Market Research Specialist

**Description**

**JOB SUMMARY**

Responsible for maintaining, updating and strategically expanding Syneos Health’s Payer Panel of expert industry advisors, while educating and supporting consultants in the use of this panel for quantitative and qualitative market research projects. Develops and upholds relevant policies, procedures, and training to ensure compliance with all applicable market research laws and standards. This position will take an active role in engaging advisors from the panel and proactively managing day-to-day fielding operations by Insight Specialists to ensure projects are completed successfully and on time.

**JOB RESPONSIBILITIES**

Panel Management
- Ensure timely access to key pivotal contacts within Syneos Health’s Payer Panel.
- Profile industry advisors and their organizations in the Payer Panel to understand and detail their roles, decision-making responsibilities, experience and areas of expertise.
- Collect any necessary documentation from panelists, including CVs, W-9s, and consent forms.
- Maintain a highly-customizable proprietary database to ensure quick and accurate resolutions to client inquiries while fostering the ability to selectively recruit for live research, telephone interviews, and web surveys.
- Maintain accuracy of the Payer Panel data, to the best of your ability, which includes (but is not limited to) employment status, contact information, ratings, and overall feedback.
- Foster and maintain healthy business relationships with panelists to ensure that long-term panel engagement exists.
- Engage in periodic surveys of key decision-makers to understand key market access issues or changes in the payer landscape.
- Based on an understanding of US and international payer markets, identify gaps in the Payer Panel in terms of advisor roles and decision-making responsibilities, key companies, organization types (PBM, MCO, IDN, GPO, hospital, specialty pharmacy, etc.), and channels (Commercial, Medicare, Medicaid, Federal, etc.).
- Recruit new payer experts to fill gaps and improve the quality of the Payer Panel, either through vendor relationships or grown internally through internet research and calling on potential targets.

Project Management
- Actively participates in kick-off meetings, interprets project requirements and assesses feasibility, provides recommendations on recruiting targets, and maintains project information forms.
- Supports research outreach and sample fulfillment needs by managing Insights Specialists and assists in executing payer research projects along with them as needed, based on the volume of project requests.
- Assists in the honoraria fulfillment process to ensure rewards are processed accurately and on time.
- Ensures panelist issues or problems are resolved in a timely and client-friendly manner.
- Maintains a knowledgebase on sample vendors and project experiences to provide project teams with accurate costs, time estimates and trade-offs for the decision-making process and accurate fulfilment of sample.
- Provide assistance, as needed, for live meetings (ad boards, competitive simulations, focus groups, etc.), including:

- On-site assistance (as requested)
- Coordination of project team and/or participant travel
- Meeting facility coordination
- Ordering of on-site supplies
- Distribution and collection of expense reports for advisors

Policies and Procedures
- Completes any required certifications and follows industry standards (e.g., CASRO), applicable laws (e.g., GDPR, Sunshine Act), and all Syneos Health standards for conducting market research and maintaining the Payer Panel.
- Collects and maintains up to date client Fair Market Value (FMV) honoraria rates, and routinely evaluates and establishes FMV rates across different stakeholder types to use when appropriate in the absence of client provided FMV rates.
- Collects and maintains consent forms for panelists and immediately responds to any opt-out requests and updates the Syneos Health ‘Do Not Call’ list.
- Collaborates with Syneos Health Legal and Compliance teams, the Panel Task Force, and other stakeholders to develop standard operating processes, checklists, best practice guidelines, sample documents, FMV guidance, and consulting training materials to ensure compliance with all applicable market research reporting standards and obligations.
- Collaborate with the Panel Task Force and IT (or third party vendor) on the design, implementation, ongoing improvement, and promotion of the Payer Panel.
- Creates and distributes regular status reports to the Panel Task Force with various performance and tracking metrics including on the panel composition, volume of projects, and timeliness of processing payments.
- Stays current on survey engagement techniques that yield positive participation rates.

**QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS**
- Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree (e.g., MBA) strongly preferred
- Experience working in market research, recruiting, and p