Sr. Material Researcher

Material Bank • Boston, MA

6d • Hybrid

About The Position

Material Bank is seeking a Sr. Material Researcher to own the catalog experience across a portfolio of material categories. The role develops deep expertise in assigned categories and ensures products are represented accurately and completely in ways that support how architects and designers search for and specify materials. The researcher works across product data, Brand Partners, designer research, and search behavior to identify opportunities to improve category experiences, enrich product information, fill data and asset gaps, and recommend how product attributes, filters, terminology, and information should be structured and presented.

The role also builds relationships with Brand Partners, researches how architects and designers search for and evaluate products, and analyzes user behavior to improve product discovery. It leads catalog development and onboarding for new categories and partners with Catalog, Product, Search, Brand, and other teams to improve category completeness, accuracy, and usefulness over time.

Requirements

• Deep knowledge of architectural materials, building products, interior products, or product specification, ideally gained through architecture, interior design, a material library, or a manufacturer's product or technical team.
• Strong understanding of how architects and designers search for, evaluate, compare, and specify materials.
• Experience with product catalogs, PIM systems, taxonomy, attributes, controlled vocabularies, faceted search, or other structured product content.
• Strong research and analytical skills, including the ability to work with incomplete information, identify patterns in data and user feedback, and translate findings into practical recommendations.
• Curiosity and ability to develop deep expertise in assigned material categories and quickly learn unfamiliar products and material types.
• Strong judgment and ability to work independently, make well-reasoned decisions, and recognize issues with broader catalog implications.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills, with experience working directly with manufacturers, Brand Partners, architects, designers, or other industry stakeholders.
• High attention to detail, curiosity, and ownership of the quality of managed categories.

Responsibilities

• Own the catalog experience for assigned material categories and develop expertise in their products, brands, terminology, attributes, and specification considerations.
• Perform advanced product and attribute enrichment; identify gaps in product data, technical information, images, and assets; and work with Brand Partners to improve catalog completeness.
• Build relationships with Brand Partners to understand their products, gather data and insights, and identify opportunities to better represent their catalogs.
• Conduct research with architects and designers to understand how they search for, evaluate, compare, and specify products in assigned categories.
• Analyze search queries and user behavior to identify opportunities to improve discovery through filters, attributes, terminology, and synonyms.
• Shape how products are structured and presented, including prioritized product-detail-page attributes, controlled vocabularies, taxonomy, and hierarchy.
• Lead catalog development and onboarding for new categories, establishing effective data structures and standards.
• Partner with Catalog, Product, Search, Brand, and other teams to identify and implement ongoing improvements to assigned categories.

Benefits

• Flexible PTO and sick days
• Paid national holidays
• Medical, dental, and vision plans
• Short-term and long-term disability plans
• Employee assistance program
• 401(k) eligibility after the first 90 days of employment
• Community events and giving-back opportunities
• Career growth and development opportunities
• Flexible work schedules and a hybrid working model, with department leaders determining the approach

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed