Research Manager, Insights & Analytics

Job Description

THE AGENCY

The six-time recipient of the award for “Best in Talent Representation and Management,” presented by the Sports Business Journal, CAA Sports represents more than 3,000 of the world's best athletes in such sports as baseball, football, hockey, basketball, and soccer, in addition to coaches, on-air broadcasters, and sports personalities.  Beyond traditional athlete representation, CAA Sports provides unique opportunities for clients off the field, in areas including entertainment, licensing, endorsements, speaking, philanthropy, publishing, and video games. CAA Sports also works in the areas of media rights, property sales and sponsorships, brand consulting, venue development and strategic advisory, and executive search, and received the award for “Best in Corporate Consulting” at the 2018 Sports Business Awards, and “Best in Property Consulting, Sales, and Client Service” in 2014, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2024, and 2025. 

CAA Sports is a division of leading entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA). Creative Artists Agency (CAA) is the leading entertainment and sports agency, with global expertise in filmed and live entertainment, digital media, publishing, sponsorship sales and endorsements, media finance, consumer investing, fashion, brand management and consumer product licensing, executive search, and philanthropy.  Distinguished by its culture of collaboration and exceptional client service, CAA’s diverse workforce identifies, innovates, and amplifies opportunities for the people and organizations that shape culture and inspire the world.  For more information about CAA Sports, visit www.caa.com.

OVERVIEW

In CAA Brand Consulting we have 200+ specialists working with over 35 leading brands. Our vision is to be the strategic partner for brands in helping them solve their biggest challenges. Our services and connectivity in sport and entertainment allow us to identify, develop, activate and measure partnership strategies that build brands and grow business. Our international clients include the likes of Adobe, Allianz, Salesforce, Google, Nestle, Indeed, Gucci, Etihad Airways and Visit Abu Dhabi.

This is a chance to join the CAA Brand Consulting team in Abu Dhabi. To establish and build an Insights & Analytics function to service domestic and international clients, as well as working closely with the wider International team across a variety of existing and new business projects in the sports and entertainment industry.

INSIGHTS & ANALYTICS @ CAA BRAND CONSULTING

The Insights & Analytics function serves to offer the wider Brand Consulting team and our client base with a set of specialisms across the client life-cycle⁏ from strategic advisory services in partnership identification and valuation, to inspiring outstanding creative work through the provision of insights and data, to designing and applying measurement solutions to showcase effectiveness and identify areas for optimisation.

Alongside our Strategy team, we leverage a broad range of specialisms across primary research, media valuation, and partnership marketing strategy against a wide portfolio of syndicated and proprietary data tools to provide recommendations that are data-driven and robust in nature.

THE ROLE

The Role of Research Manager offers the candidate a chance to join our recently launched UAE-based Brand Consulting team, with Insights & Analytics idendtified as a critical specialism required to help further grow our presence in the region.

The long-term ambition is to build an Insights & Analytics team in market that can service clients and grow independently, but initially the candidate will work closely with the London and US based Insighst & Analytics teams, offering both a market based resource and provide a strong understanding of local business pratcces and cultural nuances specific to the region.

As a local market expert, the Research Manager will be integrated into all region-specific work that has an Insights & Analytics scope against it, whilst working with the client team to identify and action growth opportunities.

QUALIFICATIONS/REQUIREMENTS

What does the Research Manager role involve?

Partnership strategy and evaluation

• Provide clients with consultancy in appraising and evaluating partnership opportunities
• Apply insights from data sets to inform partnership rights and assets portfolios

Activation planning insights

• Work alongside account planning team to generate insights that informs campaign strategy and channel planning on existing and new business

Campaign measurement and evaluation

• Work alongside the client servicing teams to design, implement and manage measurement and evaluation frameworks across a number of ongoing client projects

New business development

• Identify and convert incremental growth opportunities amongst existing clients
• Help source new Middle East-based business development opportunities 
• Contribute to new business opportunities both in market and globally

You will work closely with the client servicing team to fulfil a range of services from the list above What are we looking for?

• Considerable experience working in a data/analytical capacity at an agency, consultancy, brand or Rights Holder in the sports or media sector

• Experience working in the Middle East, or with Middle Eastern-based clients

• Excellent data literacy and extensive use of analytical tools and applications (e.g. Netbase, Meltwater, Creator IQ, TGI, GWI, YouGov, etc.)

• Excellent English speaker, Arabic also highly desirable

• Proficient operating across time zones and to tight deadlines delivering work that is clear, concise and impactful.

• Experience of conducting research projects using both qualitative and quantitative methodologies

• Considerable experience in translating multiple data sources/inputs into concise, coherent and actionable recommendations

• Experience of working with international and Middle East-based brands, ideally within a marketing or brand strategy capacity

• A natural curiosity for how consumer trends, technology and socio-political forces are shaping a rapidly changing world and the implications this has for media, sports and entertainment.

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