Senior Director of Research

Feb 17, 2026

Reporting to the Managing Director of Programs.
Position based in Birmingham, Alabama.

About Heron

Founded in 1992, Heron is dedicated to helping people and communities to help themselves. Heron works directly with local organizations that are embedded in, deeply trusted by, and inherently driven by the voice and vision of their neighbors. Heron partners with communities to source relevant and actionable research, nurture a learning collaborative of peers, help communities reclaim their narrative of place and self, foster stronger collective agency and social bonds, and provide long-term financial support. Heron works mainly in rural communities experiencing persistent poverty, systemic challenges, historic disinvestment, and a legacy of disenfranchisement.

Over the coming 8-10 years, Heron will pursue an exciting, innovative set of strategies to

(1) empower dozens of distressed rural communities across the country, (2) help rewrite the playbook for national funders working in rural community advancement, and (3) position Heron, not as a traditional grantmaking private foundation, but as a resourceful, experienced, and well-regarded rural community advancement agency, poised to perform this important work effectively well into the future. Heron will:

Provide our community partners with extensive data and research, technical assistance, communications support, and networking opportunities.
Share its growing knowledge broadly to help increase capital flow to the direct control of rural communities.
Invest significant financial capital into local organizations leading community-driven projects and initiatives to advance the vitality and well-being of their community.

About the Job

Heron is seeking an experienced and strategic Senior Director of Research to build and lead its Community Research function – a cornerstone of Heron’s work to support healthy and resilient rural communities. As Heron transfers the majority of its financial capital to local community partner organizations and establishes a national learning network, the Senior Director of Research will develop the data infrastructure, analytical frameworks, and knowledge resources that enable communities to understand their conditions, set priorities, track progress, and drive meaningful change. This position will be based in Birmingham, Alabama.

The Senior Director of Research will oversee the development and execution of six interconnected research program areas:

Tracking communities experiencing persistent poverty
Building and maintaining the Heron Community Data Library
Assessing external trends and threats
Identifying healthy community systems and prospective community partner organizations
Creating comprehensive community profiles
Curating project support resources.

This is a unique opportunity for a research leader to shape how communities understand and strengthen their stores of human, natural, civic, and economic capital—and to help demonstrate that community-driven development, grounded in rigorous data and local voice, can break cycles of persistent poverty.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Research Agenda

Lead the development and execution of Heron’s comprehensive research agenda across six program areas.
Serve as a key thought partner to executive leadership on research strategy, community selection, and data-driven decision-making.
Build Heron’s reputation as a credible, innovative source of research and data on rural community health, persistent poverty, and community capitals.
Build and lead a high-performing research team, including hiring and managing a data analyst and additional research staff.
Collaborate closely with Community Partnerships Network, Outreach, and Investment teams to ensure research informs all aspects of Heron’s work.

Heron Community Capitals Database

Launch and continuously refine the Heron Community Data Library—an expert-advised set of community vitality indicators linked to human, natural, civic, and economic capital for every U.S. county.
Partner with research institutions and experts to ensure data quality, accessibility, and usability.
Create user-friendly tools and guides that enable community partners and other communities to access, interpret, and apply community capitals data.

Communities Experiencing Persistent Poverty

Maintain a comprehensive catalog of communities facing persistent poverty in the U.S.
Establish rigorous, equity-centered parameters for identifying candidate communities for Heron partnerships.
Track and report on the health of these communities over time using expert-supported methodologies.
Collaborate with staff to identify and recommend priority communities for development.

Community Profiles & Deep Research

Lead the creation of comprehensive community health profiles for each Heron partner community in collaboration with community members, regional experts, and Heron staff.
Ensure community voice shapes the research process and final products through meaningful engagement and co-creation.
Update profiles every several years to track progress and changing conditions.

External Trends & Threats Analysis

Develop reports that help communities anticipate and prepare for trends such as climate change, demographic shifts, and economic disruption.
Engage experts to inform trend analysis and community resilience planning.
Create expert-informed frameworks and toolkits communities can use to assess their vulnerability and build adaptive capacity.

Healthy Community Systems & Community Partners

Research and document the critical systems (health, education, infrastructure, enterprise) and local community-based organizations that sustain community health.
Develop a rubric for identifying and assessing community partner organizations based on their permanence, community embeddedness, and collaborative approach, among other critical domains.
Build a knowledge base on best practices for system strengthening and organizational development.

Project Support Resources & Knowledge Management

Assemble and curate an accessible library of strategies, evidence-based solutions, case studies, and lessons learned from communities addressing similar challenges.
Launch and manage the Heron Library as a resource for community partners and the broader field.

Net Contribution Framework & Enterprise Assessment

Develop and refine a standardized framework for rating enterprises and investments based on their net contributions to human, natural, civic, and economic capitals.
Conduct retrospective analysis of Heron’s historic investment portfolio and grantees using the net contribution framework.
Collaborate with the Investment team to score Heron’s current investment portfolio and identify alignment with community capitals objectives.
Support internal teams and community partners in aligning net contribution assessment with the community capitals framework.

Desired Skills and Experience

Minimum 10 years of experience in applied research, community development research, or related fields, including leadership and team management.
Deep alignment with Heron’s mission and principles, including a commitment to community agency, equity, and systems change.
Expertise in quantitative and qualitative research methods, data analysis, and indicator development.
Experience developing and managing data systems, libraries, or knowledge platforms.
Strong understanding of community development, rural economies, persistent poverty, and place-based strategies.
Proven ability to translate complex research and data into accessible insights for diverse audiences including community leaders, funders, and policymakers.
Experience conducting participatory or community-engaged research that centers local voice and knowledge.
Familiarity with impact measurement, asset-based community development, or similar holistic approaches to community health. Previous familiarity with community capitals frameworks is desirable.
Track record of building productive partnerships with academic institutions, research organizations, and community-based organizations.
Exceptional project management skills with ability to oversee multiple interconnected research initiatives.
Strong writing and communication skills across formats and audiences.
Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across internal departments and with external stakeholders.
Comfort navigating ambiguity and building new research infrastructure in an evolving organization.

Salary, Benefits, and Location

The salary range for this position is $184,000 to $220,000 based on skills and experience. Heron offers an attractive benefits package.

The Senior Director of Research position will be based in Birmingham, Alabama, working in Heron’s planned office there, with some flexibility for occasional remote work. Out-of-state travel is expected for up to 20% of time, estimated to be a minimum of one trip/month, including some overnight stays.

To Apply

Interested candidates should provide a cover letter and resume by clicking this link: Careers – Heron Foundation.

Apply by March 31, 2026. Note: this position opening may close earlier if sufficient applications are received.