We are the UK’s leading premium publisher, home to iconic and influential media brands including Cosmopolitan, Esquire, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, and Country Living. At Hearst UK, we don’t just create content — we shape culture.
Our workplace is built on collaboration, creativity, and trust. We champion bold ideas, embrace innovation, and continually evolve to meet the moment — all while celebrating the legacy that’s brought us here. We believe in each other’s potential and push boundaries together to make a meaningful impact, both in the media landscape and in people’s lives.
We’re proud of our heritage — but even more excited about making history.
Hearst UK operate a hybrid working model of four days per week in the office and one day working from home. Our office is based at House of Hearst, 30 Panton Street, St James’s, London, SW1Y 4AJ, where teams collaborate in person and connect across brands and functions.
Salary - £60,000-£80,000 - Salary is dependent on experience and will be assessed in line with the candidate’s skills, knowledge, and relevant expertise
The Role…
As the Customer Insight Director at Hearst UK, you will lead insight generation and delivery across marketing, editorial, product, strategy, partnerships, new business development, and commercial/advertising at Hearst. This is an independent, hands-on role, suited to someone who is comfortable rolling up their sleeves and personally leading the design, execution and delivery of high-quality research using advanced methodologies. You will work closely with senior leaders and peers to shape decision-making and unlock growth opportunities across the Hearst portfolio of brands.
Main Duties…
- Independently manage in-house research projects end-to-end, from briefing and design, to execution, analysis, and debrief (surveys, communities, qual, UX), and augmenting in-house activities with external partners where necessary, to deadline and on budget.
- Integrate a broad set of data (behavioral analytics, first-party data, qualitative, trends, contextual data) into unified narratives and insights that inform marketing, editorial, product, partnership, and commercial/advertising decisions through evidence-based storytelling, with concise, actionable recommendations.
- Lead debriefs, readouts, and workshops with senior leaders and peers; codify best practices, templates, and playbooks for repeatable impact.
Partner with peers across the Customer team to leverage other data sources and share knowledge for delivering holistic customer understanding and best-in class insight.
Establish and manage the ongoing insights delivery for our customer satisfaction programme across 15 brands.
Contribute to the ongoing dissemination of insight to the wider organization through newsletters, knowledge sessions, surgeries, etc.
- Coach and develop junior team members to deliver high-quality, reproducible research and insight at pace.
What We Are Looking For…
Core Technical Skills- Expert analytical thinker with strong curiosity; comfortable across qualitative and quantitative data - and any other types of data.
- Deep general market research experience with advanced methodology and project expertise (segmentation, market sizing, pricing, brand tracking, conjoint/MaxDiff, etc.), including research design (sampling frameworks, weighting), and analysis (factor analysis, cluster analysis, regression, etc.). Has practical experience of execution of these.
- Meticulous attention to detail; robust validation and triangulation across sources.
- Experience of working with survey platforms, including scripting and QA-ing quantitative studies and running qualitative research at scale.
- Experience of undertaking qualitative work, from moderation (IDIs, focus groups, online communities), to ethnographic and observational research and UX studies. Has practical experience of execution of these.
- Clear, influential communicator to executive and cross-functional teams.
- Storytelling that connects customer evidence to strategy, product, and partnership choices; strong visual presentation.
- Great at synthesizing complex information, gets to impact and action.
- Good understanding of growth levers for media companies.
- Problem-solver who prioritises initiatives with highest enterprise impact.
- Builds trusted relationships with senior stakeholders; facilitates alignment and influences decision-making; acts as a trusted advisor.
- Collaborative, active listener; adapts approach to audience, scope, or new data.
- Persistent, open-minded, and committed to continuous learning; elevates team standards.
- Ethical steward of data and customer trust.
- Passionate, authentic, creative, and entrepreneurial.
Benefits…
(Your benefits at Hearst UK are more than just extras—they are tools to help you thrive in every part of life.
Hearst Exclusives - Only for You!
- Get adventurous with Good Housekeeping Taste and Beauty Testing Panels - yes, you could be trying the next big thing in beauty, food & drink.
