Austin, TX

The mission of the Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute (TEPRI) is to inspire lasting energy solutions for low-income communities across Texas. We work with energy poverty stakeholders to conduct research, build evidence, create tools, and partner with local jurisdictions to develop and test new practices that can scale. Our efforts aim to improve the systems that are needed to enable sustainable energy solutions to reach underserved communities so that their benefits may flow to those most in need.

TEPRI seeks a Research Director with keen intellectual curiosity and a deep interest in making positive impact the intersection of energy and poverty through applied research. The Research Director will work closely with the Executive Director to achieve the objectives of TEPRI’s strategic plan. As a senior member of the TEPRI team, the Research Director’s responsibilities will include execution of TEPRI’s research agenda, managing staff, leading external advisory committees, and support of programmatic business development and grant management activities. The ideal candidate will have a strong creative and entrepreneurial spirit and experience leading social and technical research in the energy sector.

Essential duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

Primary Responsibilities: 

• Execute TEPRI’s mission-driven research agenda to meet both long- and short-term strategic goals for TEPRI and our members and supporters

• Plan, direct, and perform complex research initiatives pertaining to energy poverty and its drivers, effects, and mitigation strategies

• Regularly engage with TEPRI members and key stakeholders to understand research needs and priorities, including through leadership of our research advisory committee

• Leverage strategic partnerships with academic and other non-profit research organizations to deliver research agenda

• Develop standardized research methodology and data-management protocols that promote effective and efficient project deployment and execution and build organizational expertise

• Successfully develop and secure grant funding for research initiatives and maintain relationships with funding entities

• Effectively communicate research findings to broad stakeholder network tailored based on stakeholder priorities and information needs

Qualifications:

Education and Experience:

• Advanced degree in public policy, engineering, environmental sciences or a related field with a minimum of 7 years of experience leading multi-disciplinary research teams and developing funded research initiatives

• Experience with a mix of the private and public sector, project-based environments including project development, university research, consulting, or professional services is preferred.

• The successful candidate should be considered a respected authority in their field.

Research Skillset: 

• Expertise in statistical methods and ability to perform statistical analysis using standard statistical tools and techniques

• Demonstrable experience in data mining, profiling, and cleaning

• Strong sense of commitment to data integrity

• Experience with publicly available energy datasets, particularly U.S. Census, Energy Information Administration, and other Department of Energy data

• Basic understanding of predictive modeling and machine learning

• Experience designing & executing web-based user surveys and, ideally, ethnographic field research

• Well-honed skills and reproducible techniques in literature research, including evaluating data quality, categorizing, summarizing, and organizing references

• Experience with a variety of data visualization techniques to convey complex information in a clear and concise manner

• Strong communication skills with demonstrated experience developing technical reports, peer-review publications, and proposals.

• Ability to communicate complex technical findings in a succinct and easy-to-understand manner using captivating language meant to engage the public.

Project Management Abilities:

• Must be able to design research studies, track and progress, and discern and communicate results.

• Must be able to collaborate with outside organizations that are working on similar topics, motivate partners and ensure that they meet deadlines and accomplish the appropriate tasks.

• Demonstrated ability to meet commitments on time and within budget.

Outreach and Engagement Abilities:

• Ability to develop strong business relationships.

• Strong outreach and fundraising capabilities including speaking and writing to business and donor audiences;

• Able to handle media inquiries and engage non-technical audiences.

ENVIRONMENT

TEPRI is a young non-profit and growing rapidly. We have a small team of innovative and creative thinkers. Our team works out of a shared-office space located on South Congress Avenue in downtown Austin, Texas. Parking is included and available 24/7. Texas-based candidates outside of Austin may be considered for remote engagement with exceptionally strong qualifications.

We will provide a competitive compensation.

We are actively committed to promoting and maintaining the importance of diversity to our work. We encourage everyone across the spectrums of race, ethnicity, nationality, ability, age, gender identity and expression, educational background, sexual orientation, and religion to apply.

To apply:

Please submit a resume and cover letter to samantha@txenergypoverty.org.