Run Behavior Researcher II

Your Job:

The mission of the Run Research Team is to create and leverage novel, scientific concepts and runner-driven product performance insights to create amazing products to help everyone run their path.

As a Run Behavior Researcher II, you will be an integral part of the Run Research Team helping to create the future of the run. You will explore how runners move, feel, and respond to product in real-world conditions. You will bring together quantitative data from the run with qualitative feedback from surveys and field studies to understand how running behavior shapes product experience.

By connecting the voice, motion and emotion of runners, you will help guide product design decisions that make every run feel better and more joyful. Your work will bridge data and empathy – ensuring the runner is at the center of every performance innovation. You will work cross functionally, collaborating with Run Performance Research Scientists, Run Research Physiologists, and Run Research Data Scientists to transform runner insights to innovative products.

• Design and lead research studies with moderate complexity that capture both the physical and emotional dimensions of the run including movement usage, usage patterns and subjective feedback.
• Analyze running behavior through wearable metrics and product usage logs to uncover insights that inform footwear design and performance testing. Identifying new features within established tools to quantify on the run and product experience.
• Integrate qualitative feedback from surveys to understand how runners interpret comfort, performance and connection to the product.
• Develop frameworks and visualization tools that quantify runner behavior and link it to product perception that reveal new insights that guide decision making.
• Ensure on-time conclusions regarding product experience informed through the runner in accordance with critical calendar deadlines to enable on time delivery of product to market.
• Collaborate cross functionally with the Run Research Team including biomechanists, physiologists, and data scientists to translate behavioral findings into actionable product direction.
• Communicate findings through visual storytelling and clear summaries that connect complex data to real runner needs. Cross functional teams with non-technical backgrounds must be able to build on ideas and provide feedback.
• Evolve methodologies to capture emerging aspects of running behavior – such as running environment and emotional engagement – ensuring a future-forward understanding of the run.
• Effectively translate research project findings and project status updates to product creation teams (Development, Product Line Management, Design). Provide articulate, persuasive, and actionable conclusions with recommendations for next steps and how projects will drive a positive business impact.
• Teach, train and present data science principles to other members of the Run Research Team. Present to technical and non-technical groups, clearly communicating data-driven insights.
• May manage up to 1 direct report.
• Other responsibilities as required.

• Ph.D. in biomechanics or related field including engineering, kinesiology, physiology, exercise science, human factors and ergonomics plus 1+ years of relevant work experience or equivalent combination of education, experience, and training (e.g., M.Sc. +3). 6+ years of experience in the performance industry in lieu of a graduate degree.
• Knowledge of athletic performance and injury prevention preferred.
• Understanding of running shoe design features and components and how they influence product experience.
• Proficient Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint skills.
• Proficient in coding to prep, blend, analyze and visualize data (Python, SQL, MATLAB, Qualtrics).
• Experience identifying new features in wearable data that can be translated into research insights.
• Expertise with qualitative and quantitative data collection and study design evaluation, including collecting and analyzing data in an unbiased manner.
• Experience in presenting scientific principles to technical and non-technical groups.
• Keen attention to…