Director, Strategic Insights
About GameChanger:
We believe in the life changing impact youth sports have on and off the field. Sports encourage leadership, teamwork, responsibility, and confidence – important life lessons that have the power to propel our youth toward meaningful futures. We recognize that without coaches, parents, and volunteers, organized youth sports could not exist. By building the first and best place to experience the youth sports moments important to our community, we are helping families elevate the next generation through youth sports.
So if you love sports and their community building potential, or building cool products is your sport, GameChanger is the team for you. We are a remote-first, dynamic tech company based in New York City, and we are solving some of the biggest challenges in youth sports today.
About the Role
GameChanger is looking for a Director, Strategic Insights to build and lead our Strategic Insights function, serving as the company’s trusted advisor on where the youth sports market is headed, what it means for our business, and where we should invest next. This role will become GameChanger's trusted source for market, customer, and competitive intelligence—combining customer understanding, competitive intelligence, market dynamics, and internal business insights into strategic recommendations that shape company-wide decisions.
As a senior member of the Strategy team, you’ll partner closely with executive leadership to tackle the company’s highest-priority strategic questions, bringing together customer insights, market intelligence, competitive analysis, and business context to help leaders make informed decisions in a rapidly evolving market.
This is not a traditional research leadership role. Success isn’t measured by the number of research studies completed, but by the quality of strategic decisions influenced. We’re looking for someone who enjoys building from the ground up. You’ll establish the frameworks, operating rhythms, and intelligence systems that become foundational to how GameChanger makes strategic decisions for years to come. This role reports to the VP, Strategy, Operations & Impact, and works on-site at our New York City headquarters.
What You’ll Do:
Build GameChanger’s Strategic Insights Function
Establish and lead GameChanger’s Strategic Insights function, creating scalable processes, frameworks, and operating rhythms that support strategic decision-making across the company.
Build a comprehensive understanding of the youth sports ecosystem by synthesizing customer insights, competitive intelligence, market trends, internal business data, and external research.
Develop frameworks for monitoring competitive activity, industry trends, emerging technologies, and evolving customer needs.
Design and execute primary and secondary research when appropriate, leveraging qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method approaches to answer important business questions.
Partner with and manage external research vendors, data providers, and industry partners as needed.
Deliver Strategic Insights
Translate complex research, market dynamics, and business data into clear, actionable recommendations for senior leaders.
Develop executive-ready presentations and narratives that communicate key opportunities, risks, and strategic implications.
Identify meaningful trends, emerging opportunities, and competitive developments that can inform business priorities.
Serve as a trusted thought partner to leaders across the organization by providing objective, evidence-based perspectives.
Influence Company Strategy
Partner with cross-functional leaders to support strategic planning, product strategy, growth initiatives, and long-term business priorities.
Conduct market sizing, customer segmentation, competitive analysis, and opportunity assessments to inform strategic decision-making.
Help evaluate new business opportunities, partnerships, and emerging market trends through thoughtful research and analysis.
Bring together information from multiple sources to develop a well-rounded understanding of complex business questions.
Foster an Insight-Driven Organization
Create scalable systems for sharing insights and institutional knowledge across the company.
Partner closely with Product, Marketing, Data & Analytics, Finance, Customer Experience, and Strategy teams to connect insights across the business.
Champion curiosity, analytical rigor, and evidence-based decision-making throughout the organization.
Who You Are:
10+ years of experience in strategic insights, market intelligence, corporate strategy, competitive intelligence, management consulting, consumer insights, or a related field.
Demonstrated experience building or leading strategic insights, market intelligence, competitive intelligence, or research capabilities within a growing organization.
Strong strategic thinker with the ability to connect customer behavior, competitive dynamics, market trends, and business performance into actionable recommendations.
Exceptional communication and executive storytelling skills, with experience presenting complex information to senior leaders.
Experience designing and leading qualitative and quantitative research, with sound judgment for selecting the right approach based on the business question.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with experience synthesizing information from multiple sources to develop clear points of view.
Proven ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders and build trusted relationships across Product, Marketing, Strategy, Engineering, Finance, and other business functions.
Comfortable operating with a high degree of ownership in an ambiguous, fast-paced environment.
Excited by the opportunity to build a new capability from the ground up and personally drive meaningful work rather than primarily managing large teams.
Naturally curious with a bias toward turning information into practical business recommendations.
Preferred:
Experience supporting executive leadership through strategic planning, growth initiatives, innovation, or corporate strategy.
Experience in consumer technology, SaaS, marketplaces, media, gaming, sports, or other consumer-facing businesses.
Familiarity with competitive intelligence platforms, syndicated research, market intelligence tools, AI-enabled research workflows, and data visualization tools.
Experience working in high-growth environments or helping scale new functions.
Passion for sports, technology, or products that create meaningful experiences for consumers.
Perks:
Work from our well-furnished, modern office in Manhattan, NY.
Unlimited vacation policy.
Paid volunteer opportunities.
Technology stipend - $4,000 every 2 years after your start to make sure you have the latest and greatest technology.
WFH stipend - $500 annually to make your WFH situation comfortable.
Monthly physical, mental, wellness & learning stipend offered through Holisticly.
Monthly lifestyle stipend offered through Fringe.
Full health benefits - medical, dental, vision, prescription, FSA, HRA, HSA, and coverage for family/dependents.
Retirement savings - Traditional and Roth 401K plans are offered through Vanguard, with an immediate company match.
Life insurance - basic life, supplemental life, and dependent life.
Disability leave - short-term disability and long-term disability.
Company paid parental leave - up to 20 weeks for birthing parents and up to 12 weeks for non-birthing parents.
Family building benefits offered through Progyny.
DICK'S Sporting Goods and their family of brands teammate discount.
The target salary range for this position is between $200,000 and $220,000. This is part of a total compensation package that includes incentive, equity, and benefits for eligible roles. Individual pay may vary from the target range and is determined by several factors including experience, internal pay equity, and other relevant business considerations. We constantly review all teammate pay to ensure a great compensation package that is fair and equal across the board.
* DICK'S Sporting Goods has company-wide practices to monitor and protect the company from significant compliance and monetary implications as it pertains to employer state tax liabilities. Due to said guidelines put in place, we are unable to hire in AK, DE, HI, IA, LA, MS, MT, OK, and SC.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity in our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
Our Interview Process & AI
We recognize that AI has become a common part of everyday life and professional work, and its use continues to evolve rapidly. Our perspective on AI in the hiring process will evolve as well. At this time, we ask that candidates please refrain from using AI tools during interviews and assessments, as we want to see your authentic self. We will clearly indicate if and when AI use is acceptable in the process. If you have any questions or need accommodations, we're here to help. Thanks for helping us keep the process fair and secure for everyone!
IMPORTANT NOTICE: All official recruitment communications from GameChanger will come from an email address ending in @gc.com or no-reply@ashby.hq.com. If you receive communication from any other domain, please be cautious, as it is likely fraudulent.