113 Applications: PSYC100 Alumni in Strategy
By Laura Creighton, Riley J.T. Bonar, and Meghan E. Norris
In this unit, we explored social psychology. Social psychology is a big field that explores individuals in social contexts. We are excited to share an example of an alumnus who is applying social psychology in their work.
Introducing, Laura Creighton!
Laura Creighton is the Head of Strategy, Insights & Executive Engagement team at Google Canada who graduated from Queen’s in 2008 with a Bachelor of Art in Psychology! If you were to tell Laura back when she was in PSYC 100 that she would end up running a strategy and consumer insights team at Google, she wouldn’t have believed you. Laura was simply driven by a core curiosity about why people do what they do. Laura’s psychology training proved that research methods and statistics aren’t just dry academic numbers, they are highly transferable skills that provide a powerful toolkit for decoding human behaviour at scale.
That perspective shaped Laura’s entire career. From leading advanced analytics to shaping go-to-market strategies and building high-trust sales partnerships, Laura’s background in consumer behaviour has been her greatest professional asset. Today, as Head of Strategy, Insights & Executive Engagement at Google, Laura gets to lead a team doing what she has always loved: translating complex behavioural data into impactful stories that help businesses adapt to change and make smarter, more consumer-centric decisions.
Laura’s days are never repetitive – no two days look the same! Her work constantly shifts from deep analytical problem-solving to shaping digital marketing strategies for some of Canada’s largest brands and agencies. Laura’s team’s role is to mine Google’s data to uncover macro trends and stay on top of evolving consumer mindsets, translating massive datasets into simple and compelling stories. While the data gives a sense of what’s top of mind, cognitive and behavioural frameworks help Laura and her team understand the why.
Laura says that this is where an understanding of psychology becomes a true superpower. Whether she is advising senior executives or coaching her own team of insights and executive engagement leads, Laura relies on behavioural science to move past spreadsheets and focus on human connection. Running a strategy and insights team is a constant application of industrial-organizational and social psychology: it’s about fostering intellectual curiosity, navigating complex group dynamics, and helping her team turn analytical complexity into high-impact, consumer-centric narratives that resonate across the industry. Ultimately, bridging rigorous data analysis with human empathy and people-first leadership is what Laura says makes her job so fulfilling.
By taking PSYC 100, you join a vast community that contains members who have graduated and had a variety of experiences! We caught up with Laura and asked her what advice she would give about careers to students currently taking PSYC 100 and she says to embrace a non-linear career path and to stay endlessly curious. A background in psychology equips you with core pillars like critical thinking and empathy that can take you into unexpected industries—especially given today’s fast pace of innovation. Stay curious, open-minded and ready for whatever comes next.
If you are interested in learning more about what Laura does for a living, you can check out the “Think with Google Canada” to see some real-world applications of consumer research, market data, and strategic insights from our team!
References:
Google Canada. (n.d.). Think with Google Canada. https://business.google.com/ca-en/think/
How to cite this resource:
Creighton, L., Bonar, R.J.T., & Norris, M.E. (2026). Applications: PSYC100 Alumni in Strategy. In PSYC 100: Principles of psychology. eCampusOntario. https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/testbookje/chapter/applications-psyc100-alumni-in-strategy/
