What we do

At Civis, we take a science-first approach to solving problems. With a blend of proprietary technology and statistical advisory services, we help public and private sector organizations find, understand and connect with the people they care about, so they can stop guessing and start using mathematical proof to guide decisions. We know others use “data science” and “analytics” as buzzwords, but at Civis we don’t stand for fluff, and we will always deliver scalable products and technologies — not PowerPoints — to drive your business forward. Learn more about Civis at www.civisanalytics.com.

Our mission

Our mission is to bring objective, data-driven truth to organizational decision-making – all the way from the boardroom to the world’s largest social causes.

What we are looking for

We are seeking a Director of Survey Research to be embedded with Delivery teams and collaborate cross-functionally with product and R&D. This is a hands-on role: you will manage a team of research analysts to advance, scale, and standardize our survey collection pipelines, evaluate and create new methods to improve these capabilities, and embed these pipelines into Civis survey software products. 

You will play a pivotal role in developing these new methods to power our products and services to answer the toughest social good questions of our time. You will be expected to help develop Civis’s public voice and content insights based on our array of U.S. and international research. 

This role will support our survey operations within political campaigns, Federal agencies, state and local governments, global nonprofits and some of the most well-known brands in the world. 

Responsibilities

• Build and manage a repeatable, methodologically advanced survey data generation pipeline to collect >200K weighted respondent interviews per month across hundreds of individual surveys and creative tests. Apply knowledge of programming/coding language (i.e., SQL, Python, RStudio) to automate these processes and procedures. Work with our product and engineering team to embed these pipelines into Civis products. 
• Contribute to business development efforts to expand the footprint among all Civis business sectors - advocacy, nonprofit, government and commercial. 
• Partner with Civis’s internal social science experts to design new sampling, weighting and testing methods and solutions to problems where established theories and techniques have not been identified or where established procedures are not yet available. This individual and their team will serve as an important product feedback engine to improve our self-serve survey products.
• Support Civis’s marketing team with ongoing, structured data collection for thought leadership on key social issues and business topics for our four key business sectors. Additionally, this person and their team will have the opportunity to produce original research with this data. 
• Maintain knowledge of state-of-the-art innovations in survey science and data science from both academic and industry sources, and identify opportunities for implementation.
• Train and guide non-survey science professionals through training and mentoring.

Minimum Qualifications

• PhD or MA/MS in Statistics, Sociology, Survey Methodology or Mathematics with an academic background in Political Science.
• Minimum of 10 years of applicable work experience in a significant management role, management of line of business, or management of a research group.
• Strong network connections within the polling/market research industry.
• Experience working with advocacy groups and nonprofit organizations; working with political campaigns is a plus.
• Strong record of managing multidisciplinary teams, including software engineers, product development, research/polling consultants and business development.
• Experience overseeing multiple projects with competing resource demands and timelines.
• A track record of helping teams win new contracts.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Established academic and media presence in the past 5 years.
• Firm grasp of data security, privacy regulations (domestic and global) and knowledge of cloud based infrastructure (AWS, GCP, Azure) and how they can be leveraged as research data repositories.
• Firm understanding of statistical software and programming applications (e.g., SAS, Stata, R, Python) and visualization technologies/libraries (Tableau, D3, GoogleCharts).
• Direct working experience with political campaigns, advocacy groups or consulting groups.
• Selected candidate must be willing to travel for client meetings; frequent travel to DC and Chicago is required.

Who we are

At Civis, we have opportunities for applicants who are newcomers, seasoned professionals, and anywhere in between. Our teams are energized by complex challenges and value diversity of thought. Opportunities to stand out and inspire happen daily and we trust and encourage you to act on your ideas – no matter how big they are. We offer you the tools and community you need to do your best work. Each of us is committed to holding ourselves accountable for results, challenging the status quo and finding new ways to grow our company and each other.

Why join our team?

• The opportunity to be part of a growing tech startup focused on solving interesting and meaningful problems, invested in internal promotion, and committed to fostering a diverse, equal and inclusive workplace. 
• Competitive benefits, including unlimited PTO, 401K match with immediate vesting, health, dental, and vision benefits, fully paid parental leave, breastfeeding support including breastmilk shipping services for traveling moms, commuter benefits, wellness initiatives including weekly group meditations, monthly on-site massage therapy, and pet insurance.

• To support employees in our now fully remote work environment, we also have expanded our virtual journal and book clubs, Donut Pals (organized virtual coffee meet-ups), Lightning Talks (5-minute presentations on anything you’d like), Lunch-and-Learns, and HR Open Discussions (bi-weekly meet-up where we discuss ideas and topics of the day in a casual format). We are also able to support and accommodate flexible work from home schedules to help employees juggle responsibilities at home.

Civis Analytics embraces the individuality of our employees and we celebrate each other's differences. Our products, services, and culture benefit from and thrive on the unique perspectives brought by each person in our community. We're proud to be an equal opportunity workplace, and we are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, age, sex, color, ancestry, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship, marital status, disability, or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please contact [email protected]

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States.

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