Poltrack is the current chairman of the board for the Advertising Research Foundation and, in 2015, he won its Erwin Ephron Demystification Award. He is also the current chairman of the executive committee, Marketing Science Institute.

In 2014, he was inducted into Broadcasting & Cable’s Hall of Fame. He is a past winner of the Hugh Malcolm Beville, Jr. Award presented by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and the Broadcast Education Association in recognition of individuals who have made significant contributions to the design, use and/or understanding of broadcast audience research.

Poltrack is past chairman of the Media Rating Council where he was the recipient of the 50th Anniversary Foundational Award in 2012. He is also past president of the Market Research Council and, in 2009, was inducted into their Hall of Fame.

As Adjunct Professor, he teaches at NYU Stern School of Business and the Steinhardt School of Education, as well as Columbia University. He is author of Television Marketing:  Network, Local, and Cable (McGraw-Hill). His articles have been published in professional journals including the Journal of Advertising Research, the Journal of Psychology and Marketing and the European Broadcasting Union Review.

He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame (B.A., magna cum laude, History) and NYU (M.B.A., Marketing).