Research Director

CoreData Group; Sydney; On-site; AUD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

CoreData Group in Australia seeks a Senior Research Director to lead syndicated and custom research programs for financial services clients, from briefing to presenting findings, ensuring high-quality analysis and reporting under their name.

The role combines rigorous research leadership with a strong client-facing component, managing relationships, presenting to executives, and contributing to industry discourse at conferences and in the media.

Qualifications

• 4–6 years in market research; lead end-to-end projects and present to senior stakeholders.
• Design and run quantitative studies; defend weighting/sizing decisions.
• Knowledge of Australian financial services regulation and market structure is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead the full research cycle for syndicated and custom programs, including client scoping, design, fieldwork, analysis and reporting.
• Sign off on data cleaning, weighting, market sizing and share estimates with regional teams.
• Ensure reports clearly convey findings and insights for client decision making.
• Identify new research opportunities by understanding regulation, policy and market structure.
• Contribute to CoreData methods and quality controls, including AI-enabled analysis.

Skills

Leadership

Executive presentation

Quantitative research

Regulatory knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in a quantitative discipline

Tools

SPSS

R

Python

Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

This is a senior research role with a large client-facing component. The Research Director leads syndicated and custom research programs for CoreData’s financial services clients in Australia, from the first conversation about the brief through to presenting the findings, and is responsible for the quality of the analysis and of the reports that go out under their name.

The role also carries a portfolio of client relationships and a share of CoreData’s presence in the industry, at conferences and in the media. We are looking for someone who has both the technical research skills and is able to work through complex strategic problems with clients to develop a research solution.

Experience and background

Experience with a research agency or consultancy, with financial services expertise an advantage.

We would also look at people from the financial services industry, financial journalism, policy or a regulator if they have the quantitative market research skills and have already had to put a view in front of the industry and defend it.

Having several years of presenting their own research to senior audiences behind them is ideal. A successful candidate will be ambitious and want to be recognised as an authority in the industry. Ideally they are interested in a long career with CoreData.

Why CoreData?

CoreData is well established in this part of the market and has a reputation for research that takes a position. We have two decades of longitudinal data on the Australian market, we talk directly to the people making the decisions, and clients come to us when they need to know what the evidence means for a decision they have to make.

The exposure to senior people comes quickly. Within the first few months the Research Director will be running client briefings, presenting to executive teams and being asked for their opinion on what the industry should do next. Over time the role has a say in what CoreData researches as well as how.

The role manages researchers in Sydney and Manila and works with the London and Boston teams on shared programs.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to

Research leadership

• Delivering the full research cycle for assigned syndicated and custom programs, including scoping with the client, survey and discussion guide design, sample and fieldwork oversight, analysis, writing the narrative and delivering on time.
• Reviewing and signing off data cleaning, weighting, market sizing and share estimates before results go to clients, working with the Manila analyst team as needed.
• Making sure every report we deliver says clearly what the findings mean for the client and have clear insights rather than simply reporting frequencies.
• Using your knowledge of regulation, policy and market structure to identify research clients need and have not yet asked for, and building it into the syndicated program and into proposals.
• Contributing to CoreData's methods and quality controls, including how the team uses AI tools in analysis and report writing.

Clients and the industry

• Acting as the senior research contact for a portfolio of clients: leading their briefings and debriefs and answering the questions that come up in between.
• Present at industry conferences, to the media and in client presentations, and represent CoreData's view on industry issues.
• Building relationships with senior stakeholders across licensees, super funds, platforms, fund managers, regulators and industry bodies, and passing what you learn about emerging issues on to the sales team and leadership.
• Working with the sales and client services teams on proposals and pitches, so that the research design answers the client's actual question and the scope is something the team can deliver well.
• Resolving client queries and issues in your portfolio quickly, escalating to client services and sales where appropriate, and keeping the client informed.
• Ensure each client's specific requirements make it into the relevant surveys and are covered in their briefings.

Team and business

• Managing, coaching and reviewing the work of researchers and analysts in Sydney and Manila, and acting as the point of escalation on research questions.
• Build strong working relationships with the database and design teams and with colleagues in London and Boston.
• Identifying business opportunities that come up in day-to-day client work and passing them into the pipeline.
• Contributing to better processes, practices and technology across the research function.

What skills and experience will I need?

You have at least 4 to 6 years' experience in market research, including running projects end to end as the lead and presenting to senior stakeholders. You have designed and run quantitative studies yourself, you are comfortable being questioned on weighting or sizing decisions, and you can point to research you have done clients have acted on.

You also have:

Research

• A tertiary degree in a quantitative discipline (commerce, finance, economics, statistics, mathematics, psychology, market research or similar).
• Detailed knowledge of the Australian advice, superannuation and wealth management sectors, including the regulatory environment and current reforms, and what they mean for our clients is not necessary but interest in developing this expertise is a must.
• Advanced quantitative skills, including survey design, sampling and weighting, segmentation, market sizing and share estimation.
• Experience in Q or SPSS, and ideally R or Python. Strong Excel and PowerPoint.
• Experience using AI tools as part of a research workflow, and an informed opinion on where they can be trusted.
• Clear written English. Reports and chart headlines that lead with the finding.

Client-facing

• Experience presenting to executive teams, boards or industry conferences, and the ability to hold your position when challenged.
• The ability to build rapport with a diverse range of stakeholders, from analysts through to chief executives, and to maintain those relationships over time.
• Commercial judgement: realistic scoping, input into pricing, and the ability to recognise a new opportunity when a client describes a problem.
• Willingness to give a client unwelcome news, with a recommendation to go with it.
• Comfort with media, or the willingness to develop it.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Good judgement and critical thinking, particularly when the data and the client's expectations do not line up.
• Self-motivated and able to manage several programs at once to the same standard.
• An interest in developing the people around you.