Director of Academia

Director of Academia 

Note: we are advertising the same role in multiple locations—London, San Francisco & New York

Prolific

At Prolific, our marketplace is rooted in academia, and that commitment runs deep. Alongside our work to accelerate the future of AI, we're continuing to redefine how the world conducts academic research.

What started as a research-driven idea has evolved into the world's most trusted infrastructure for human data. Today, tens of thousands of researchers from top universities across the globe rely on Prolific to power their work, from peer-reviewed studies to the next generation of technological breakthroughs.

We're doubling down on our mission to serve the academic community, deepening relationships, building smarter tools, and making high-quality human data more accessible than ever.

The role

You'll lead Prolific's academic research segment as a fully empowered leader, owning strategy and operations for one of the most established and respected communities in online research. This is a pivotal moment for the segment: we're evolving our go-to-market approach to better serve institutions while strengthening our market position and deepening relationships with the research community. Your impact will be defining how we serve academia for the next decade.

This is a strategy and operating role. You'll run sales and customer success, build institutional partnerships, design new packaging and programs, and make real-time decisions about where to invest for growth. You'll work alongside a strong Sciences team who provide thought leadership, directing how that expertise translates into community engagement and market positioning. You'll have genuine autonomy and the resources to execute boldly.

The right person relishes combining intellectual credibility with commercial discipline. You'll be equally comfortable presenting at research methods conferences and dissecting retention cohorts, building trust in academic communities while driving business outcomes.

What you'll bring to the role

Deep academic market fluency: working in or selling research technology to academic/research markets. You understand researcher motivations, university dynamics, procurement processes, and how academic credibility is built.Proven business ownership: managing a business unit or revenue segment at $10M+ scale. You've been accountable for growth, not just advised on it.Commercial leadership: Direct experience building or managing customer-facing teams of 10+ people. You know how to structure for scale, define metrics that matter, and balance high-touch with tech-touch support to optimize customer journeys.Enterprise/institutional sales experience: You've designed value propositions for institutional buyers, navigated multi-stakeholder sales, or led a self-serve to enterprise transition. You know how to package products for centralized procurement.Commercial rigor: Fluent in unit economics (CAC, LTV, retention, expansion). You diagnose growth problems through data and make resource allocation decisions with confidence.Strategic independence: You're comfortable operating with minimal oversight, solving ambiguous problems and building cross-functional alignment.

Even better if you have

Experience in both US and UK higher education marketsPhD, active involvement in academic research or earned trust through deep market experienceTrack record in competitive or disrupted markets, counter-positioning, or defending market leadership

What you'll be doing in the role 

Own the business:

Accountability for the academic segment with ambitious growth targetsLead and develop the customer-facing team, setting strategy for retention, activation, and expansionAllocate resources and make investment decisions across growth levers and geographiesDefine and track key metrics: retention curves, NPS, activation rates, institutional pipeline

Drive adoption via institutional contracts:

Design and validate packaging, pricing, and value propositions for central university contractsBuild pipeline and pilot institutional contracts, proving the model and navigating complex buying committeesDevelop sales playbook and enablement materials to scale institutional motion over time

Strengthen market position:

Deepen engagement with the research community through advisory boards, partnerships, and advocacy programsDirect the science team's thought leadership to reinforce our differentiation and credibilityBuild and maintain relationships with senior academics and research community leadersMonitor competitive landscape and provide strategic recommendations on partnerships and positioning

Operate cross-functionally:

Partner with product to prioritize roadmap for academic use cases and institutional needsCollaborate with marketing on positioning, campaigns, and community engagementWork with data/analytics to surface insights on researcher behavior and segment healthRepresent academic segment needs in executive strategy discussions

Why Prolific is a great place to work

We've built a unique platform that connects researchers and companies with a global pool of participants, enabling the collection of high-quality, ethically sourced human behavioral data and feedback. This data is the cornerstone of developing more accurate, nuanced, and aligned AI systems.

We believe that the next leap in AI capabilities won't come solely from scaling existing models but from integrating diverse human perspectives and behaviors into AI development. By providing this crucial human data infrastructure, Prolific is positioning itself at the forefront of the next wave of AI innovation—one that reflects the breadth and the best of humanity.

Working for us will place you at the forefront of AI innovation, providing access to our unique human data platform and opportunities for groundbreaking research. Join us to enjoy a competitive salary, benefits, and remote working within our impactful, mission-driven culture.

Join us to enjoy a competitive salary, benefits, and remote working within our impactful, mission-driven culture. At Prolific, our compensation packages for eligible roles include base salary, equity, and benefits. Many roles also include the opportunity to earn a cash variable element, such as a bonus or commission. Each job posting shows a salary range that reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hires, based on the role's location as well as your skills, experience, and relevant education or training. You can check the job posting's subtitle to see where the position is based. Your recruiter will also be happy to share the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

For pay transparency, the base salary range for this full-time role in San Francisco or New York is $150,000 - $250,000 per annum.

Links to more information on Prolific

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