Research Strategy & Enablement Lead

Role Overview:

A high-performing Research organization is seeking a Research Strategy & Enablement Lead to help shape and elevate the team’s strategic capabilities.

This is an intentionally flexible consulting engagement designed to help the Research organization grow its influence, accelerate AI adoption, strengthen learning and development, and increase its overall business impact.

While the engagement spans several areas of focus, the scope within each area will vary over time. The consultant may support multiple priorities simultaneously, with effort shifting based on the organization’s most immediate needs and the highest-impact opportunities.

This consultant will partner closely with Research leadership to assess needs, prioritize the work, and determine the right level of support across each area. Some priorities may require deeper involvement for a period of time, while others may involve lighter-touch advising, coaching, coordination, or targeted deliverables. The scope is expected to evolve as needs become clearer and new opportunities emerge.

This is an opportunity to help shape what research enablement looks like within the organization. Success will come from bringing thoughtful ideas, introducing practical frameworks, and partnering with leadership to continuously refine how researchers learn, influence, and create impact.

This role is well suited for someone with a background in innovation consulting, design strategy, organizational effectiveness, research enablement, or learning transformation who enjoys enabling others to do their best work.

Potential Areas of Focus:

This engagement is intentionally flexible. Depending on organizational priorities and the consultant’s expertise, work may include a combination of the following:

• Research Strategy & Organizational Enablement
  • Partner with Research leadership to identify capability gaps and recommend initiatives that strengthen the organization’s strategic impact.
  • Design programs that help researchers become stronger strategic advisors to the business.
  • Introduce practical frameworks for prioritization, decision-making, stakeholder alignment, and strategic planning.
  • Develop playbooks, templates, and resources that improve how research is communicated and applied across the organization.
• Executive Facilitation & Influence
  • Design and facilitate workshops for researchers, cross-functional partners, and leadership teams.
  • Coach researchers on executive communication, influence, storytelling, and presenting recommendations that inspire action.
  • Lead strategy sessions focused on alignment, innovation, prioritization, and organizational effectiveness.
  • Introduce methodologies from design thinking, innovation consulting, or organizational strategy that help teams navigate complex challenges.
• AI Enablement for Research
  • Help define best practices for integrating AI into research workflows.
  • Evaluate emerging AI tools and identify opportunities to improve efficiency and quality.
  • Design and deliver AI training sessions that build confidence and capability across the Research organization.
  • Develop practical guidance, templates, and resources that support responsible AI adoption.
• Learning & Capability Development
  • Design strategic learning experiences such as Growth Week, offsites, and capability-building workshops.
  • Coordinate external facilitators, guest speakers, and specialized consultants.
  • Create scalable learning resources that strengthen long-term organizational capabilities.
  • Help foster a culture of continuous learning, experimentation, and innovation.
• Strategic Insights
  • Analyze organizational data, including employee pulse surveys and AI adoption metrics.
  • Synthesize findings into executive-ready reports and recommendations.
  • Identify emerging trends, opportunities, and organizational priorities.
  • Partner with leadership to translate insights into actionable initiatives.

Qualifications:

• Significant experience in one or more of the following:
  • Innovation Consulting
  • Research Strategy
  • Design Strategy
  • Organizational Effectiveness
  • Research Operations or Research Enablement
  • Strategy Consulting
  • Learning & Development
• Demonstrated success designing and facilitating executive workshops and cross-functional strategy sessions.
• Experience coaching teams on executive communication, influence, and strategic thinking.
• Strong executive presence with the ability to build trust and influence senior stakeholders.
• Hands-on experience applying AI tools to knowledge work, research, or business processes.
• Exceptional written communication, facilitation, and presentation skills.
• Preferred
  • Experience with organizations such as IDEO, frog, Designit, Fjord/Accenture Song, Doblin, or similar innovation, design, or strategy consultancies.
  • Experience supporting Research, UX, Product, Design, or Innovation organizations.
  • Background building organizational capability, learning programs, or transformation initiatives.
  • Familiarity with design thinking, service design, systems thinking, or human-centered design methodologies.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this engagement won’t be measured by checking off a predefined list of responsibilities. Instead, success will come from helping the Research organization become more strategic, more influential, and better equipped to meet evolving business needs.

Over the course of the engagement, the consultant will help identify where they can have the greatest impact. That may include:

• Introducing practical frameworks that improve strategic thinking, influence, and decision-making.
• Increasing AI fluency and adoption through coaching, training, and repeatable resources.
• Designing and facilitating workshops that strengthen collaboration, alignment, and executive influence.
• Creating playbooks, templates, and learning materials that continue delivering value beyond the engagement.
• Helping Research leadership identify new opportunities to elevate the organization’s impact.
• Building momentum around new ideas through thoughtful experimentation, feedback, and continuous refinement.

Ideal Mindset

The ideal consultant is energized by ambiguity and enjoys building something new. Rather than arriving with a predetermined playbook, this person is excited to partner with leadership to identify opportunities, test ideas, and continuously refine what works.

They are equally comfortable thinking strategically and rolling up their sleeves to build a workshop, coach a team, facilitate an executive discussion, analyze data, or develop practical resources. They know when to zoom out to shape strategy and when to dive in to make progress.

Curiosity, adaptability, and a collaborative mindset are just as important as subject matter expertise. This engagement is ideal for someone who enjoys creating clarity where there isn’t yet a defined playbook and who finds energy in helping organizations evolve.

If you’re excited by the opportunity to help shape how a Research organization learns, influences, and evolves, we’d love to hear from you.

Company profile:

Meta is building technology that connects you to people, interests and experiences that matter to you. Our principles embody what we stand for and guide our approach to how we build.