Background and Position Description

Ipsos is the third largest market research firm in the world and the only truly independent voice among the leading research brands. Ipsos produces a wealth of data – political polling, market research, consumer trends, you name it.  Put simply, we understand people and what motivates them. We’re ramping up our capabilities in telling stories around that knowledge.  This new position in our growing marketing unit will help us spread the word visually.  Our goal is to create infographics that complement the research we produce or can stand on their own and be shared socially and across mobile channels.

Much of the day-to-day work will be designing compelling charts and graphics for print and online use. You will work with editors and content creators on staff to enhance their stories with visualized data. Most of the data you use will be generated within Ipsos. There will also be opportunities for longer-form and longer-range projects, especially in interactive media.

This is a creative position, not a research position, but comfort with data and basic data analysis skills are essential.

Requirements

An Ideal candidate will have the following qualifications:

• A curious nature and a healthy respect for the likes of Edward Tufte, The New York Times interactive graphics team, Nathan Yau and Alberto Cairo
• A second-nature reflex of considering the audience’s needs and experience
• A strong portfolio of data-driven graphics that explain complicated concepts simply
• Experience creating graphics for print and online, ideally in a journalistic setting
• Comfort with data and basic analysis tools like Excel. You can’t just “make it pretty.” You’ll need to understand the data and “get your hands dirty,” too
• Ability to manage quick turn-around and longer-range projects simultaneously
• Experience with data mapping tools for print and online
• Experience with interactive tools (Highcharts, D3.js, Tableau, R, etc.) is not required, but a desire to learn more about them (even if you already use them) definitely is
• Ability to follow existing design standards and create new templates and style guides
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent, preferably in design or social science

This position is part of Ipsos AMP, the central marketing and communications “agency” of Ipsos in North America. Based in our Chicago or Vancouver office, the Data Visualization Designer will initially report to the SVP, Marketing, but the reporting may change as the unit staffs up.  The Data Visualization Designer will work closely with the Director of Editorial Strategy, the Ipsos Public Affairs research and communications team, and other creative people in AMP.  Exceptional, self-starting candidates in the New York area will be considered as well, although our strong preference is to have the Data Visualization Designer sit with AMP team members in Chicago or Vancouver.