Crisp Team Spotlight: Vanessa Bishop

As Crisp’s Lead Product Manager, Vanessa and her team find new ways to help CPG brands leverage the power of data.

Meet Vanessa

Role: Lead Product Manager
Lives in: Washington, D.C.
Favorite grocery store product: Ben & Jerry’s dairy-free ice creams

Like many of us in the industry, Vanessa’s career didn’t start in CPG: her seven years prior to Crisp spanned sectors ranging from financial tech to security. But ultimately, Vanessa has landed right where she’s meant to be at Crisp. We spoke with her about how working at Crisp accomplishes her professional and personal goals, as well as the value of collaborating with CPG brands to build the next great data product.

The goal: build products that reduce food waste

With many years of product experience under her belt, Vanessa found Crisp while looking for an opportunity to make an impact around an important issue: food waste. “After spending several years working in other industries, I found I enjoyed working on the software side of product management. However, I discovered I wanted to use my talents to help reduce food waste at a profitable business,” she says.

A quick Google search led her to an opening at Crisp, where she currently holds the role of Lead Product Manager.  “It was a very niche goal I had for myself,” Vanessa admits. “But working at Crisp fulfills that goal perfectly. Our double bottom line approach—doing good things for the company means good things for the planet—is an important aspect of the work we do.”

“Our double bottom line approach—doing good things for the company means good things for the planet—is an important aspect of the work we do.”

Vanessa Bishop

Finding ways to take data further

Crisp connects a multitude of retail data sources through one easy-to-access platform, helping CPG professionals instantly leverage a wealth of ready-to-use information to drive their business. As Lead Product Manager, Vanessa and her team are tasked with figuring out how to continually provide further value to customers through unique data sources, new insights, and just as importantly, convenient ways to take action based on the data available.

“It’s my job to ask, ‘What else can we do with data? How can we get more data integrated into Crisp’s platform? What can Crisp build to help our clients be successful?’”

To answer those questions, Vanessa speaks with customers weekly to gather direct client insight about the product. Given her recent introduction to the CPG industry, she finds this element of her work to be an excellent opportunity for not only user feedback, but also industry education.

“A lot of my time is spent interfacing with clients. We have our own hypotheses, we but need to validate that. If we add a new feature or data point to Crisp, will it solve their problems? Whenever we launch something, we first make sure we’re providing our clients with superior value.” 

“It’s my job to ask, ‘What else can we do with data? How can we get more data integrated into Crisp’s platform? What can Crisp build to help our clients be successful?’”

Vanessa Bishop

Additionally, Vanessa works collaboratively with Crisp’s engineering and marketing teams to ensure that value is delivered and communicated properly to clients. “We’re always trying to problem-solve and be proactive across the many different angles of a product launch,” she explains.

Among the many reasons why Vanessa enjoys working in the CPG industry is the level of innovation each brand brings to the table. “It’s so neat to meet the people who are putting their heart and soul into the food I see at the grocery store. We have a habit of getting hooked on our customers’ products!”

Many of these CPG brands, as Vanessa explains, are rooted in values such as bettering our environment and providing healthy living choices for customers. “It’s nice to want to root for your customers. Through our product, we can help them reduce waste, save money, and meet their business goals,” she says.

Advancing the industry through diverse experiences

While Vanessa came to Crisp for the mission, she found other advantages to working with our team. “Our team has diverse professional experiences inside and outside the CPG industry, which brings a balance to the collaborative environment Crisp has created,” she reflects.

Beyond professional experiences, Crisp employees all boast unique personal backgrounds and hail from different parts of the globe. The flexibility of Crisp’s remote work environment contributes to this diversity, while also enabling Vanessa to create the professional space that worked best for her and her lifestyle.

When Vanessa isn’t chatting with customers or working to improve Crisp’s products, you can find her traveling the world with her husband, trying new cuisines, and immersing herself in different cultures. Now living in Washington, D.C., Vanessa enjoys spending time with friends and family, hiking throughout the Shenandoah Valley, and participating in intramural sports including tennis, softball, and dodgeball.

To join Vanessa and the Crisp team, view our open positions. To discover how Crisp can help your CPG brand do more with data, contact us for a demo.