VP Market Research

WHO YOU ARE

• A Thought Leader. You are an expert within the multifamily real estate field, and your passion for market research goes beyond your deep technical knowledge to the strategic, innovative, and big picture thinking that can shape the future of an organization. You live for challenging the status quo, and thrive in an environment that allows you to communicate your vision to senior leadership teams.

• A Dynamic Leader. You build effective teams and provide direction to achieve goals and operate cooperatively and cohesively. You set clear expectations and hold people accountable. You also have a tendency to make developing your employees a core part of the job.

• A Strong Communicator. Your writing and speaking skills are clear, articulate, and effective, demonstrating your ability to interact with all levels and helping you connect well with others. 

• Confident and Decisive. You have a sense of urgency to drive great results, are precise with executing your work, and have successfully demonstrated your ability to effectively influence others.

• Knowledgeable and Analytical. Without a doubt, you’ve got strong quantitative skills and are comfortable analyzing large data sets, spotting trends and patterns, and synthesizing relevant observations. You use a hypothesis-driven approach to engage in analysis that will deliver on your client questions. You like thinking outside the box to come up with innovative points of view on new challenges, relying on your previous analytic work and experience to help guide you along the way. 

• Technologically Savvy.  Microsoft Excel is a basic tool to you that you know like the back of your hand. You also have a strong skill set in analytic software such as Essbase, SQL, and Oracle BI or SPSS.

• A Solution-Oriented Team Player. You enjoy partnering with others —whether internal or external— in order to get work done and deliver great results.  You are united with teammates and follow through on commitments.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Proactively understand and respond to the specific research and data needs of Equity stakeholders utilizing a variety of research tools and skills. Sources include internal data, internal research, as well as external research products. The ability to utilize as well as create GIS and other location based data is essential.

• Participate in and engage with Investor Relations material preparation and communication as requested. 

• Engage in customer research to help understand trends, underlying needs and preferences of existing and potential residents. Utilize a hypothesis driven approach and both quantitative and qualitative primary research methods to develop soundly reasoned conclusions. Tolerance for ambiguity will be required.

• Form opinions and readily share thoughts on investment decisions, especially when faced with ambiguity and working collaboratively with team members.

• Critically evaluate research questions formulating hypotheses and work plans (data sources, timing, resources, collaborators, output etc.)

• Manage, train, and lead one Analyst-level direct report, in addition to collaborating with and/or providing guidance to other internal analytical resources.

• Undertake a variety of research projects, including market/submarket economic analysis, real estate supply and demand analysis, international market research, industry research and competitive intelligence.

• Prepare narratives, briefs and more formal reports that concisely communicate most relevant findings and conclusions in a timely manner, while providing transparency into the methods used. Perform critical self reviews of work with exceptional attention to detail (content, logic and presentation/communication quality) before delivering completed research. Fully accountable for effectively managing workflow and produces intended (and agreed upon) results on time and on budget; able to proactively communicate project risks in a forward looking manner

• Maintain regular, responsive and timely communications with internal clients. Listen carefully to their needs, probe with relevant and creative questions. Be able to provide an intellectual counterparty (e.g. devil’s advocate, challenge status quo, etc.) in a constructive manner. Reiterate stated needs to clients in a concise manner to ensure effective scope. Meet the internal clients’ long range research/consulting objectives and is proactive – responds to all of their needs as well as explicit requests.

• Research new methods or processes to supplement investment decision making. 

• Strive for excellent performance and seek performance feedback frequently and openly with all stakeholders.

• Present material in a structured, high candor and transparent manner with limited jargon.

• Maintain online/intranet research library to support ongoing needs of teams.

• Maintain relationships with appropriate third party market research firms. Constantly evaluate quality of third party research providers and recommend changes where appropriate.

• Prepare and manage annual budget for third party market research expenses and travel.

• Quickly learn and integrate new tools and data sources as needed.

REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor's degree required; Masters degree preferred. 

• At least seven years of research experience / strong analytical background is necessary. 

• GIS experience is a must, experience with Esri is a significant plus, but not required. 

• 1+ years prior supervisory experience is required.

• Data and Software skills: 

  • Ability to source, clean and manipulate large data sets in analytic and GIS software such as Excel, Essbase, SQL, Oracle BI or Esri ArcGIS. 

  • Ability to quickly learn to source data from EQR systems such as MRI, LRO, BI, Oracle BI, Essbase, etc.

• Must demonstrate exceptional written and verbal communication skills, possess excellent people skills, and have the ability to build positive working relationships, both one-on-one as well as in a team setting, employees at all levels within Equity. 

• Must have the ability to multitask and prioritize workload effectively.

• Available for overnight travel to EQR markets, as required; depending on specific projects and workload, total anticipated travel is 6-8 trips per year.