The NYU Furman Center’s Data Manager is responsible for identifying, updating, cleaning, visualizing, and analyzing a number of datasets related to housing, zoning, real estate, health, education, and other urban policy-focused issues. The best applicant will be an entrepreneurial, collaborative, and solutions-oriented individual with strong data skills. The applicant will teach and learn, and have a dash of a norm-breaking mindset as we seek proven and new ways to understand the intersection of the built environment and people. 

The Data Manager will manage people as well as data. In particular, the Data Manager will manage up to five Graduate Student Researchers in a given semester, who will have a range of data skills. The Data Manager will also support a dynamic and interdisciplinary team of lawyers, economists, urban planners, and policy analysts. The Data Manager will not simply ensure them access to high-quality datasets, but also serve as a partner in their research.

The Data Manager will also help to manage data and privacy agreements with external vendors. We expect the Data Manager to help shape our growth in this area, as we take in new and increasingly complex datasets from institutions in both New York City and across the country. The Data Manager will also design and manage documentation, quality control, and data security protocols for Furman Center projects. Lastly, the Data Manager will manage updates to our signature web-based data tools (State of New York City’s Housing and Neighborhoods, and CoreData.nyc). The Data Manager will be a major contributor to the NYU Furman Center’s daily operations, strategy, and fulfillment of its mission. 

Daily Tasks of the Data Manager Include:

• Supervising the Center’s data management activities, including:
• Assembling, updating, and maintaining large, complex datasets in support of research projects related to housing, land use, and neighborhood conditions.
• Managing the NYU Furman Center’s data team operations and workflow for data-oriented projects at the NYU Furman Center.
• Maintaining the Center’s adherence to data security protocols.
• Designing, implementing, and overseeing quality control mechanisms for research and data projects.

• Managing critical updates to flagship NYU Furman Center web-based tools, including the State of New York City’s Housing and Neighborhoods, the Center’s flagship annual neighborhood indicators report, and CoreData.nyc, in addition to other projects.

• Being a partner and advisor to our interdisciplinary team by collaborating on possible data sources, research methods, data analysis, and the creation of data visualizations, all while reviewing the quality of quantitative analyses employed in the Center’s products and deliverables.

• Supervising and building relationships both inside and outside the Furman Center
• Assist in the supervision of part-time graduate researchers by monitoring their workloads and allocating project assignments.
• Assist in the development and maintenance of relationships with civic organizations, companies, and government agencies that have an interest in neighborhood indicators and civic technology.
• Work with the policy and communications team to refine the Center’s data products to be responsive and useful for a variety of audiences, and present NYU Furman Center findings at external meetings and events.

• Helping to develop new project ideas, and being in constant and curious pursuit of novel data sources that will advance the Center’s research interests.

Minimum Qualifications:  An advanced degree in public policy/administration, urban planning, economics, applied statistics, data science, or a related field. The ideal candidate will have at least five years of quantitative analysis experience and experience with project and personnel management. The candidate must demonstrate leadership, creative problem-solving, effective team-building and mentoring skills, solid mathematical ability, analytic thinking, knowledge of social science research methods, effective oral and written communication, and the ability to successfully manage long-term projects to their completion. The candidate should have advanced knowledge of at least one statistical software package (e.g., R, Python (pandas), SAS, Stata), and be willing to learn R (Tidyverse) & SQL (PostgreSQL).

Must have ability to multitask, respond to shifting priorities, and meet strict deadlines; comfort working both independently and collaboratively; and strong organizational skills and attention to detail. We are looking for a team player with a good sense of humor, a love of numbers, and a curiosity about the world.

Preferred Qualifications: Familiarity with using Census/American Community Survey data will be an asset. Additional technical experience in relational databases (SQL, AWS-RDS), geospatial data management and analysis (R, Python, QGIS, ArcGIS, PostGIS), version control and collaboration with Git/GitHub, and open data tools are a plus. The strongest candidates will have an avid interest in understanding cities, public policy, housing, and land use.

To Apply: Applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, three references, graduate school transcripts (unofficial copies are acceptable), writing sample, and a work sample (code and final product preferred). Send application materials and questions to furmanjobs@nyu.edu. Please include “Data Manager” in the subject line. Review of applications will begin immediately. Only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.