Director of Consumer Insights

The Director of Insights at Finch Brands translates consumer insight into strategic action, serving as a trusted client partner and research leader. This role is especially well-suited for a researcher who brings strong quantitative instincts, enjoys making sense of complex data, and can turn rigorous analysis into clear strategic direction for clients.This client-facing role serves as the primary point of contact for ongoing strategic research across 1 to 3 clients at a time. Projects encompass diverse quantitative and qualitative methodologies, requiring professionals who can pair methodological rigor with consultative expertise to help clients navigate complex business decisions and drive growth. This individual is responsible for the quality of team deliverables and client satisfaction.While comfort across qualitative and quantitative methods is important, this role places a premium on strong quantitative thinking, analytical judgment, and the ability to translate data into strategy. The ideal candidate will have deep (mixed methods) knowledge and experience leading projects ranging from multi-phase research plans to qualitative explorations and brand research. They should be comfortable consulting with clients who may not fully understand their research needs or how to interpret and act on findings, and they must be a self-starter with strong data analysis skills, including advanced statistical analysis using software such as SPSS and MarketSight.Main duties:Serve as the go-to lead for clients’ research-related needs and questions, ensuring work stays in scope, on time, and high quality; balance the need for speed with methodological rigor, with the ability to manage out-of-scope requests as needed.Act as a strategic thought partner, helping clients interrogate the brief, clarify the underlying business objectives behind research questions, interpret outputs, and move from findings to action.Elevate work at key moments of the research process, from intake to output - crafting (and reviewing) learning plans and research instruments of varying complexity through to shaping compelling research stories with clear insights and implications.Support and coach junior team members across the entire life cycle of a project, looking for opportunities to inject creativity, thought leadership, inspiration, and strategic perspective.Required Experience and Skills:Candidates will have a Bachelors or Masters degree in fields spanning market research, analytics, statistics, business, marketing or psychology.7+ years experience in either client or supplier-side research role, with a track record of leading and driving strategic research and experience managing complex, multiphase research projects related to brands, products, or consumer behaviors/attitudes.2+ years managing and coaching others with ability to inspire and develop team members.Ability to perform at a high level while managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.Proven experience and a natural ability to “connect the dots” and drive toward big picture insights.Ability to design thoughtful quantitative research plans and questionnaires, including clear measurement strategy, sound sample design, clean survey flow, and analysis plans that ladder back to business objectives.High proficiency in MS Word, PowerPoint, and MS Excel are an absolute must - including data manipulation, formulas, lookups, formatting, and chart creation.History of working in the trenches in data analysis and reporting.Knowledge of statistical analysis programs (Such as MarketSight, Q, R, SPSS, etc.) are required.Strong quantitative analysis capability, including comfort with survey data, crosstabulation, significance testing, weighting, segmentation, driver analysis, regression, and translating statistical outputs into clear, business-relevant recommendations.Ability to turn complex data into compelling, evidence-based stories that clearly communicate what was learned, why it matters, and what clients should do next.Have high standards and abilities regarding data visualization and storytelling technique.Ability to push research and business objectives forward through a mix of standard and innovative quant and qual methodologies.Interest in pursuing new and novel research methodsCurious about consumer insights, how insights map to business objectives, and drive actionable results.Manage client priorities and expectations as well as resource allocation/workload within teams.Adept at balancing competing priorities across clients, projects, and internal teams—knowing when to move quickly, when to go deeper, and how to keep work progressing without sacrificing quality.Candidate Attributes:Self-starter mentality (Be a driver, not a passenger) with a strong bias for actionA growth-oriented mindset and willingness to move beyond their current comfort zone to develop new skillsAn ability to learn new things quicklyComfort and openness with evolving client needsCollaborates effectively and has co-workers’ backsBrings analytical curiosity, intellectual rigor, strong attention to detail, and the judgment to know when data is strong enough to guide action — and when it needs more contextComfortable seeking and sharing feedback to build trust internally and externallyAbility to engage clients with warmth and credibility, while exercising sound judgment in navigating trade-offs and pushing back thoughtfully in service of better outcomes