Director, Qualitative Research & Insights

Director, Qualitative Research & Insights | Research, Data, & Insights Team  About Good Reason Houston Good Reason Houston exists to ensure that every child, in every neighborhood of Houston, has access to a world-class public education and the opportunity to thrive in the Houston of tomorrow.

From a child’s first day of Pre-K to their first day on the job, we work to make sure every student is prepared for success in school, career, and life.   Anchored in a cradle-to-career vision, Good Reason Houston is driven by a bold North Star Goal :

• to double the rate of public school graduates earning a living wage by 2040, positioning economic mobility as the ultimate measure of student success.
• Achieving this goal requires collaboration across sectors, and Good Reason Houston serves as Houston’s regional education backbone, uniting public school systems, higher education institutions, employers, and civic leaders around a shared vision for student success.   Good Reason Houston builds awareness of, advocates for, and advises school systems on measures aimed to improve the quality of education available to all.
• Today the organization partners with 25 public school systems that collectively serve 700,000 students across 900 public schools in the Houston region.
• We seek to cultivate a shared regional vision for educational quality, to build the capacity for change required within districts and the greater Houston community, and to foster collective ownership to support student-level results for kids across our city.  For more information, please visit www.goodreasonhouston.org .  About the Role Good Reason Houston is seeking a leader to serve as the Director, Qualitative Research & Insights.
• This role is essential in driving the organization's mission to advance Houston as a leading education city through the production and strategic use of data, research, and evaluation.
• The Director leads the production of high-quality, timely, relevant and rigorous qualitative research and data analysis that can be shared across stakeholders, including policymakers, school district leaders, and community members, to accelerate and amplify our impact.
• This experienced professional collaborates across the organization to augment quantitative analyses with insightful qualitative storytelling to illuminate the context behind the numbers.
• This is a leadership role on Good Reason Houston’s growing Research, Data, and Insights team and is considered a thought leader and strategic advisor across the organization.
• The Director will manage and execute an organization-wide research agenda by refining research questions and orchestrating data collection, analysis, visualization and meaning-making to inform our internal strategy and external messages.
• The Director, Qualitative Research & Insights will create systems and build team capacity to ensure our analyses are accurate, efficient, and accessible.
• In addition, this role will help departments develop strategies for systematic collection and analysis of qualitative data.
• This role reports to the Managing Director, Data Impact & Strategy and works cross-functionally to support data needs across divisions.
• Primary Responsibilities Research & Analysis (50%) Manage capacity (staff and contractors) to conduct recurring and ad hoc qualitative data analysis that maximize Good Reason Houston’s impact and aligns with strategic and external affairs objectives.  Lead planning and execution of a portfolio of research projects with a significant qualitative analysis component, including refining research questions, developing and codifying  research methods, accessing and / or collecting data, analyzing data, surfacing insights, and creating visualizations, presentations, and reports on the research findings.
• Collaborate with the Director, Quantitative Research & Data on integration of qualitative and quantitative research and findings and creation of mixed methods studies.
• Ensure timely and accurate delivery of initial and final findings from research projects.
• Collaborate with cross-functional division leaders and team and external partners to develop appropriate research questions and data collection instruments, and coordinate research activities and dissemination Serve as lead consultant on publicly available state- and national- data sources on education as well as data requirements and access to support development of organization-wide research agenda.
• Build staff capacity to interpret and leverage data by developing and facilitating training and workshops, providing small group and individual coaching, and serving as a consultant to internal teams tackling research questions Facilitate collaboration across communications, advancement, and client service teams to integrate qualitative insights into broader business strategies.
• Maintain expertise on relevant research topics and methods.
• Encourage innovation in qualitative methodologies, tools, and frameworks through continuous learning and knowledge-sharing.   Data Storytelling (20%) Surface insights from data analyses and create visualizations, presentations, memos, and reports that communicate key insights to various audiences.
• Present findings both internally and externally and ensure staff and partners are equipped to understand methodology and interpret findings.
• Collaborate with the leadership team to develop presentations that center data in support of key messages and organizational objectives.
• Collaborate with Leadership, Advancement, Communications, District Partnership, and Policy and Advocacy teams to advise on available data and visualization.  Manage development of deliverables (including reports, presentation slides, one pagers, etc.) that center data in support of cross-departmental project goals and organizational key messages and objectives.   Data Management (15%) Oversee district data relationships and data sharing agreements as well as requests for data from external partners and internal teams.
• Coordinate IRB and ensure documentation of informed consent with research participants.
• Lead ethics oversight.
• Create and maintain systems for organization of data inputs and final deliverables that streamline access and collaboration and ensure consistency, accuracy, and compliance with data sharing agreements and data privacy laws (e.g.
• FERPA).
• Serve as a liaison between Good Reason Houston and other local and national organizations focused on education research.
• Develop and maintain dashboards or databases to share frequently requested data from internal and external stakeholders.   People Management (15%) Lead and mentor a team of qualitative researchers, strategists, and analysts, fostering a culture of curiosity, collaboration, and methodological rigor.
• Provide clear guidance, coaching, and performance feedback to support the professional growth and career development of team members.
• Manage performance evaluations, career progression plans, and succession planning for key research talent.
• Manage resource allocation, workload balancing, and project assignments to optimize team efficiency and well-being.
• Champion best practices in qualitative research design, analysis, and storytelling through active mentorship and peer review.
• Support recruitment, onboarding, and ongoing training of researchers to strengthen the team’s capabilities and methodological range.
• Promote a positive, inclusive team culture that values diverse perspectives and approaches to insight generation.   Perform other duties as assigned by MD, Research & Data Strategy.

Qualifications & Skills Experience / background :

Demonstrated experience writing research reports and insights for diverse audiences a plus Advanced Microsoft Office skills, including Powerpoint skills Experience managing a team or playing leadership roles within project teams Deep experience working with qualitative data analysis software (e.g., NVivo, Dedoose, MaxQDA, ATLAS.ti ) Some experience working with data visualization software (e.g., Tableau)  Experience working in an organization or on a team that requires flexibility, a high degree of responsiveness, and comfort with ambiguity