The posting
At Tracksuit, we’re building the world’s most loved brand‑tracking platform - simple on the surface, scientifically serious underneath. As we scale globally, the stakes get higher: more brands, more markets, more scrutiny, more ambition. To meet that moment, we’re expanding our Research Governance function and looking for a Principal Measurement Scientist to become the intellectual engine of our measurement system.
This is not a typical “research role”. It’s a Principal Investigator position in the truest academic sense; defining the scientific agenda, designing the programme, and producing the evidence base that underpins how Tracksuit measures brand health. It’s also hands-on. You’ll be in the data yourself: designing the experiments, running the analysis, and standing behind the numbers.
If you’re an academically trained measurement scientist who loves hard questions, rigorous validation, and the psychology of how humans respond to surveys at scale, this is your playground.
Why this role exists
Tracksuit’s methodology has grown fast and served us well - but now we’re operating in more markets, under greater partner scrutiny, and with increasingly ambitious product goals. To keep pace, our measurement foundations must be academically defensible, not just commercially convenient.
Your mission: Reviewing and rationalising the rigour of our current tracking, then build the forward looking, multi‑year measurement science programme that answers the hardest questions about how brand tracking should work. You’ll define the investigations, design the tests, run the analysis, partner with Survey Ops and Data Science, interpret the findings, and build the scientific backbone that Marketing Science, Product, and Governance rely on.
You’re not handed a roadmap. You write it.
What you'll do
- Create and lead Tracksuit’s measurement science programme Define the questions, methods, evidentiary standards, and sequencing across a multi‑year horizon.
- Audit and challenge existing methodology Assess every core methodological choice with scientific independence - confirm, refine, or flag for investigation.
- Design, run, and analyse academic-level validation studies Partner with Survey Operations on design and execution. Own the analysis yourself, power calculations, experimental design, statistical validation, working with Data Science where scale or infrastructure demands it.
- Own the science of respondent psychology Interrogate respondent level data to investigate attention, cognitive load, satisficing, recognition effects, order effects, and panel fatigue; and build evidence‑based mitigation strategies.
- Define and maintain Tracksuit’s metric and methodology frameworks Conceptual definitions, incidence rules, measurement standards, and survey design constraints - all documented with academic rigour.
- Build the Methodology Knowledge Base Create Tracksuit’s scientific record: rationale, standards, validation evidence, and decisions
- Assess external data sources with scientific independence Evaluate synthetic modelling inputs and multi‑source data for scientific credibility.
- Engage with the academic community Build a scientific advisory network; maintain relationships with external academics; represent Tracksuit at conferences where relevant
What you'll bring
- Deep academic training - ideally PhD/Master’s in psychology, statistics, behavioural science, or similar.
- 10+ years in quantitative research or measurement science, ideally in a rigorous empirical environment (Ehrenberg‑Bass or equivalent strongly preferred).
- Expert in survey methodology, measurement theory, psychometrics, and respondent psychology.
- Comfortable challenging assumptions and defending evidence‑based positions.
- Able to produce scientific documentation that could withstand peer review.
- Collaborative across Survey Ops, Data Science, Product, and Marketing Science - without compromising scientific standards.
- Commercially aware enough to understand constraints, but scientifically independent enough not to bend to them.
- Hands-on statistical analysis (R, Python etc) for study design, validation analysis, and power calculations.
- Strong experimental design and measurement validation skills, including power analysis and test design.
- Able to get to data directly: SQL, Snowflake
- Practical proficiency with survey data collection and fieldwork platforms.
Here’s a few things we think make Tracksuit a great place to work:
⦿ Compensation: Competitive market-rate salaries. We’ve also got a fully transparent compensation framework, so everything’s out in the open.
⦿ Equity: Every Trackstar gets a slice of the pie through our ESOP program.
⦿ Wellbeing perks: 6 weeks paid leave, an annual wellness bonus, and access to top tier EAP services.
⦿ Parental support: 12 weeks paid parental leave for all parents, extra support for IVF, and a phased return to work.
⦿ L&D budget: $1000 per year to spend on your own learning and development - plus heaps of internal opportunities for growth.
⦿ Flex where it counts: We’re office-first, with stunning hubs in Auckland, NYC, London, and Sydney- and we support flexibility in how you manage your time.
