Director - Research

Company Description

Account Management Lead – Research & Financial Markets

Sutherland’s Research & Financial Markets division drives high-impact transformation agenda to address our clients’ most complex business issues - from digital transformation and strategic cost management to operating model redesign, research enablement, analytics, automation, and managed service delivery.

Typical client segments include Investment Banks, Asset Management firms, Private Equity firms, Pension Funds, Sovereign Wealth Funds, Sell-side Research firms, large Corporates, and other Financial Markets institutions.

Sutherland Research has made significant investments in building differentiated solutions that help Financial Institutions reimagine how research, analytics, investment operations, portfolio monitoring, reporting, data management, and decision-support functions are delivered. Our solutions combine domain expertise, global delivery capability, AI-enabled workflows, and operating discipline to help clients improve efficiency, scalability, quality, and insight generation.

Our teams help clients architect future-state operating models, enhance service operations, expand research and analytics capacity, and maximize value from Sutherland’s engagement.

Job Description

Reporting to the Business Head for Financial Markets, key responsibilities include:

► Manage and grow a portfolio of named Financial Markets accounts across Investment Banking, Asset Management, Private Equity, Pension Funds, and large Corporates

► Own account-level revenue targets, with responsibility for expansion, renewals, cross-sell, and upsell opportunities within specified accounts

► Develop deep client relationships across Research, Strategy, Investment Operations, Data, Analytics, Finance, and CXO-level stakeholders

► Identify new opportunities within existing accounts by understanding client priorities, operating challenges, budget cycles, and transformation agendas

► Generate new leads through disciplined outreach, referrals, client mapping, industry research, thought leadership follow-up, and relationship-led prospecting

► Build account plans for key clients, including stakeholder maps, current engagement footprint, whitespace opportunities, competitor presence, and growth strategy

► Position Sutherland’s high-end professional services across Investment Research, Portfolio Monitoring, Market Research, ESG Research, Investment Reporting, Automation, & Analytics

► Collaborate with Sales, Delivery, Solutioning, Research Leadership, and offshore subject matter experts to shape relevant client propositions

► Support proposal development, commercial discussions, pricing inputs, solution design, and contract renewal processes

► Deliver high-quality pitches and business reviews to senior stakeholders

► Maintain a disciplined account management cadence, including pipeline tracking, opportunity follow-up, CRM hygiene, revenue forecasting, and client touchpoint planning

► Ensure client satisfaction by proactively identifying service issues, escalation risks, delivery gaps, and opportunities to improve engagement quality

► Partner with delivery teams to ensure Sutherland is viewed as a strategic partner

► Support marketing and dissemination of thought leadership at various industry forums

► Travel as required for client meetings, account reviews, industry events, etc

Qualifications

I. Candidate will possess strong account management and sales capabilities with a minimum of 6 - 10 years of progressive experience in account management, business development, enterprise sales, or client relationship management

II. Graduate degree required; Master’s degree in Finance, Economics, Business, or a related discipline preferred

III. Should possess strong understanding of Financial Markets, including Investment Banking, Asset Management, Private Equity, Sell-side Research, Investment Operations, and Research & Analytics services

IV. Should have experience managing named accounts, developing account plans, identifying whitespace opportunities, and growing revenue within existing client relationships

V. Should be commercially astute, financially literate, and comfortable discussing research, analytics, data, reporting, and managed services with senior client stakeholders

VI. Experience selling or managing professional services, research services, offshoring, outsourcing, analytics, data management, or financial services solutions is highly desirable

VII. Should have a strong client service orientation with the ability to build trusted, long-term relationships across multiple stakeholder levels

VIII. Must possess strong sales discipline, including pipeline creation, opportunity qualification, revenue forecasting, proposal coordination, and follow-through

IX. Strong presentation, communication, and negotiation skills, with the ability to engage senior stakeholders at Head of Function and CXO levels

X. Previous experience in a front-office, research, investment operations, consulting, or financial services environment will be an added advantage

Additional Information

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

EEOC and Veteran Documentation During employment, employees are treated without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital or veteran status, medical condition or handicap, or any other legally protected status. At times, government agencies require periodic reports from employers on the sex, ethnicity, handicap, veteran and other protected status of employees. The purpose of this Administrative EEO Record is for statistical analysis only and is used to comply with government record keeping, reporting, and other legal requirements. Periodic reports are made to the government on the following information. The completion of the Administrative EEO record is optional. If you choose to volunteer the requested information, please note that all Administrative EEO Records are kept in a Confidential File and are not part of your Application for Employment or Personnel file. Please note: YOUR COOPERATION IS VOLUNTARY. INCLUSION OR EXCLUSION OF ANY DATA WILL NOT AFFECT ANY EMPLOYMENT DECISION.