Data Analyst I

Position Summary

The Data Analyst assists the OPMI directors, MassDOT, and MBTA departments with analytical activities focusing on strategic research and policy initiatives, focused on improving the experience of how people travel in Massachusetts.  Major areas of topic areas include transportation equity; the changing transportation, climate, and economic environment; and the changing availability and quality of data for research and measurement.

Primary tasks include working with very large datasets (specifically of Transportation Network Company (TNC) data) to conduct thoughtful research to inform transportation policy; and supporting an annual travel behavior and demographic survey of riders, including any of oversight of field work, survey design and implementation, data collection, data cleaning and handling of sampling issues (quotas, sample sizes, weighting), statistical data analysis and interpretation, augmentation with and of automated data sources, presentation of results, and report writing to support policy decision-making for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation leadership. Additional projects may include research to support innovative measurement frameworks; design of pilot project evaluations; and general exploratory research.

The position works to support a range of policy decisions related to strategic research and performance management. OPMI is a shared service of MassDOT and the MBTA and as such, the position requires work on topics that affect any of the four operating divisions of MassDOT and the MBTA. OPMI produces work that is values-driven and data-informed.

Duties and Responsibilities

Responsibilities of the Data Analyst include any of the components of research design, distribution, and analysis, both independently and—more often—as part of a collaborative team. These responsibilities include:

• Thinking creatively about open-ended research questions.
• Consulting with MBTA and MassDOT departments to determine research needs.
• Writing and proof-reading materials to explain data analysis to a variety of audience.
• Experience with and interest in working with very large datasets to conduct exploratory research and develop reporting tools.
• Establishing and following consistent best practices for use of surveys and automated data for research within and external to the organization.
• Survey or other research design, including questionnaire design and sampling plans.
• Programming/testing of research instruments.
• Pre-processing, cleaning, and preparing data (including very large datasets) for analysis, including developing and following standardized protocols, correcting for missing data and sampling bias, weighting, etc., as needed.
• Qualitative and quantitative data analysis, including exploratory and predictive analysis, e.g., multivariate regressions, factor analysis.
• Evaluation and analysis of data to make recommendations for future data collection efforts.
• Peer analysis and best practice research.
• Preparing presentation-quality charts and tables to include in project reports.

In addition, the Data Analyst may oversee a Data Intern position, including interviewing, hiring, supervising, mentoring, training, and evaluating 2 co-ops per year.

Preferred Qualifications

• Curiosity about transportation, mobility issues, and systems thinking.
• Interested in working in an open-ended problem-solving environment.
• Strong listening skills and collaborative attitude.
• Proficiency in working with big data and tools used to access, manage, and process such large datasets.
• Proficiency with statistical programming language and a willingness to learn other languages as needed (we primarily use Python and R).
• Familiarity with survey design, administration, and/or processing.
• Familiarity with SQL.
• Familiarity with GIS software and spatial analysis.
• Familiarity with or interest in developing skills related to big data sets, e.g., BigQuery, Snowflake, AWS.
• Proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite.