Strategic Insights Consultant

Ollen is a Dubai-headquartered consulting and design firm serving clients across the Middle East and Africa. We bridge strategy, design, and execution across research, growth strategy, customer experience, business planning, digital and e-commerce, brand development, retail and facilities design and implementation support for private and public sector organizations.

About the Role

We are looking for a Strategic Insights Consultant who can turn complex information into clear business insight and decision-ready recommendations. The role sits at the intersection of research, analytics, consumer and market intelligence, and strategy across Ollen client engagements.This is neither a pure desk-research nor data-science role. You will structure ambiguous questions, build an evidence base, challenge assumptions, identify patterns and opportunities, and translate findings into executive-level narratives. AI should accelerate the work - never replace source quality, validation, commercial judgment, or original thinking.Tasks & ResponsibilitiesStructure research questions, hypotheses, workplans, and evidence requirements for client projects.Conduct market sizing, segmentation, category analysis, competitive intelligence, benchmarking, trend analysis, and opportunity mapping.Support consumer and customer research through interviews, surveys, social/review analysis, field observations, mystery audits, personas, journey mapping, and CX assessments.Analyze structured and unstructured information using Excel, research platforms, AI tools, and other methods to identify patterns, drivers, risks, gaps, and opportunities.Use generative AI and LLM-based tools for research, document analysis, qualitative coding, synthesis, comparison, and repeatable workflows while maintaining source traceability and validation.Translate evidence into strategic implications, prioritized recommendations, growth opportunities, go-to-market inputs, business-plan assumptions, and decision frameworks.Develop executive-ready PowerPoint presentations, reports, charts, and narratives with a clear evidence-based point of view.Contribute to Ollen thought leadership by monitoring market, consumer, technology, and industry shifts and developing insight-led perspectives.Work across multidisciplinary teams and manage assigned workstreams to agreed timelines, quality standards, and client expectations.Project ExposureMarket, category, competitor, and opportunity assessments.Consumer research, customer experience, and customer journey projects.E-commerce and digital commerce strategy, online/offline experience, and platform benchmarking.Business plans, feasibility studies, growth strategy, and go-to-market engagements.Trend intelligence, sector research, and thought leadership.Experience Required3+ years of relevant experience in management consulting, market research, consumer insights, strategic research, corporate strategy, or a comparable advisory environment.Demonstrated ability to take research beyond information gathering and convert evidence into strategic conclusions and recommendations.Strong practical command of generative AI and AI-enabled research workflows, including how you validate outputs, manage limitations, and apply human judgment.Strong Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint skills, with the ability to analyze information and communicate findings in client-ready form.Working knowledge of primary and secondary research, source evaluation, triangulation, data-quality checks, and evidence-based reasoning.Strong written and spoken English. Arabic is an advantage for Middle East assignments.Exposure to Power BI/Tableau, SQL, Python, data extraction, automation, or advanced research platforms is valuable but not mandatory.Bachelor's degree in business, economics, finance, marketing, analytics, engineering, social sciences, or another relevant field.OpportunityDirect exposure to Ollen leadership, clients, and multidisciplinary project teams.Broad project platform spanning strategy, research, CX, digital commerce, business planning, and growth.The opportunity to help shape a more AI-enabled research and strategic insights capability inside the firm.Meaningful ownership from an early stage in a practical, entrepreneurial consulting environment.Exposure to assignments across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the wider Middle East and Africa.