Insights & Analytics Director

Job Description

• We are looking for an experienced and commercially minded Insights & Analytics Director to lead our research team and oversee the planning and delivery of research and insights across the business. The role spans sales, production and people leadership, while supporting innovation across our products and services.
• You will balance client and internal demands with project timelines, budgets and quality standards, ensuring that projects deliver actionable insights, protect profitability and exceed client expectations. This role suits a strategic thinker who is diplomatic yet firm, performs well under pressure and can confidently lead people, projects and senior client relationships.

Key Responsibilities

Team Leadership and Culture

• Provide direction, guidance, support and leadership to the research team.
• Create an inspiring team environment founded on open communication, curiosity, continuous learning and company values.
• Build a balanced, collaborative and high-performance culture.

Strategy and Innovation

• Provide strategic input, ideas and resources to support research and development.
• Support the compilation of case studies and the testing and adoption of new insights tools and technologies.
• Maintain key business intelligence resources, including norms databases.

Sales and Client Growth

• Support proposals and pitches through input on research design, sampling, project management, suppliers and cost estimates.
• Review key proposals before submission and maintain a repository of proposal tools.
• Identify growth opportunities with existing clients and help drive retention and upselling through trusted relationships and service excellence.

Research Operations

• Ensure the research team has access to the tools, databases and information required to perform effectively.
• Provide senior input at critical stages of complex projects, including methodology, sampling, questionnaires, analytics and insights.
• Support capacity planning, resourcing and the wider production pipeline.
• Lead client escalation management, macro-level project oversight, quality standards, team agility and operational efficiency.
• Ensure deliverables are of a consistently high standard, with clear, actionable insights and recommendations.
• Support senior client and executive presentations and strengthen institutional client relationships.

Supplier Management

• Build and maintain a compliant database of qualitative suppliers, statisticians, coders and consultants.
• Maintain strong supplier relationships and ensure appropriate contracts, POPIA and confidentiality agreements are in place.
• Review and approve supplier invoices against budgets, quotations and delivery.

People Management

• Develop and manage the annual people plan and budget for the research team.
• Monitor team metrics to guide recruitment, resourcing and efficiency.
• Lead recruitment, onboarding, performance management, capacity planning, career development and succession planning.
• Contribute to transformation goals and the active development of team members.
• Manage leave, travel expenses and disciplinary responsibilities where required.

Requirements

• A minimum of 9 years' experience in market research and/or business analytics.
• A postgraduate degree in Economics, Marketing, Sociology, Psychology, Science, Research, Statistics, Business or a related discipline.
• Extensive quantitative and qualitative market research experience across areas such as brand, product, innovation, market analysis, media and customer experience.
• Proven experience leading people and complex research projects.
• Strong knowledge of core statistical techniques and approaches used in market research.
• Experience with key research platforms and technologies.
• Willingness to undertake occasional short business trips.
• Fluency in spoken and written English.

Skills and Competencies

• Ability to translate client needs into effective insights solutions.
• Excellent reporting, presentation and insights-based storytelling skills.
• Strong numerical, analytical, conceptual and critical-thinking ability.
• Commercial and client-focused approach.
• Confident decision-making, accountability and attention to detail.
• Excellent communication, relationship-building and stakeholder-management skills.
• Strong capacity planning, project management and time-management capability.
• Ability to work independently, take initiative and perform under pressure.
• Sound conflict and change-management skills.
• Ability to work effectively in a collaborative, matrix environment.

Technical Proficiency

• Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office, including Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
• Proficiency with research operations technology and the ability to assess new technologies that could add value to the business.