What does a senior research manager do?
A senior research manager is an executive professional who manages the integration of internal and external information sources to deliver exceptional insights to clients and contribute to the development of a company's strategic research framework. Senior research managers are required to demonstrate extensive knowledge of products and services so that they can identify and propose potential opportunities with existing and new clients. They must supervise a team to ensure flawless execution of all market research projects from design to delivery. Senior research managers must also mentor staff to build client understanding across all disciplines.
Senior research manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real senior research manager resumes:
- Lead a team of researchers in data visualization, gamification, and medication adherence.
- Lead a team of three, including one direct report, for distributing daily Nielsen ratings results.
- Achieve high quality deliverables evident by sponsor company feedback, FDA deliverables and balance budgets, scope and timely delivery.
- Manage all top and regional accounts, ensuring all multi-asset classes of research are included and building relationships for the future.
- Manage SAS programming staff, participate in hardware/software specifications and acquisition
- Manage research department employees and resources, operational budget preparation and oversight.
- Create engaging PowerPoint presentations to show marketing research findings.
- Prepare reports and IRB submissions.
- Develop GCP compliance training program.
- Evaluate RFP's for legal issues.
- Used SPSS to run multivariate analysis which include correlations, regressions and cluster analysis.
- Serve as multipoint liaison for hospital administration, IRB, sponsors, and vendors.
- Provide user consulting on: parallel programming, Matlab, batch job scripts, performance optimization.
- Analyze correlation, significance, and frequencies in the findings and present it in a research report and PowerPoint presentation.
- Develop the company s first ever information base selling system, using SAS, GIS, and other macro programs.
Senior research manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 11% of Senior Research Managers are proficient in Project Management, Data Collection, and PowerPoint. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Senior Research Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Project Management, 11%
Project management experience includes Market Sizing and Forecasting, Respondent Segmentation, Satisfaction-Importance Analysis.
- Data Collection, 6%
Consulted on various agency-wide projects and quality control issues concerning data collection and management including the agency HRIS database.
- PowerPoint, 5%
Research and write expert reports used in mediations and trials using Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access and SQL.
- Research Studies, 5%
Designed consumer and business-to-business research studies, developed budgets and wrote proposals.
- FDA, 4%
Assist Clinical Affairs in the coordination, management and FDA submissions of clinical trials for PMA products.
- Data Analysis, 3%
Managed research projects providing data analysis and written reporting for both public release and custom market research for internal client use.
Most senior research managers use their skills in "project management," "data collection," and "powerpoint" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential senior research manager responsibilities here:
Analytical skills. The most essential soft skill for a senior research manager to carry out their responsibilities is analytical skills. This skill is important for the role because "market research analysts must evaluate large amounts of data and information related to market conditions." Additionally, a senior research manager resume shows how their duties depend on analytical skills: "ensured highest levels of data quality by training and supervising research team during collection, coding, and entry of data. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling senior research manager duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "market research analysts must be able to clearly convey information when gathering material, interpreting data, and presenting results to clients." According to a senior research manager resume, here's how senior research managers can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "managed clients and internal stakeholders by driving communication on project progress, and identifying and driving issue resolution. "
Detail oriented. This is an important skill for senior research managers to perform their duties. For an example of how senior research manager responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "market research analysts must pay attention to minutiae to evaluate data." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a senior research manager: "total project management from inception and consultancy to final deliverables as detailed below in research manager description. ".
The three companies that hire the most senior research managers are:
- Proofpoint76 senior research managers jobs
- Deloitte60 senior research managers jobs
- Amazon18 senior research managers jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable senior research manager resume templates
Build a professional senior research manager resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your senior research manager resume.
Compare different senior research managers
Senior research manager vs. Marketing specialist
A marketing specialist's primary responsibility revolves around conducting thorough market research and analysis to acquire extensive knowledge and understanding of a brand and how it will work in the consumer market. They must determine and come up with strategies and utilize this to develop various programs or campaigns that would be vital in bringing more awareness to the brand, thus boosting sales and improving client base. Furthermore, a marketing specialist must also use their expertise to figure out new opportunities and trends that will work for the company.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between senior research managers and marketing specialist. For instance, senior research manager responsibilities require skills such as "data collection," "research studies," "fda," and "data analysis." Whereas a marketing specialist is skilled in "digital marketing," "marketing campaigns," "email marketing," and "customer service." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Marketing specialists earn the highest salaries when working in the technology industry, with an average yearly salary of $64,666. On the other hand, senior research managers are paid more in the finance industry with an average salary of $139,340.marketing specialists tend to reach lower levels of education than senior research managers. In fact, marketing specialists are 17.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 6.4% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Senior research manager vs. Marketing department internship
A marketing department internship is a marketing degree program requirement in most colleges. This is the work experience period where interns get to apply the knowledge they acquire in the real world. In this period, marketing interns provide administrative support to the marketing department of the company. The duties may include data entry, preparation of marketing materials, and managing the company's website. Also, interns are tasked to research and collect data, then analyze findings with an experienced marketing representative's supervision.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, senior research manager responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "project management," "research studies," "fda," and "spss." Meanwhile, a marketing department internship has duties that require skills in areas such as "financial statements," "press releases," "facebook," and "administrative tasks." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
In general, marketing department interns achieve lower levels of education than senior research managers. They're 15.4% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 6.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Senior research manager vs. Marketing consultant
A marketing consultant is responsible for utilizing their extensive retail expertise to develop strategies on how to strengthen client base and achieve better sales. Furthermore, a marketing consultant must perform research and analysis to determine opportunities for financial gains, devise plans to improve client satisfaction, assess the competition, look out for any risks, and develop its brand and image. They should also ensure that all steps taken adhere to the policies and regulations of the organization.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a senior research manager is likely to be skilled in "project management," "data collection," "research studies," and "fda," while a typical marketing consultant is skilled in "customer service," "web content," "media sales," and "digital marketing."
Marketing consultants earn the highest salary when working in the technology industry, where they receive an average salary of $93,209. Comparatively, senior research managers have the highest earning potential in the finance industry, with an average salary of $139,340.Most marketing consultants achieve a lower degree level compared to senior research managers. For example, they're 13.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 6.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Senior research manager vs. Marketing assistant
A marketing assistant's general responsibility is to support the marketing programs and campaigns by sharing recommendations and useful insights to improve the brand's image. Marketing assistants' duties also include reaching out to other personnel for necessary files needed on promotional advertisements, assist the team in creating designs and developing content, publishing brochures for potential clients, analyzing sales reports, and researching the current market trends. A marketing assistant should have excellent organizational and time-management skills to meet deadlines and perform various tasks as required.
Types of senior research manager
Updated January 8, 2025
