Senior Manager, Brand and Competitive Intelligence Insights

Morningstar, Inc.; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 94,556 - 160,733; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401k match up to 6%

Stock ownership potential

Company-provided life insurance

Medical benefits (medical/dental/vison

HSA contributions

Sabbatical program

Parental leave

Mentorship opportunities

Flex stipend

Tuition reimbursement

Volunteer days

Employee Resource Groups

Job summary

Morningstar, Inc. in NYC or Chicago is seeking a Senior Manager to lead Brand Research and Competitive Intelligence within the Market Research CoE.

You will design a scalable framework, govern research, and drive stakeholder engagement to support growth and decision-making across the organization. You will partner with Brand, Product Marketing, Content, and Platforms to define roadmaps, governance, and a measurement framework for brand health and competitive activity, including AI-enabled

Qualifications

• Strong experience in brand research, competitive intelligence, or related strategic insights.
• Ability to build or scale a research function with governance and workflows.
• Understanding of brand measurement, message testing, perception tracking, and business impact.
• Proficiency in competitive intelligence methods and external monitoring tools.
• Ability to connect insights to marketing, product, and GTM decisions.
• Excellent analytical and storytelling skills for senior stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Build upon BrandResearch with a scalable framework, governance, and stakeholder intake.
• Establish a multi-faceted Competitive Intelligence capability and market monitoring.
• Synthesize findings into clear narratives linking insights to strategy and actions.
• Present insights to senior stakeholders and drive decision-making with readouts.
• Connect brand and CI outputs with other insight streams across the CoE.
• Identify AI-enabled workflows to improve efficiency and coverage.
• Manage external research partners to ensure quality and timeliness.

Skills

Brand research

Competitive intelligence

Stakeholder management

Analytical thinking

Strategic storytelling

Git or data storytelling

Communication

Tools

Excel

Visualization tools

Intelligence tracking systems

Survey platforms

Job description

The

Senior Manager, Brand and Competitive Intelligence Insights

will primarilyleadthe development, design, and ongoing buildout of Morningstar's Brand Research and Competitive Intelligence functions within the broaderMarket ResearchCoE. The position willbe responsible forestablishinga scalable, centralized approach to brand and competitive insights thatsupportsMorningstar's evolving business needs, strengthens decision-making, and helps accelerate growth across the organization.

Working closely with the Brand team, this role will help define the operating structure, research roadmap, governance, and stakeholder engagement model for these two functions. The work will directly supportoverallCentral Marketing OKRs to activate and scale themasterbrandas a growth multiplier,supportMorningstar'sgrowththroughresearch-led contentthat will provide an edge in the marketplace, and develop our people & support inclusive culture, including through AI-enabled efficiencies.

A key part of this role will be tobuild a sustainable framework forhow Morningstar measures brand health, monitors market and competitor movement, and translates those inputs into actionable recommendations for brand strategy, positioning, messaging,advertising,content, andGTMdecisions. This position will work closely with Brand, Product Marketing, Content and Platforms, Strategic Account Marketing, Sales, and other internal stakeholders to ensure insights aretimely, consistent, and impactful.

This position can be based in our Chicago or NYC office with a required four days a week in office.

Specific responsibilities will include, but are not limited to:

• Build upon anddeepen existingBrandResearchby creating a sustainable frameworkthat is inclusive ofresearch strategy, measurement framework, tracking architecture, cadence, and stakeholder intake process.
• Establisha strong, multi-facetedCompetitive Intelligence capability, including ongoing market monitoring, competitor profiling, synthesis of competitive activity, and identification of strategic implications for Morningstar.
• Synthesize complex findings into clear, business-ready narratives that connect brand and competitor insights to strategic implications, actions, and recommendations.
• Present insights to senior stakeholders and help drive decision-making through regular briefings, planned readouts, and ad hoc strategic support.
• Support the broader Centralized InsightsCoEvision by helping connect brand and competitive intelligence with other insight streams, including market research, AI insights, and UX/product learnings, where relevant.
• Identifyopportunities to use AI and scalable workflows to improve efficiency, expand coverage, and create more accessible and searchableinsightsassets over time.
• Manage external research and intelligence partners as needed, ensuring methodologies, deliverables, and timelines meet Morningstar's standards for quality, rigor, and relevance.

Qualifications:

• Strong experience in brand research, competitive intelligence, or related strategic insights disciplines, ideally in a B2B, financial services, or complex enterprise environment.
• Demonstrated ability to build or scale aresearchfunction, including defining processes, governance, stakeholder workflows, and reporting rhythms.
• Deep understanding of brand measurement, message testing,perceptiontracking, and the strategic application of brand research to business decisions.
• Strong knowledge of competitive intelligence methods, including external monitoringviatools like Gartner, market synthesis, competitor profiling, and strategic analysis.
• Ability to connect research and intelligence outputs to business strategy, marketing choices, product decisions, and GTM priorities.
• Excellent analytical skills with the ability to synthesize quantitative and qualitative inputs into compelling narratives and clear recommendations.
• Strong communicationand stakeholder management skills, with experience influencing senior partners across marketing, product, sales, and executive teams.
• Strongproficiencyin Excel and other analysis and reporting tools; experience with visualization, survey platforms, or intelligence tracking systems is desirable.

Base Salary Range (NYC): $94,556-$160,733

Annual Bonus Target: 12.5%

Compensation and Benefits

At Morningstar we believe people are at their best when they are at their healthiest. That's why we champion your wellness through a wide range of programs that support all stages of your personal and professional life. Here are some examples of the offerings we provide:

• Financial Health

  • 100% 401k match up to 6% of salary

  • Stock Ownership Potential

  • Company provided life insurance - 1x salary + commission

• Physical Health

  • Comprehensive health benefits(medical/dental/vision)including potential premium discounts and company-provided HSA contributions (up to $500-$2,000 annually) for specific plansand coverages

  • Additional medical Wellness Incentives - up to $300-$600 annual

  • Company-provided long- and short-termdisabilityinsurance

• Emotional Health

  • Trust-Based Time Off

  • 6-week Paid Sabbatical Program

  • 6-Week Paid Family Caregiving Leave

  • Competitive 8-24 Week Paid Parental Leave

  • Adoption Assistance

  • Leadership Coaching & FormalMentorshipOpportunities

  • Annual Flex Stipend - $1000 annually to cover personal education & well-being expenses

  • Tuition Reimbursement

• Social Health

  • Charitable Matching Gifts program

  • Dollars for Doers volunteer program

  • Paid volunteering days

  • 15+ Employee Resource & Affinity Groups

Morningstar's hybrid work environment gives you the opportunity to collaborate in-person each week as we've found that we're at our best when we're purposely together on a regular basis. In most of our locations, our hybrid work model is four days in-office each week. A range of other benefits are also available to enhance flexibility as needs change. No matter where you are, you'll have tools and resources to engage meaningfully with your global colleagues.