Market Research Manager, Fargo, ND

About the Role

Thomas and Reed, LLC is a consulting firm in Indianapolis, IN with focus on Government Contracting. We are currently searching for a Market Research Manager to join the Team at the Rural Export Center in Fargo, ND.

The Market Research Manager shall work to promote the services of the REC to USCS Trade Specialists, State Trade Offices, District Export Councils, and other stakeholders, so that rural companies in the United States are aware of the service and enlist the REC for assistance. The Market Research Manager and REC Analysts and Assistants shall support the REC Director in responding to relevant requests from ITA leadership, USCS clients and external stakeholders REC.

The Market Research Manager shall conduct training of Market Research Analysts and Assistants in accordance with procedure manuals, templates, and training documents. The Market Research Manager shall oversee and assist with the completion of research reports that the Market Research Analysts and Market Research Assistants develop, to ensure high quality and timely delivery of reports according to the schedule established with clients.

The Market Research Manager shall ensure that training seminars and webinars with actionable and timely content are available to rural companies, with planning and scheduling closely coordinated with Trade Specialists from around the United States.

Perform and direct the following tasks:

• Promotion of Services:
  • Promote the services of the REC to Rural Team members, Trade Specialists, State Trade Offices, District Export Councils and other stakeholders via phone calls, videoconferencing, and emails, so that there are a sufficient number of research requests to maintain a full workload for all REC contractors.
  • Maintain the Trade Specialist Guide to ensure USCS Trade Specialists have clear guidelines on the services of the REC. Any edits to the Trade Specialist Guide must be approved by the REC Director.
• Oversee Research Quality and Activity:
  • Oversee the status and research quality of market research reports being completed by the Market Research Analysts and Market Research Assistants.
  • Use and train staff to use project management techniques, high-quality REC approved and other research tools (including those in the Common Data Platform) and effective communication strategies with the clients.
• Oversee Documentation of Operations: Oversee the maintenance of a Works in Progress (WIP) project tracking document for REC Research Reports, Website Globalization Reviews, and client training.
• Maintenance of Training Materials: Oversee the maintenance of procedure manuals, templates, and training documents to ensure consistency of onboarding, systems access, work, communication and reports for the Market Research Analysts and Assistants. Training materials shall be approved by the REC Director prior to being used whether for contract staff or interns. Confirm that new contractors and interns fully comprehend the research methodologies.
• Deliver Research Results:
  • Participate in meetings with clients and include / invite the local USCS Trade Specialist and REC Director to the client meetings including the introductory discussion, the matrix criteria discussion, the results of the matrix analysis discussion, the polling results discussion, and the final project review discussion ensuring that research findings are clear, actionable and that they incorporate U.S. Commercial Service programs, events and services.
  • Coordinate with local USCS Trade Specialists and the REC Director to invite the Congressional offices to participate in final research presentations to clients.
• Record Counseling Interactions: Work with local USCS Trade Specialists to ensure that REC Cases are recorded in the client management system (CRM), presently Salesforce, and the client folder system.
• Coordinate Weekly and Monthly Status Meetings: Coordinate a call at least once a week including all contractors and interns to brief the REC Director on the status of research projects. Record and publish meeting minutes from these monthly meetings.
• Evaluate and Recommend Additional New Data Tools: Continually seek out…