Research Director, Integration and AI Enablement

Role Description

IDC is seeking a Research Director to join our established worldwide artificial intelligence, data and automation (AD&A) research domain to focus on integration, API management and AI-enablement within our agentic automation team. The candidate should have strong knowledge of both the existing and future capabilities across all middleware capabilities including messaging, integration platforms, API management and agentic orchestration capabilities including MCP and agent-to-agent (A2A) orchestration. The candidate will also collaborate with other analysts covering adjacent technologies including other forms of AI, Data and Automation technologies. Research will include understanding market drivers and trends, buying behaviors, and the business value impact of these technologies. The candidate will employ IDC research methodologies to size markets and forecast market growth.

What You’ll Do

• Identify key market trends in integration and AI enablement, as well as broader AI technology and market developments.
• Analyze competitive market strategies and conduct market segment and sizing studies.
• Contribute to ongoing research to analyze trends in these segments, including the competitive strategy and financial performance of technology providers, and end user demand for those offers.
• Provide industry expertise for client-facing engagements and client inquiries.
• Partner with sales and drive incremental revenue through subscription and custom solutions for our AD&A group.
• Respond to client requests for market/competitive data across relevant tool and platform technology markets.
• Collaborate with other analysts, particularly in other agentic automation research areas, in creating research documents and forecasts.
• Presenting to senior management including C-Level executives across the domain as well as interviewing/interacting with a wide range of IT and technology vendor decision-makers and senior level audience.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree is required; Master’s degree preferred.
• Strong knowledge of the Integration software market, as well as the overall AI technology sector is required, along with the ability to analyze trends and provide actionable guidance to technology providers and buyers. Direct experience in this area is a strong plus.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze survey data and provide clear, concise summaries and recommendations to both technology buyers and suppliers.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to analyze, present, and articulate complex data sets.
• Strong interpersonal and organizational skills, with the capacity to work both independently and within a team.
• Proven ability to read and evaluate financial reports to analyze key drivers that impact companies’ ability to differentiate and remain competitive.
• Ability to travel 25-30% for client meetings, industry events, and customer projects.

Benefits

• 15 vacation days (prorated based on start date)
• 12 company-paid holidays
• 6 paid sick days (prorated based on start date; may vary by state)
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• 2 floating holidays (prorated based on start date)
• 1 volunteer day
• 401(k) company match (IDC matches 3% on the first 6% of employee contributions)
• Company-paid short-term disability
• Company-paid life insurance
• Company-paid parental leave

Compensation Transparency

At IDC, we are committed to fair and equitable pay practices. Employees are compensated equitably for their work, aligned with their skills and experience. Salary and incentive structures are determined through a rigorous process that considers experience, education, certifications, role-specific requirements, internal equity, and verified U.S. market data from an independent third-party partner.

The expected total annual compensation, depending on location and experience, is between $125,000 – $190,000, inclusive of base salary and variable compensation.

Equal Opportunity Employer

IDC is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all qualified persons. Employment eligibility verification required. We participate in E-Verify.