beginning of her career at EMC Research, where she worked as an analyst and then Field Director, specializing in data collection methods and project management. She brings her exacting standards and problem-solving skills to ensure FSG projects are using the highest quality data and that our clients’ decisions are based on sound information. Shani lives in Portland, Oregon, where she takes advantage of the local hikes when it’s not raining too hard. When it is raining, she enjoys indoor activities like yoga, cooking, reading, and playing guitar. Shani has her BA from University of California at Berkeley.

Andrew has more than 30 years of experience in public opinion research and is one of the most trusted and respected research minds in the industry. His keen insights and analysis have helped hundreds of clients solve countless problems and advance their strategic initiatives. Andrew’s ability to synthesize huge amounts of data into a single, cohesive narrative is a key strength and differentiator, which keeps his clients returning to him year after year after year. 

Andrew was the driving force behind the creation of The Index, an ongoing research project for the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. This project has helped the region’s business, civic, and government leaders better understand the needs, wants, and concerns of the people in the Greater Puget Sound area, helping to provide synergy among the sometimes competing forces helping to drive positive change in the region.