Head of Research DACH (m/f/d)

Your mission as a Head of Research DACH
As our Head of Research DACH, you will lead and develop our Research Excellence department in the region, ensuring top-notch research quality, strong client impact, and efficient, scalable processes. You will empower team leads, drive strategic initiatives, and represent Appinio as a thought leader - internally and externally - shaping the future of agile, AI-powered market research.

What you’ll be doing

• Strategic Leadership:
  
  
  
  • Define and drive the DACH research roadmap, aligning with global objectives
  
  
  • Launch initiatives to improve efficiency, quality, and scalability
  
  
  • Translate senior leadership strategy into clear direction for the team
  
  
  
  


• People Leadership:
  
  
  
  • Lead and develop Research Team Leads, ensuring consistent standards
  
  
  • Oversee workforce planning, hiring, and team engagement
  
  
  • Foster a high-performance, inclusive, and resilient team culture
  
  
  
  


• Research & Process Excellence:
  
  
  
  • Ensure high-quality research output and methodology adoption
  
  
  • Lead upskilling initiatives and enforce process compliance
  
  
  • Act as escalation point for complex client or data issues
  
  
  
  


• Commercial & Cross-Functional Impact:
  
  
  
  • Collaborate with Account Management and Customer Success to optimize delivery, key accounts, and client satisfaction
  
  
  • Support high-stakes pitches and strategic initiatives while maintaining a NPS target of 80+
  
  
  
  


• Thought Leadership:
  
  
  
  • Represent Appinio externally at events, conferences, and shape the narrative around agile, AI-powered market research
  
  
  
  

You will thrive in this role if

• You have 6+ years of experience in quantitative market research, with strong end-to-end expertise


• You bring proven senior leadership experience, successfully managing a research department with multiple teams and team leads


• You excel at process ownership, prioritization, and strategic execution in fast-paced, scaling environments


• You have a strong commercial mindset, with experience supporting sales, pitching, and key account growth


• You are a confident senior stakeholder manager and trusted sparring partner for C-level and executive clients


• You are an established or aspiring thought leader, comfortable speaking at events and representing your organization externally


• You communicate fluently in English and are fully proficient in German (C2 level)


• You combine analytical rigor with empathy, pragmatism, and a hands-on leadership style

What’s in it for you?

• Flexibility Policy - Our flexibility policy means there is no hard cap on the number of vacation days you can take


• Temporary work from abroad - If you're based in the EU, you can work outside your country of residence for up to 180 days per year


• All the hardware you need and your own MacBook


• If you are located in Hamburg or Berlin, you'll get a Deutschland ticket or access to a mobility budget with the NAVIT app to get you to and from the office space


• If you are located in Germany or Spain, you will have access to a Subsidised Urban Sports Club membership


• In case you’re located in one of the cities where most of our fellow Appinioneers are (Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, London, Madrid, Barcelona, or New York), you can get access to our Co-working spaces