Research & Concept Lead

Role: Research & Concept Lead

Application requirement:
Please submit your CV and cover letter in English. Applications in other languages will not be considered.

About the role:

To strengthen our discovery, concept development, and user‑centric innovation capabilities within Sanoma Learning, we are looking for a Research and Concept Lead.

The Research and Concept Lead operates at the intersection of user insight, future thinking, and systems thinking, driving complex discovery and concept initiatives across countries and disciplines. The role balances user value, technical feasibility, and business viability to shape concepts that are both ambitious and grounded.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead Research‑Driven, Future‑Oriented Concept Development Drive early‑stage discovery and concept work by combining deep user understanding with future thinking and systems thinking.
• Translate emerging needs, signals, and trends into clear product concepts that consider long‑term impact, scalability, and coherence across Sanoma Learning.
• Coordinate and Conduct Research in the Italian Market Plan and execute qualitative and quantitative research in Italy, ensuring local user, pedagogical, and market perspectives are deeply understood and accurately represented.
• Connect Italian market insights with learnings from other countries to inform scalable concepts. Balance User Value, Feasibility, and Viability Lead balanced evaluations of desirability, feasibility, and viability throughout discovery and concept phases.
• Work closely with product, technology, pedagogy, and business stakeholders to assess trade‑offs, risks, and opportunities, and to guide informed decision‑making. Drive User‑Centric Strategy and Direction Embed user‑centricity into product strategies, roadmaps, and investment discussions by grounding decisions in evidence, insight, and clearly articulated concepts.
• Contribute to Sanoma Learning’s future vision by shaping problem spaces and opportunity areas before solutions are defined.
• Lead Complex, Cross‑Country Initiatives Drive complex initiatives spanning multiple countries and multidisciplinary teams.
• Align researchers, designers, product managers, engineers, and local stakeholders around shared understanding, clear direction, and well‑articulated concepts.
• Advance Discovery and Concept Practices
• Collaborate with research, design, and product peers to continuously evolve discovery, concepting, and validation practices, methods, and tools, strengthening how ideas move from early insight to credible product direction.
• Enable Collaboration and Shared Understanding
• Act as a facilitator and connector across teams and markets, ensuring insights, assumptions, constraints, and decisions are visible, discussed, and understood.
• Foster strong collaboration between research, design, product, and technology.
• Ensure Quality, Coherence, and Impact
• Maintain high standards for research, synthesis quality, and concept clarity.
• Ensure concepts are not only innovative, but also coherent within the broader landscape, actionable for teams, and clearly linked to user and business outcomes.

Must have

• 5+ years of experience in research, product discovery, or related roles
• Strong future thinking and systems thinking capabilities applied to product discovery and concept development
• Proven ability to combine user‑centric insight with feasibility and viability considerations
• Deep experience leading research and early‑stage concept work in complex environments Ability to drive alignment and progress
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and storytelling skills
• Fluent in English (written and spoken); experience with the Italian market is essential
• Comfortable working in ambiguity and shaping direction where problems and solutions are not yet defined
• Strong analytical mindset combined with creativity and curiosity
• Collaborative, proactive, and quality‑driven approach to work

Nice to have

Experience working with education Background in innovation, concept strategy, or early‑stage product definition.

Experience contributing to shared discovery or concept frameworks across organizations.

Familiarity with accessibility, inclusion, and ethical considerations in research and concept work.

About Sanoma Learning

How do you prepare students for the world, engage their curiosity and inspire them to grow? That is the main question of teachers all around the world. At Sanoma Learning, it has always been our mission to help to find and develop best-in-class answers to this question. If you join us, it means that you embark on an exciting journey to help shape the future of learning for primary, secondary and vocational education. We believe that your journey is our success as a company.
Sanoma Learning is a leading K12 European learning company, operating in 12 countries. Our learning products and services enable and support teachers and schools to develop the talents of every child to reach their potential. By offering printed and digital learning content, as well as digital learning and teaching platforms for primary, secondary and vocational education, we want to grow our positive impact on learning across Europe. With over 3000 employees, we help shape the future of education for 25+ million of students.
So, are you ready to start your journey to help shape the future of learning and help teachers to support all students to reach their potential?
Sanoma Learning is an equal opportunity employer; we are committed to inclusion and diversity, ensure equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or any other characteristics.