Director of Research - Greater Des Moines Partnership

The Director of Research designs and carries out research strategies to meet objectives in the Economic Development department's annual work plan, accomplished through a firm foundation of business intelligence tools and data analysis used to support and promote the Greater Des Moines Partnership's eleven-county service area.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

• Leads the research department accessible to all Partnership team members, community and economic development partners, Investors and the public, ensuring resources are available for accurate and timely responses to research needs. Stays at the forefront of research methodologies, tools and technologies. Continually identifies business intelligence data gaps and develops an annual budget to fill them.
• Participates as a member of the Economic Development team that is working a company expansion or location project, responding to detailed questionnaires submitted by companies or their consultants, including custom visualizations. Adheres to confidentiality agreements and urgent deadlines necessary to land a project.
• Builds prospect lists, conducts market research and produces presentation materials for business recruitment trips and digital marketing campaign outreach.
• Assumes a leadership position in recommending and securing accurate, desirable and timely statistical information for the Partnership's website, particularly portals closely related to Economic Development or conducting business in the region. Contributes content to the Downtown Des Moines web portal.
• Lead, mentor and develop the research team, fostering a culture of excellence, curiosity and continuous learning. Ensure that the team is equipped with the skills and resources needed to deliver high-quality research outcomes.
• Fulfills the full-service reference desk function for the Partnership, connecting internal and external customers with statistics and facts on the Greater Des Moines region.
• Advises Partnership teammates on research sources that may enable them to reach annual departmental and overall goals.
• Assists the Communications department in responding to media inquiries, usually time sensitive, that may include a statistical response or involve special research. Monitors economic indicators and other statistics for ideas on stories to pitch to the media.
• Coordinates administration of the LocationOne Information System portal on the Partnership website, which contains locality, available building and available site databases covering the ten-county region. Assists economic development contacts in populating the online database while contributing content on their behalf.
• Runs the economic impact analysis model currently licensed by The Partnership on behalf of economic development partners or for location/expansion projects. For complicated scenarios (such as measuring the impacts of a university), applies the knowledge of impact tools and methods to recommend an appropriate public or private provider for the project.
• Conducts selected local price surveys and provides quality control for the cost-of-living survey on behalf of the Des Moines-West Des Moines IA MSA in three pricing periods per year, adhering to the standards used nationwide. The internal project is initiated and completed by the Business Intelligence Analyst as a primary responsibility for the position.
• Contributes customized research as directed by the President/CEO and other senior management team members. Synthesizes data into clear, actionable insights that inform strategy, branding and marketing initiatives.
• Other duties as assigned.

JOB SPECIFICATIONS

• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:   

  • Knowledge of core research materials used in economic and community development
  • Proficiency in Web-based research methods
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications
  • Familiarity with GIS mapping software
  • Familiarity with basic statistical techniques
  • Proofreading skills
  • Supervisory skills
  • Database and print material management
  • Time management skills
  • A customer service attitude
  • Willingness and ability to travel within Iowa and out of state

• Education and Experience:  

  • Bachelor's degree in business, economics, marketing or related field
  • Minimum of five years of economic development and/or community development research in a professional environment

• Other Formal Training:  

  • Professional training specifically related to economic development and community development, including but not limited to these foundational or continuing education resources:
    • Courses and annual conferences offered by The Council for Community and Economic Research
    • State government-sponsored seminars on employment statistics
    • United States Census seminars/webinars
    • Economic impact analysis software training
    • Aggregated data platform training on products such as Gazelle.ai, Lightcast Developer, JobsEQ (often at their conferences)
    • Foreign Direct Investment training seminars and certification (Conway Data, Inc.)