Staff Researcher, Provider Growth

1 in 4 people in the US have a treatable mental health condition, but most providers don't accept insurance, making therapy too expensive for most people. Headway’s mission is to fix this by building a new mental healthcare system everyone can access. We started by solving the biggest barrier to care: insurance. The admin work - credentialing, claims, payment reconciliation - is a nightmare. We've automated that.

But we're going further. Over 70,000 providers across all 50 states run their practice on our software, serving over 1 million patients. We are building the best tools for therapists to run their entire practice, reimagining the experience of finding a therapist, and investing in the platform foundations to enable this at scale. We aren't just a billing layer; we are becoming the platform where care actually happens.

We're a Series D company with $325M+ in funding (a16z, Accel, GV, etc.), looking for exceptional people to help us achieve this mission. We want your time here to be the most meaningful experience of your career. Join us, and help change mental healthcare for the better.

About the Role

At Headway, we’re building the largest national network of therapists who accept insurance — and making mental healthcare radically more accessible in the process. Our ability to serve patients starts with providers. As Staff Researcher for Provider Growth, you’ll lead research to inform the product vision, strategy, and execution for how we attract, onboard, and activate providers on Headway. 

In this role, you will be a strategic partner, utilizing a mixed-methods approach to uncover critical insights about our Providers. You will conduct research to inform business, product, and marketing strategies, helping us identify and unlock significant growth and differentiated product opportunities. You’ll be responsible for foundational insights and developing a nuanced understanding of diverse provider segments—practice starters vs. veterans, therapists vs. prescribers, solo vs. group practices—each with different needs, painpoints, and behaviors. You’ll share insights and make recommendations about when to personalize and when to unify, helping the team build solutions that flex to serve unique segment needs while maintaining a coherent, unified Headway experience. You'll operate with high autonomy and ownership, presenting regularly to executive leadership including our CEO and making bold recommendations backed by clear, evidence-driven rationale.

Provider growth is one of Headway’s most important levers for scaling access to affordable mental healthcare. Whether it's building a world-class referrals engine, optimizing conversion through onboarding, or laying the groundwork for future market expansion, this role is at the heart of Headway’s growth story — and critical to advancing our mission. This is a pivotal role for both Headway and our mission to make mental healthcare more accessible.

Core Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end research projects, from identifying key questions and scoping research plans to conducting the work, synthesizing findings, and presenting actionable recommendations to stakeholders across the business.
• Employ a mixed-methods research skillset, combining quantitative data (surveys, A/B tests, behavioral analytics) with qualitative insights (IDIs, ethnography, concept testing) to develop a comprehensive understanding of how providers source, add, convert, and retain patients.
• Identify and size growth opportunities by analyzing provider behavior, patient sourcing patterns, and competitive dynamics. You will be expected to think critically about what's next for Headway and how we can best build a new mental healthcare system that everyone can access.
• Act as a strategic thought partner to product, design, and marketing teams working on the Provider growth journey, helping them define problem spaces, understand provider segments, and inform the development of new features, products, and campaigns.
• Drive a culture of research and user-centricity across the pod and broader organization by evangelizing findings and promoting a deep understanding of our diverse provider segments and their patients.
• Mentor and provide guidance to junior researchers, helping to build and scale our research practice.

Key Skills and Qualifications

• A PhD + 3 years of industry research experience (ideally with experience in a fast-moving tech environment)
• Or a Masters + 6 years
• Or a Bachelors + 8 years
• Expertise in both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies.
• A demonstrated ability to identify and frame business problems and opportunities, with a portfolio of work that shows direct impact on growth metrics.
• Experience in 0