Chief Strategy and Data Officer

The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) is responsible for building more homes and lowering housing costs across the Commonwealth through partnerships with municipalities, housing authorities, and community stakeholders., The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) is seeking a Chief Strategy and Data Officer to help shape and advance the Commonwealth’s housing strategy through data, research, innovation, and operational excellence.

Serving as a key advisor to the Secretary, the Chief Strategy and Data Officer will lead efforts to strengthen how EOHLC uses data and evidence to understand housing needs, develop policy solutions, establish goals, measure progress, and improve outcomes for residents. The Chief will oversee a multidisciplinary Strategy Team responsible for policy research and development, data strategy, constituent experience, and operational transformation.

The Chief will work across divisions and with state agencies, municipalities, researchers, academic institutions, technology partners, and other stakeholders to build stronger data capabilities, modernize systems and services, and foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.

The ideal candidate will bring a combination of strategic thinking, analytical rigor, organizational leadership, and an ability to translate complex information into practical solutions. This role is well suited for a leader who is motivated by public impact and excited about using data, policy, technology, and organizational change to address one of Massachusetts’ most significant challenges., The Chief Strategy and Data Officer will provide strategic leadership across EOHLC’s data, research, policy, constituent experience, and operational transformation functions. Key responsibilities include:

1. Lead EOHLC’s data strategy. Develop, implement, and continually strengthen a Secretariat-wide approach to data, including data governance, infrastructure, reporting, dashboards, analytical tools, and management information used to support policy and operational decision-making.

2. Serve as a strategic advisor to executive leadership. Advise the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and other senior leaders on data-driven policy analysis, operations, housing trends, emerging issues, and opportunities for action.

3. Direct research and policy development. Oversee quantitative and qualitative research, special reports, critical datasets, demographic projections, housing-demand forecasts, housing-production targets, program evaluation, the development of evidence-based policy recommendations and the work of technical staff charged with complex and often imperfect joins of administrative, commercial, census, and GIS data to yield novel insight for policy makers.

4. Lead agency-wide transformation initiatives. Oversee high-priority projects involving new business processes, software applications, data practices, and technology-enabled services, working closely with IT, EOTSS, external vendors, and EOHLC divisions.

5. Improve the constituent experience. Guide efforts to make EOHLC’s customer-facing websites, applications, and services easier and more effective for residents, including online services that span multiple divisions.

6. Advance performance and accountability. Partner with executive leadership to establish performance measurement frameworks, housing goals, operational metrics, and mechanisms for tracking and communicating progress.

7. Build organizational capacity. Strengthen EOHLC’s ability to use data and technology effectively by identifying training, professional development, hiring, and technical-readiness needs and by fostering knowledge sharing and continuous improvement across the organization.

8. Lead and develop the Strategy Team. Provide direction, coaching, performance management, and professional development for staff working across research and policy development, constituent experience, and operational transformation.

The ideal candidate is a strategic, collaborative leader who can translate data, research, and policy into action. Preferred qualifications include:

1. Demonstrated expertise in data analysis, policy analysis, research, and program evaluation, including quantitative and qualitative methods.

2. Demonstrated experience overseeing technical staff using GIS and statistical software (Esri, Qgis, Rstudio, Python, SQL) to create new data products and analytics for decision-making and merging data from administrative, commercial, census, and GIS sources to yield novel insight for policy-makers.

3. Strong knowledge of the Massachusetts housing landscape and policy environment.

4. Ability to translate abstract policy concerns into actionable research questions and analytical methods that can be implemented by technical staff; and the ability to translate the results of this technical analysis into policy-relevant findings.

5. Experience developing data strategies, governance practices, reporting systems, and analytical tools to support decision-making.

6. Demonstrated success leading complex, cross-functional initiatives, including organizational transformation, process improvement, and change management.

7. Familiarity with user-centered design, modern software delivery, and agile project management.

8. Strong leadership and relationship-building skills, with experience managing teams and collaborating across government, research, community, and other stakeholder organizations.

9. Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate complex information for senior leaders and diverse audiences.

10. Excellent judgment and discretion, with the ability to manage competing priorities, navigate ambiguity, and work effectively with a high degree of independence., Applicants must have at least (A) six (6) years of full-time or, equivalent part-time, professional, administrative, supervisory, or managerial experience in business administration, business management, public administration, public management, clinical administration or clinical management of which (B) at least two (2) years must have been in a supervisory or managerial capacity or (C) any equivalent combination of the required experience and substitutions below.

Substitutions:

I. A certificate in a relevant or related field may be substituted for one (1) year of the required (A) experience.

II. A Bachelor’s degree in a related field may be substituted for two (2) years of the required (A) experience.

III. A Graduate degree in a related field may be substituted for three (3) years of the required (A) experience.

IV. A Doctorate degree in a related field may be substituted for four (4) years of the required (A) experience.