"Business Intelligence, Data and Research Manager"

Job: IRC105494

Description

Job Title Business Intelligence, Data and Research Manager

Location

Organization Name Wits Plus (Pty) Ltd

Department Description

This is a high-impact, strategically visible role created to professionalise and accelerate data-driven decision-making across the entire Wits Plus with a strong focus on the short-course portfolio (online and in-person). The Business Intelligence, Data and Research Manager will act as the in-house authority on all internal data, market trends, competitor behaviour, corporate skills demand and participant insights, delivering clear, visual intelligence. This person will determine what data we collate internally, drive our reporting, and directly support decision making in the company.

Brief Description

Key Responsibilities

• Build and maintain real-time, interactive dashboards (Tableau / Power BI) that integrates the various sources of internal data to create information that enables both reporting and data-driven decision making.

• Integrate internal data with external market signals, enabling the CEO, Directors and Managers to see at a glance which courses are thriving, stalling or have white-space potential.

• Conduct deep-dive historical analysis of enrolment, completion, pricing, satisfaction and revenue data for every short course over the past 5+ years to establish clear performance benchmarks and early-warning indicators.

• Own the end-to-end market intelligence function for short courses: continuously track and forecast demand for skills in South Africa and selected African markets using social media listening, LinkedIn trends, job-posting data (e.g., PNet, CareerJunction, Careers24, LinkedIn Jobs), corporate RFPs and industry reports.

• Deliver quarterly Market Intelligence Reports and rapid-response insight briefs on emerging topics (e.g., AI skills, ESG & sustainability, project management for renewable energy, advanced data literacy, cyber-security for non-IT managers).

• Identify and quantify new course opportunities by combining industry reports, corporate demand signals, competitor benchmarking and participant feedback; provide fully costed business cases for proposed new offerings.

• Collaborate closely with the marketing and operations to ensure intelligence translates directly into enrolment growth and portfolio profitability.

• Champion data quality and governance (POPIA compliance) and continuously improve data-capture processes for short courses.

Required Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Science, Statistics, Economics, Business Intelligence, Marketing Analytics, Research or equivalent. Honours or Master’s highly advantageous.

• A preference for 3 years’ experience in market intelligence, commercial analytics or learning and development analytics. Experience within higher education, EdTech or corporate training is an advantage.

• Advanced skills in:

o SQL and either Python or R for analysis and automation

o Tableau or Power BI

o Web scraping / social listening tools and job-market data platforms (Lightcast, LinkedIn Economic Graph data, Google Trends, Meltwater, Brandwatch, etc.)

• Proven ability to translate complex data into board-level presentations and visual stories.

• Strong commercial acumen with experience in pricing analysis, forecasting and building business cases.

• Excellent command of English.

Personal Attributes

• Intellectually curious with a passion for lifelong learning and skills development in South Africa.

• Comfortable challenging assumptions with evidence.

• Able to move seamlessly between big-picture strategy and hands-on data cleaning.

This position is graded at a D1 level as per the Patterson Job Grading System.

Closing date: 27 February 2026

Detailed Description

Job Requirements

Additional Details

How To Apply

Please note that applications must be done through iRecruitment only. No hardcopies or emails should be submitted. Please submit a covering letter, detailed CV with names and contact details (including email addresses) of three referees and certified copies of degrees/diplomas with your application.

External applicants are invited to apply by registering their profile on the Wits irecruitment platform located at https://irec.wits.ac.za

and submitting their application. Internal employees are invited to apply directly on Oracle by following the path: iWits / Self Service application / “Apply for a job”.

The University is committed to employment equity. Preference may be given to appointable applicants from the underrepresented designated groups in terms of the relevant employment equity plans and policies of the University. The University retains the right not to make an appointment and to verify all information provided by candidates.

Please note that correspondence will only be entered into with shortlisted candidates. The University reserves the right not to make an appointment or to re-advertise.