- Snag luxe beauty steals at our legendary office sample sales - score big on top brands without breaking the bank!
Inclusion, Health & Wellbeing: Feel Your Best
- Stay healthy with Specsavers eye care, a company-funded Health Cash Plan, and access to mental health support.
- Get active and stress-free with discounted gym memberships and the Cycle to Work scheme.
- Embrace flexibility with a Location Flex and Holiday Exchange to take time when you need it.
- Take time to give back with a Charity Day and access wellbeing resources whenever you need them.
- Join one of our Hearst ERG Groups.
Financial Wellness - Boost Your Budget
- Plan ahead with a generous Workplace Pension, Income Protection, Life Assurance and Season Ticket Loan for easier commuting.
- Make smarter money moves using Salary Finance tools, Financial Wellbeing sessions, and Home Tech benefits to spread costs.
- Treat yourself with major discounts across London plus everyday savings via the HAPI at Hearst app
Hearst UK is deeply committed to using our influential brands to reflect the world we want to live in – one that respects, protects, represents and uplifts the voices and opinions of all people. As a business, we recognise the significant benefits of creativity, collaboration and innovation that comes with diverse teams. Not only is diversifying the voices in our organization the right thing to do, but it also helps us to make powerful and exciting content that can be enjoyed by many more people. This is why we’re working to build a sense of true belonging within our business and foster a culture in which everyone feels heard.
Skills Required
- Expert analytical thinking and comfort working with qualitative, quantitative, and other data types
- Deep general market research experience
- Advanced research methodology and project expertise, including segmentation, market sizing, pricing, brand tracking, conjoint, and MaxDiff
- Practical experience designing research, including sampling frameworks and weighting
- Practical experience analyzing research using factor analysis, cluster analysis, regression, and related methods
- Experience with survey platforms, including scripting and quality assurance of quantitative studies
- Experience running qualitative research at scale
- Experience moderating IDIs, focus groups, and online communities
- Experience conducting ethnographic, observational, and UX research
- Clear and influential communication with executive and cross-functional teams
- Strong evidence-based storytelling and visual presentation skills
- Ability to synthesize complex information into actionable recommendations
- Understanding of growth levers for media companies
- Ability to prioritize initiatives based on enterprise impact
- Ability to build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders and influence decision-making
- Collaborative and adaptable approach
- Commitment to continuous learning and elevating team standards
- Ethical stewardship of data and customer trust
Hearst Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Hearst and has not been reviewed or approved by Hearst.
-
Healthcare Strength — Healthcare coverage is described as comprehensive, including medical plan choice, full in-network preventive coverage, dental and vision, telemedicine, prescription coverage, and fertility resources. Mental-health resources and other wellbeing services (e.g., therapy sessions, crisis support, virtual physical therapy, and chronic-condition programs) further strengthen the health offering.
-
Retirement Support — Retirement support is positioned as meaningful through a 401(k) plan with company matching and Hearst covering plan administration fees. Performance bonuses are also noted as available in some roles, adding an additional rewards component beyond base pay.
-
Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off benefits include paid holidays, paid sick days, and vacation time with a commonly cited annual range, alongside paid parental leave and family medical leave. A remote work program and flexibility signals are also included as part of the overall rewards experience.
Hearst Insights
What We Do
Hearst is a leading global, diversified media, information and services company with more than 360 businesses. Its major interests include ownership in cable television networks such as A&E, HISTORY, Lifetime and ESPN; global financial services leader Fitch Group; Hearst Health, a group of medical information and services businesses; transportation assets including CAMP Systems International, a major provider of software-as-a-service solutions for managing maintenance of jets and helicopters; 33 television stations such as WCVB-TV in Boston and KCRA-TV in Sacramento, California, which reach a combined 19 percent of U.S. viewers; newspapers such as the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle and Times Union (Albany, New York); more than 300 magazines around the world, including Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Men's Health and Car and Driver, and digital services businesses such as iCrossing and KUBRA; and investments in emerging digital entertainment companies such as Complex Networks.
.png){kind=logo}
