Information Research Specialist

Description

Baker Research Services (BRS), a research team within HBS Knowledge and Library Services, is seeking an expert data wrangler/researcher to become a valued member of BRS providing unique data and research support to HBS faculty and doctoral students through multiple phases of their research, teaching and learning activities. 

Duties and Responsibilities: 

• Supports the creation of original intellectual property by HBS faculty and doctoral students in the forms of scholarly articles and books, cases, conference presentations, course materials, and web content.

• Researches, identifies, evaluates, obtains, accesses, interprets and analyzes text and quantitative information and data from printed and digital sources including, but not limited to: macroeconomic, financial, accounting, and securities data, and information collected from third-party and non-traditional sources.

• Responds accurately and rapidly to the information needs of clients using electronic, printed, and other types of information sources. Responsible for completing a varying number of long-term research projects as well as responding to quick-turnaround information requests.

• Builds and manages coherent spreadsheets and databases, merges data from multiple sources and formats, performs limited statistical analyses, and creates data visualizations representing results of research and analyses.

• Consults with and advises researchers on optimal methodologies and interpretations of results.

• Provides colleagues and clients with training and support for specialized research databases and analytical software in BRS.

• Participates in Baker Library and Harvard Library committees, working groups, events, etc.

Basic Qualifications :

Master’s degree or equivalent graduate education in Economics, Statistics, Library/Information Science, Business Administration or other relevant discipline.

• Minimum 5 years of overall experience with 3+ years of applicable work experience.

• Demonstrated proficiency in accessing and preparing for analysis data from diverse sources and in structured and unstructured formats, using Excel and at least one statistical analysis software package (SAS, Stata, R, etc.).

Additional Qualifications :

Solid understanding of business and economics concepts, related quantitative/qualitative measures for research application, and research methodologies, practices, and tools.

• Experience finding, collecting, cleaning, manipulating and analyzing quantitative data in a research environment, including experience with third-party business data sources.

• Record of participation in research, preferably in a business-related discipline and particularly in the process of accessing and preparing raw data for analysis.

• Ability to work closely with HBS faculty, doctoral students, research assistants, and colleagues to understand and assist with the achievement of their research goals and to help resolve problems.

• Knowledge of literature databases (particularly business literature databases such as Factiva, EBSCO, and LexisNexis) and experience with tools and strategies for searching these databases, organizing voluminous search results, and integrating results with data from other sources.

• Highly developed skills and creativity in information research, organization, presentation and delivery; excellent critical thinking skills; superb customer service. Ability to learn and apply new skills as required to meet clients’ needs. Able to produce timely, high quality results under pressure.

• Proven record of managing client relationships, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines and sharing workloads and projects with a research team.

• Demonstrated ability to instruct and guide others in the use of data sources and data analysis tools and to troubleshoot problems.

• Demonstrated ability and willingness to work well with others and to collaborate and contribute to group projects-- such as participation on committees and working groups-- within BRS, across KLS, and across the Harvard Library.

• Working knowledge of data visualization tools (Tableau, D3, R), Python or other scripting languages, MariaDB, textual analysis, and/or GIS mapping software is a plus.

Additional Information :

Working Relationships: 

• Works on an adaptive, collaborative team of 7 BRS colleagues. Reports to the Senior Manager, Baker Research Services.

• Works closely with HBS faculty, doctoral students, and research associates in a high-touch, customer-focused environment.

• Contributes to the goals and priorities of BRS and Knowledge and Library Services (KLS).

• Works closely with subject matter, content, and technical experts across KLS, HBS and the Harvard University community.

Additional Information

Come join us! One of 13 schools at Harvard University, Harvard Business School (HBS) is located just across the river from Harvard University’s main campus and a short walk from Harvard Square in Cambridge. HBS’s mission is to educate leaders who make a difference in the world.

Baker Library, part of Harvard Business School’s Knowledge and Library Services (KLS) department, is one of the preeminent academic business libraries in the world. Its innovative programs provide the expertise and resources that faculty, students, alumni and visiting scholars depend on in order to create, share, discover, use and disseminate knowledge. Informed leaders start here! Check out some of our services and exhibits.

Our expectations are that employees of HBS adhere to and represent our Community Values.  They are: 

• Respect for the rights, differences, and dignity of others

• Honesty and integrity in dealing with all members of the community

• Accountability for personal behavior

Many HBS employees are eligible for Flexible Work Arrangements, which may be explored during the interview process.

Cover Letter is Required.

Culture of Inclusion: The work and well-being of HBS are strengthened profoundly by the diversity of our network and our differences in background, culture, experience, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, and much more.

Explore HBS Work Culture at  http://www.hbs.edu/employment/  and learn about other Employment Opportunities.

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Harvard Business School will not offer visa sponsorship for this opportunity.