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Business and related research professionals carry out a variety of research activities for the broadcast and print media, for the police and armed forces intelligence services, for national security agencies and in other non-scientific areas.

Main tasks

  • Discusses possible changes that need to be made in terms of design, price, packaging, marketing and promotion etc. in light of market research with appropriate departments.
  • Manages and directs research, collates and interprets findings and presents results to clients.
  • Liaises with client to understand their market research needs, establishes an appropriate quantitative and qualitative market research methodology and prepares proposals outlining programmes of work and details of costs.
  • Deals with copyright issues and negotiates fees.
  • Liaises with client on the appropriate image/s to be used.
  • Researches images for clients in a wide range of media using specialist picture libraries and archives, museums, galleries etc., or commissions new images.
  • Presents findings in the required format, via written reports or presentations.
  • Provides support to criminal intelligence or to military or other security operations by gathering and verifying intelligence data and sources.
  • Provides administrative support for programme development such as booking facilities.
  • Briefs presenters, scriptwriters or journalists as required via verbal or written reports.
  • Research sources for accurate factual material, finds suitable contributors to programmes or print features and deals with any copyright issues.
  • Liaises with production team to generate and develop ideas for film, television and radio programmes.

Source: Office for National Statistics.

Salary and earnings

Potential earnings

£54,764.57

Average earnings

£30,785.99

Source: Office for National Statistics' Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE).

Skills & knowledge

The top 5 most important skills and knowledge requirements relevant to this career.

Monitoring

Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Active Learning

Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Clerical

Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.

Computers and Electronics

Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Personnel and Human Resources

Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labour relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

English Language

Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

What course level do I need to study?

The level of study required will vary with each job, sector and company. The table below shows the level of study achieved by those currently working in this career choice.

Educational requirements: Honours, Bachelor's degree

Source: Office for National Statistics.

Level of study Percentage achieved
Level 1 2%
Level 2 4%
Level 3 10%
Level 4-5 (Higher Education) 6%
Level 6 (Bachelors) 44%
Level 7 (Masters or equivalent) 21%
Level 8 (Doctorate) 12%

Source: Labour Force Survey (LFS) data.

Economic data for careers is provided by Lightcast and also available through our Career Coach app. Job postings, employment and earnings information is represented at the regional level for the East Midlands.