Research Manager-Public Policy
National Journal is looking for a curious and innovative people leader to serve as a Research Manager-Public Policy, heading one of our teams of researchers and consultants.
National Journal is a premier research and insights company committed to helping organizations effectively navigate Washington. Best known as one of Washington’s most trusted media brands for nearly 50 years, our expertise is unmatched with teams of specialists dedicated to government affairs, communications, and political research, in addition to exceptional journalism. Our mission is to equip the thousands of government and business leaders in the nation’s capital with the intelligence, insights, and connections they need to save time, increase efficiency, and deliver success.
What is National Journal’s Network Science Initiative?
The Network Science Initiative (NSI) is a custom research division within National Journal specializing in stakeholder mapping for corporate, association, and nonprofit clients. NSI identifies the people and organizations - from government, industry, think tanks, advocates, and media - with the most influence on key policy decisions, maps their connections within and across their respective communities, and develops tailored messaging and engagement strategies.
Position in Brief:
NSI Research Managers are responsible for leading dynamic teams of researchers and consultants in delivering insightful analytic products to NSI clients. Research Managers work with our analytic teams to help them scope projects, frame research tasks, and build rigorous methodologies. They are responsible for coaching and mentoring our analysts through the research and presentation processes and coordinating research timelines across multiple projects.
Our Research Managers present work to clients, lead client conversations and feedback sessions, and provide critical product support to sales and renewals. They work closely with other members of the NSI leadership team to develop new and innovative approaches to our analytic work and drive the strategy of the research practice. Research Managers will help clients on a range of policy topics, including health, energy and the environment, technology, financial services, and social justice issues.
The ideal candidate will have demonstrated qualitative research and analysis capabilities and a demonstrated track record of success in serving clients. They will have promising early leadership experience and a strong desire to develop into a competent manager and inspired leader.
Core day-to-day responsibilities could include:
- Managing a team of 4-6 research analysts, overseeing their work, and coaching them on their performance and growth.
- Supporting analysts in developing clear project scopes, effective research methodologies, and strong analytic lines.
- Researching a wide range of policy topics and leading analysts in developing smart and nuanced thinking about them.
- Helping analysts and NSI leadership manage multiple projects across the analytic team and project future capacity against revenue.
- Leading client briefings and supporting client feedback sessions.
- Providing product support to the revenue team in pursuing new sales and renewals.
- Taking on cross-cutting practice priorities, such as training, diversity and inclusion, career development, and product evolution efforts.
- Working with other members of the NSI leadership team to sustain a culture that values pursuit of excellence, radical responsibility, curiosity, and mutual respect and inclusivity.
Qualifications of the Ideal Candidate:
- 4-7 years of experience in qualitative research, analysis, and client services. Experience doing public policy research is a plus but will consider those with other research backgrounds.
- The ability to highlight key insights within a complex set of qualitative data, synthesize large amounts of information, and then clearly explain these insights to clients.
- A deep curiosity and demonstrated ability to quickly get up to speed and extract insights on new topics.
- A skilled project manager, able to independently manage competing priorities and adhere to timelines.
- A strong writer able to clearly frame issues for a variety of audiences; some experience with PowerPoint or other visual presentation formats highly preferred.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and experience in client relations. Experience supporting the sales process is a plus.
- A promising people leader with an early track record of success and a desire to develop strong management and leadership skills.
- A full course of the COVID-19 vaccination is required for employment at National Journal
- Earned Bachelor's degree required.
Employment Type: Full-time
Compensation: The salary range for this role is $70,000-$90,000
Remote Status: Remote through the end of 2021 at which point this job will be based in Washington, DC