BC Housing is the provincial crown agency that develops, manages, and administers a wide range of subsidized housing options. We partner with private and non-profit partners, other levels of government, health authorities, and community groups to increase affordable housing options for British Columbians in need. More than 97,000 households benefit from government-subsidized housing.

Senior Researcher, Economic Studies

BC Housing

Bring your knowledge of the BC residential construction industry to a role that is key to developing education and policy related to the Homeowner Protection program.

Burnaby, BC

Working on a variety of analytical, research and educational initiatives that support the Homeowner Protection program, you’ll contribute to projects aimed at developing better informed and protected consumers. You’ll lead complex internal research projects specific to BC Housing’s policy and program development and establish effective linkages with a broad range of industry, government, research, education and consumer organizations. Maintaining a good understanding of emerging policy issues, building codes, regulations, standards and by-laws related to new home construction and consumer protection will be crucial to your success.

Specifically, your research and analysis activities will involve:

Working with committees and industry and consumer organizations to collaboratively identify, prioritize and respond to research issues as well as to promote and support industry-led research, education and training initiatives.
Performing project management responsibilities for research projects including: preparing work statements and terms of reference, managing competitive tendering processes, developing project contracts and agreements, budgeting, etc.
Developing and implementing strategies for communicating research results to the industry and consumers, and integrating findings into building standards and best practices.
Providing research and support for the establishment of competency and educational requirements for licensed builders, including carrying out research and analysis on various programs, approaches and systems.
Identifying and analyzing trends in the housing market, residential construction industry, and other related topics based on internal and external data sources (e.g., Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Bank of Canada).
Conducting research into demographic trends, future housing demand and supply and the development of specific measures to determine future affordable housing requirements.
Providing research and data analysis to support the development and reporting of corporate performance measures contained in the Annual Report and Service Plan documents. Creating internal reports for senior staff through generating, analyzing, and reporting on statistical data.
Working with the Research and Planning team to develop and update the Research Plan, facilitating input through the branch planning process and adjusting priorities as required.
Working in partnership with Corporate Communications to write bulletins, articles or other materials.
Liaising with representatives of government and the housing sector to ensure a comprehensive understanding of external activities that affect our operations.
Speaking on behalf of BC Housing at conferences and forums.

Qualifications
In addition to a Master’s degree in public policy and planning, business, economics, building science, engineering, architecture or other relevant discipline, you have 5 years of experience in the residential construction industry where you managed complex technical research projects and became very familiar with relational databases and how to extract, summarize and analyze data.

You also have:

advanced knowledge and understanding of the principles, practices and techniques of conducting complex and multi-dimensional research projects
advanced knowledge and understanding of the residential construction industry in BC and knowledge of the regulatory environment and consumer protection measures in place for new home construction, e.g., BC Building Code, Homeowner Protection Act and municipal approval processes
the ability to manage complex issues and build consensus among stakeholders with varying interests
the ability to work effectively and diplomatically with a broad range of organizations and individuals, including the general public, residential builders, industry and consumer organizations and all levels of government
strong organizational and project management skills
excellent interpersonal, oral and written communication skills
strong computer skills, including MS Word, Excel, Access and effective and thorough internet research abilities
the ability to travel throughout BC.

Familiarity with using econometric and financial modeling in predictive analyses would be an asset.

Please Note: This position requires:

Valid BC Driver’s License and access to a reliable vehicle.
Ability to travel