Senior Research Manager

Discover Durham & Durham Sports Commission•Durham, NC

2d•$75,000 - $80,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Discover Durham is seeking a Senior Research Manager to lead its destination research efforts. This role is crucial for shaping Durham's future by analyzing data to understand visitor behavior, measure economic impact, gauge community sentiment, and identify new opportunities. The Senior Research Manager will be part of the Content & PR team, reporting to the Director of Content & PR. This is a collaborative, hands-on position that involves working across various departments, including marketing, communications, public relations, strategic initiatives, and with affiliated organizations like the Durham Sports Commission and Durham Next. The role requires translating complex data into actionable insights for colleagues, community partners, and stakeholders.

Requirements

High school diploma, or equivalent, required.
5-8 years of experience in research, market research, economic analysis or a closely related field.
Demonstrated experience designing or managing studies end to end — scoping, vendor selection, fielding, quality review and delivery.
Hands-on experience producing economic impact analysis, or comparable applied quantitative analysis, with the ability to explain and defend methodology to a skeptical audience.
Strong quantitative skills and fluency in Excel; comfort working with survey data, third-party datasets and analytics platforms.
Survey design experience, including question construction and sampling considerations.
Experience facilitating qualitative research — focus groups, stakeholder interviews and community listening sessions — including the ability to run a room of partners or residents, draw out candid input and synthesize what's said into clear findings.
Strong writing and presentation skills, with the ability to make complex findings clear and compelling to audiences without a research background.
Sound judgment about data integrity — knowing what a number can and cannot support and saying so.
Excellent project management skills and the ability to manage multiple studies, vendors and deadlines simultaneously.
Must have a valid N.C. driver’s license.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree or higher in market research, economics, statistics, public policy, geography, marketing, hospitality or a related field.
Destination marketing, tourism, economic development or hospitality experience.
Familiarity with IMPLAN or comparable input-output economic modeling.
Experience supporting brand research, including positioning studies, persona development, concept testing or brand lift measurement.
Data visualization skills and experience building recurring dashboards or reports.
Familiarity with Durham and/or experience working with a destination or tourism organization.

Responsibilities

Lead and commission a portfolio of destination research projects, including destination brand research and development, day-tripper and visitor conversion research, brand sentiment and lift measurement, visitor profiles, volume, spending, and economic impact studies, and triangle & county-wide economic impact studies.
Manage research vendors, including focus groups, concept testing, and qualitative research.
Develop insights to encourage overnight stays and inform marketing campaigns.
Measure traveler perceptions of Durham and track changes over time.
Analyze visitor profiles, visitation volume, and expenditure data.
Support economic impact research demonstrating the value of tourism and sports.
Lead research measuring how residents and stakeholders view tourism and its impact.
Serve as a methodology steward and technical resource for economic impact analysis.
Complete venue-level economic impact studies.
Manage day-to-day relationships with research vendors.
Maintain a multi-year research calendar.
Translate research findings into accessible outputs such as talking points, fact sheets, presentations, and web content.
Identify data-driven story opportunities and increase the use of research in public-facing materials.
Supply data and talking points to public affairs for advocacy priorities.
Fact-check data and claims across media channels.
Lead research and visitation data collection for the annual Tourism Impact Report.
Produce recurring performance reporting for leadership, the Board, and hospitality partners.
Deliver research-based value to external partners.
Represent Discover Durham in industry research communities.
Explore new ways to measure areas where traditional methodologies may not provide a complete picture.