Senior Consultant – Strategic Research & Intelligence

NAXCON GmbH, headquartered in Weil am Rhein with additional offices, including Stuttgart, is one of Germany's leading engineering and IT service providers.

Our experts possess extensive expertise in software and hardware development, modern electronics, and cutting-edge technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI).

In addition to delivering high-quality engineering solutions for our customers, we are passionate about driving our own innovation projects as well as research and development activities. Renowned companies from a wide range of industries place their trust in our expertise, reflecting the outstanding knowledge, professionalism, and commitment of our engineers.

Position: Senior Consultant – Strategic Research & Intelligence

Location: Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, München (You can choose one of these locations)

Field: Defence

Type: Full-time/80 Remote

Position Overview

We are looking for an experienced Senior Consultant – Strategic Research & Intelligence to join a strategic research and analysis team.

The role focuses on conducting high-quality IT, technology, market, business, scientific, regulatory, and strategic research, identifying relevant developments at an early stage, systematically analyzing information from internal and external sources, and transforming research findings into actionable insights and decision-making materials for management, specialist departments, and customer projects.

The position combines Strategic Research, Strategic Analysis, Foresight, Horizon Scanning, Intelligence, Data Research, and Thought Leadership. The successful candidate will independently manage complex research assignments while also proactively identifying emerging topics, trends, weak signals, and developments with potential strategic relevance.

Key Responsibilities

• Independently conduct complex research and analysis assignments across IT, technology, markets, companies, and strategic topics.
• Identify, evaluate, and validate relevant information sources.
• Conduct systematic research using:
• Scientific publications and studies
• Market and analyst research
• Company information
• Primary sources
• Statistics and market data
• Regulatory publications
• Expert and analyst interviews
• Assess sources based on quality, origin, relevance, timeliness, and reliability.
• Triangulate information from multiple sources and identify inconsistencies or contradictions.
• Develop and test analytical hypotheses based on available evidence.
• Identify emerging technologies, trends, weak signals, and strategically relevant developments.
• Conduct Foresight and Horizon Scanning activities.
• Evaluate developments based on novelty, evidence, strategic relevance, potential impact, urgency, and business relevance.
• Translate research findings into actionable insights and strategic recommendations.
• Analyze the potential impact of technological, economic, scientific, political, regulatory, and societal developments on organizations, markets, suppliers, operating models, processes, roles, skills, and value chains.
• Independently develop research questions and proposals for strategically relevant topics.
• Prepare high-quality:
• Executive Insights
• Executive Briefings
• Research Reports
• Dossiers
• Deep Dives
• Studies
• Articles
• Comparative analyses
• Thought-leadership publications
• Present complex research findings and recommendations to management and specialist audiences.
• Support consulting projects through research, analysis, presentations, and decision-making materials.
• Plan and lead one or more consulting or research projects while meeting defined objectives and requirements.

Required Qualifications

Education

• Master's degree, Diploma, or PhD in a relevant field, such as:
• Business Administration
• Social Sciences
• Political Science
• Communications
• Media Studies
• Information Technology
• Computer Science
• Business Informatics
• Technology or Innovation Management
• Natural Sciences
• Or a comparable field
• A PhD is particularly relevant where it demonstrates a strong connection to strategic research, technology and innovation analysis, or transformation topics.

Research & Analytical Expertise

• Proven expertise in systematic research, source identification, source evaluation, validation, analysis, and structured presentation of complex information.
• Strong ability to analyze complex developments and derive:
• Insights
• Relationships
• Impacts
• Hypotheses
• Strategic implications
• Strong knowledge of research methodologies and critical source analysis.
• Ability to evaluate and connect information from multiple independent sources.
• Strong understanding of Intelligence and hypothesis-driven research.
• Experience with quantitative research, statistics, market data, company data, or comparable datasets.
• Ability to transform complex research findings into clear, evidence-based decision-making materials.

Strategic Research & Foresight

The candidate should demonstrate experience in one or more of the following areas:

• Strategic Research
• Technology Research
• Technology Intelligence
• Competitive Intelligence
• Market Research
• Scientific Research
• Business Research
• Data Research / Data Journalism
• Technology Journalism
• Business Journalism
• Foresight
• Horizon Scanning
• Think-Tank / Policy Research
• OSINT
• Investigative Research
• Strategic Consulting

The professional background may vary; the key requirement is the demonstrated ability to identify complex topics, conduct rigorous research, critically analyze information, strategically assess its implications, and communicate findings to relevant audiences.

Required Professional Experience

• At least 5 years of professional experience in Strategic Research, Technology Research, Journalism, Research & Intelligence, Data Research/Data Journalism, Think-Tank/Policy Research, Foresight, Investigative Research/OSINT, technology-related consulting, or a comparable analytical field.
• At least 4 years of experience independently conducting complex research and analytical assignments.
• At least 3 years of experience producing high-quality research, analytical, or publication outputs such as research reports, executive briefings, studies, specialist articles, executive insights, or deep dives.
• At least 3 years of experience analyzing and interpreting technological, economic, scientific, political, or societal developments.
• At least 2 years of experience in systematic Foresight, Horizon Scanning, trend analysis, or identification and assessment of emerging topics.
• At least 3 years of experience evaluating, validating, and connecting different information sources and developing or testing analytical hypotheses.
• At least 2 years of experience using and critically evaluating quantitative data, statistics, market information, company data, research data, or comparable datasets.
• At least 3 years of experience presenting complex research and analytical results to management, specialist audiences, or comparable stakeholders.

Languages

• German: C1
• English: B2

Language proficiency should be demonstrated according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

Key Competencies

• Excellent analytical and conceptual thinking.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to structure complex, incomplete, or contradictory information.
• Strong critical thinking and source-evaluation skills.
• Excellent ability to identify strategically relevant topics and prioritize them.
• Intellectual curiosity and ability to quickly understand unfamiliar subject areas.
• Independent and results-oriented working style.
• Ability to consider multiple technological, economic, scientific, organizational, and stakeholder perspectives.
• Strong hypothesis-driven and evidence-based thinking.
• Ability to challenge assumptions and consider alternative explanations.
• Strong teamwork and collaboration skills.
• Confident presentation skills and ability to communicate complex information clearly to senior stakeholders.

Additional Requirements

• Willingness to travel up to 20% of working time.
• Ability to work independently in a highly analytical environment.
• Willingness to undergo a security screening where required for the assignment.
• Nationality information may be required as part of the security-screening process.

What we offer:

• International Working Environment: Join a diverse and multicultural team where people from different backgrounds and cultures collaborate to achieve outstanding results.
• German Language Development: Whether you are a beginner or an advanced speaker, we provide a supportive environment to help you improve your German language skills.
• Dedicated Point of Contact: You will have a personal contact within the company who will support and guide you throughout your employment.
• Professional Growth: Our engineers have the opportunity to work on exciting projects across different industries, continuously expanding their expertise and developing new skills.
• Regular Team Events: We organize regular company events to strengthen team spirit, encourage collaboration, and create a positive working atmosphere.
• Competitive Compensation: We value our employees and offer an attractive compensation package that reflects your qualifications, experience, and performance.