Remote Director, Domestic Research & Strategy

Guttmacher Institute; New York (NY); Remote; USD 189,000 - 217,000; Full time

Job summary

The Guttmacher Institute seeks a Director of Domestic Research to steer US-focused science, strategy, and portfolio execution. You’ll supervise a team of researchers and collaborate with the VP, policy and development colleagues to advance policy-relevant research and grant-funded endeavors.

You will balance research, administration, and your own scholarship while building partnerships with funders and external groups.

Qualifications

• Doctoral degree in social science, public health, or a closely related field is required.
• Minimum of 10 years conducting research on sexual and reproductive health (SRH), with a substantial, field-recognized publication record.
• Demonstrated commitment to policy-relevant, evidence-based research.
• Proven experience managing, mentoring, and motivating researchers across seniority levels (junior through senior/principal), with a track record of helping staff grow professionally.
• Strong research administration skills: managing multiple concurrent projects, timelines, budgets, and competing priorities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience producing policy memos, funding proposals, and public-facing materials in addition to scientific publications.
• Demonstrated ability to build and sustain collaborative relationships, both internally across divisions and externally with funders, partners, and collaborators.
• Experience contributing to organizational or divisional strategy at a senior level.
• Ability to travel domestically 10–20% annually

Responsibilities

• Assume primary responsibility for the current research portfolio within areas of oversight, ensuring timeliness and quality control of research activities and participation in review of activities and products at key stages of each project.
• Provide broad, high-level guidance to projects at each key stage, including closer guidance and monitoring when no other principal research scientist (PRS), Director, or VP is on the project.
• Devote approximately 50% of time to implement or support research activities, including by serving as project advisor, project principal or conducting research on one or more projects and 50% time to management and research administration and oversight.
• Work with research division members to improve research infrastructure and the quality, accuracy, replicability and transparency of our work, including systems (statistical, programming, data management and infrastructure) or other work processes.
• Lead, co-lead, stimulate, encourage, and contribute to the development of ideas and new proposals in close collaboration with the Vice Presidents and Development Directors. This includes idea generation/brainstorming, maintaining existent donor relationships and cultivating new donor relationships, advising on which proposals to move forward, drafting of research sections of grant applications, review of other sections as needed, and meeting with donors, as well as ensuring post-award review of interim and final reports to funders written by project managers or Development staff.
• Ad-hoc duties as assigned

Skills

Research leadership

Policy-relevant research

Grant writing

Team mentoring

Communications skills

Education

Doctoral degree in social science or public health

Job description

The Guttmacher Institute seeks a Director of Domestic Research to steer US-focused science, strategy, and portfolio execution. You’ll supervise a team of researchers and collaborate with the VP, policy and development colleagues to advance policy-relevant research and grant-funded endeavors.

You will balance research, administration, and your own scholarship while building partnerships with funders and external groups.