Audience Research Officer

ABOUT V&A EAST

The V&A is a family of museums dedicated to the power of creativity. Our mission is to champion design and creativity in all its forms, advance cultural knowledge, and inspire makers, creators and innovators everywhere.

We share a 5,000-year-old story of creativity through exhibitions, events, educational programmes, digital experiences, conservation, research, and an ever-evolving national collection of over 2.8m objects spanning every creative discipline.

The Audience Insight team sits within the Marketing Department. The Audience Insight team builds understanding of who engages with V&A venues and activities to ensure that visitors are at the centre of the Museum’s decision making, particularly around programming and future strategy.

ABOUT THE ROLE

This role will support the Audience Research & Insight team to monitor, analyse and report on the visitor numbers, demographics and experience of visitors to our sites and exhibitions. They will mainly be responsible for the reporting of data relating to the two new East sites – V&A East Museum and V&A East Storehouse – and will support the delivery of work related to our increasing temporary exhibition programme.

The role is a mixed methodological role that works with quantitative data sources (such as visitor numbers and survey data), but may also collect and work with qualitative data, depending on the needs of the organisation (approximately 60/40 split).

They will also work closely with internal stakeholders across departments including Marketing, Interpretation, Exhibitions, Curatorial and Visitor Experience to understand their research and data needs and provide actionable insight to inform decision-making.

Working alongside the Visitor Research Manager, Audience Researcher and Audience Analyst, this role will build a well-rounded view of audiences across all sites through coordinating research and sharing results. They will be expected to present insights in appropriate formats and timeframes to enable teams to integrate them into their planning and projects.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE ROLE

This role works closely with the Audience Research and Insight team to design and execute research projects from data collection to analysis and reporting.

• Working closely with the Curatorial, Interpretation, Exhibitions and Marketing teams at V&A East to conduct audience research and evaluation which meets the needs of the projects, internal stakeholders and funders.
• Write reports that clearly and succinctly outline the findings, recommendations and methods used.
• Regularly monitor, analyse and present data relating to our visitor numbers and ticket sales to inform the summative evaluations of our temporary exhibitions as well as operational decision-making and tracking progress against our KPIs.
• Use a wide range of quantitative and qualitative audience research methods, including observations, focus groups, surveys and interviews to deepen our understanding of audiences and offers as required.
• Work with the Audience Research and Insight team to provide other teams with actionable insight about the V&A’s audiences, their needs and their behaviours.
• Advocate for the needs, wants and expectations of the audiences to help the Museum make evidence-based decisions that are audience led.

CANDIDATE REQUIREMENTS

Experience:

• Planning and conducting front-end / formative / summative research and evaluation, ideally in a museum or other learning context, is part of work or study.
• Using qualitative and quantitative research methods, such as observations, interviews, focus groups, surveys, desk-based research etc. as part of work or study.
• Working with and advocating for audiences, such as families, teachers, students, independent adults and/or those with access needs.
• Demonstrable ability to manage large volumes of numerical data, including the ability to set up and maintain spreadsheets and dashboards.
• Demonstrable ability to synthesize and present insights in a usable manner for a range of different audiences, including senior stakeholders.

Skills:

• Demonstrable ability to analyse quantitative data to draw conclusions and generate actionable insight.
• Evidence of a strong team working as well as the ability to work independently.
• Excellent standard of written English and highly numerate with the ability to carry out complex numerical analysis.
• Experience communicating clearly, with the ability to adapt your communication style for different groups.
• Experiences of using MS Office, particularly Excel, and other relevant IT systems to an intermediate / advanced level.
• Proven ability to manage a high workload and multiple priorities whilst meeting deadlines.

Desirable Skills:

• Experience of conducting audience research and evaluation in cultural or visitor attraction venues as part of work or study.
• Experience using Microsoft Power BI, or a similar platform such as Tableau.
• Experience using Snap Surveys, or related survey software.

Location: V&A East (Stratford)

Potential Start Date: W/C 20th Oct 2025

Interview/Assessment dates: 24th September 2025

To view the full job description, please click here –> V&A – Audience Research Officer – JD Aug 2025