Director, Project Operations

The Director of Project Operations is a strong leader who is skilled in developing a best in class Project Management & Recruitment team that will execute recruitment with excellence, build client relationships, provide a white glove experience and shepherd a research study through operational execution.  The Director of Project Management & Recruiting Operations will take the lead on development and execution of overall strategy and direction of their team.

This person is a natural leader; motivated, curious, thoughtful, kind, tenacious and above all else, a team player. The typical Director, Project Management & Recruiting Operations has at least 5 years experience in a Project Management/Associate Director role in qualitative research, with an average tenure of 15 years.

KEY JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

·         Ensure Recruiting & Project Management operations provide:

o   Consultation on feasibility and data collection methodologies

o   Planning for unique or complex studies

o   Support throughout the project lifecycle

o   Support with growth and maintenance of client relationships

·         Oversight of all operational aspects of their team, driving scale and efficiency through people, process and project management.

o   Oversees team of 2-5 direct reports and up to 30 indirect reports.

o   Manages allocation and prioritization of resources to meet client needs and/or changing priorities for COE.

o   Conducts quality control audits per SOP’s on key study element and identify/diagnose issues for process improvement.

o   Creates and analyzes operational metrics and provides feedback to senior leadership on status and trends

·         Oversight of all staff development and training to cultivate a best in class team of project managers and recruiters that drive top-notch client satisfaction.

o   Engages with HR on staff recruitment, interviewing, hiring practices

o   Ensures thorough and enjoyable onboarding and training of all new staff

o   Manages performance and ongoing development of direct reports, providing continuous feedback and career coaching.

o   Provides on the job and formal training sessions as part of development of direct reports.

o   Identifies skills gap across organization and creates training opportunities and develops action plans to remedy.

·         Oversee Recruiting Leadership to successfully manage all operational aspects of recruiting center:

o   Fosters communication and collaboration between project management and recruitment

o   Develops continual feedback loop to ensure strong relationships between recruitment and project management

o   Works collaboratively to strategize, troubleshoot and resolve any project-related issues

o   Works to plan and strategize on best approaches for difficult recruits

CORE COMPETENCIES:

1.    You are a Teacher: you have a deep passion for developing skills to help others succeed and you are all about teaching & empowering your teams to achieve the success they deserve

2.    You are a Communicator:  you strive to make things easier for others by conveying information clearly and simply; you know how to read your audience and adapt your style to achieve results.  You often talk less, and ask, listen, and observe more

3.    You are an Integrator:  you know how to get into the weeds, but always keep the big picture in mind; you know how to bring people together to get things done.

4.    You embrace Change: you are comfortable guiding your team through change and you get people excited by encouraging & supporting them to drive the change with you.

5.    You are a Decision-maker: you seek feedback and value input, but are unafraid to make a final decision to move a goal forward.  You are unafraid to take appropriate risks for a greater gain.

6.    You have Empathy: you know how to put your feet in someone else’s shoes and use your empathy to build meaningful connections.

7.    You value Teamwork:  you know how to lead and you know how to support; you allow and encourage others to run point, while seamlessly stepping into a supporting role

8.    You are a Delegator:  you freely ask for and accept help and delegate appropriately, with an eye toward developing the skills of those you delegate to.

9.    You have a Vision: you create a clear picture of where the team is going and the steps required to get there.

QUALIFICATIONS

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

·         Bachelors’ degree or equivalent experience required

·         Must have 5-7 years of experience working in a market research environment, combined with strong knowledge of qualitative data collection methodologies

·         Process management orientation; able to manage workload, capacity and execution of SOP’s

·         Strong consultative client management and consulting skills

·         Experienced in hiring and developing high performance teams

·         Expert written and oral communication

COMPUTER SKILLS:

·         Strong knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite

·         Strong technical abilities using a variety of web-based and desktop applications, as well as ability to learn new platforms quickly and with minimal training

Benefits

Medical, Dental, Vision, 401k