Associate Director, Community Research

UJA Federation of Greater Toronto•Toronto, ON

12d•Hybrid

About The Position

UJA Federation of Greater Toronto is seeking an Associate Director, Community Research to join their team. This role works with the VP, Research & Community Insights to design, execute, analyze, and synthesize UJA’s core research agenda. The Associate Director will exercise significant professional judgment and autonomy, producing high-quality research outputs and analyses that support community insight development, organizational planning, and investment decision-making. The role combines hands-on research execution with advisory responsibilities, supporting Community Capacity Building (CCB) colleagues and other internal partners through applied research, data interpretation, and methodological guidance.

Requirements

PhD in a relevant social science field with 1–3 years of applied research experience, or a Master’s degree with 3–5 years of relevant applied research experience.
Demonstrated experience leading applied research projects in academic, nonprofit, public-sector, or consulting environments.
Strong quantitative and analytical skills; experience with statistical software such as SPSS, R, or Stata required.
Experience working with census or population-based data is required.
Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present complex findings to non-technical audiences.
Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple concurrent projects with minimal supervision.
Maintain a high degree of discretion and confidentiality

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with data visualization tools (e.g., Power BI) is an asset.
Comfort working with AI-enabled tools (e.g., for research support, synthesis, or analysis) is an asset
Knowledge of the Jewish community and/or nonprofit sector is an asset.
Familiarity with non-profits, the Toronto Jewish community and/or experience in Jewish Communal Service considered an asset

Responsibilities

Lead the design, implementation, and analysis of UJA’s primary research initiatives, including ongoing bi-annual Community Pulse Survey, census-based demographic analysis, and a portfolio of strategic community studies that evolve in response to organizational and community needs.
Maintain and oversee recurring surveys and research approaches so that data is collected consistently over time, remains high quality, and can be reliably compared across survey cycles and studies.
Conduct advanced quantitative and qualitative analyses to identify trends, patterns, and emerging issues affecting the Jewish community.
Synthesize findings into clear, actionable insights tailored to senior leadership, lay leaders, donors, and community partners.
Serve as an internal research advisor to CCB colleagues and other teams, supporting survey design, data interpretation, and evidence-informed decision-making.
Prepare research reports, executive briefings, presentations, and data summaries that translate complex findings into accessible narratives.
Contribute content to UJA publications and support donor- and community-facing reporting in collaboration with Communications and Marketing.
Maintain research documentation, codebooks, and archives to support consistency, transparency, and institutional memory.