Behavioral Scientist, Senior

Overview

The Senior Behavioral Scientist serves as a technical expert and strategic partner, working collaboratively with key stakeholders, including clients and senior data scientists, to integrate insights from behavioral economics, cognitive psychology, and applied social sciences into the development, testing, and optimization of policies and programs that align with client missions.

As a recognized subject matter expert, the Senior Behavioral Scientist translates behavioral science research into actionable solutions and deliverables. This position involves close collaboration with client leadership, stakeholders, and technical teams to design, plan, and execute projects involving behavioral interventions—from initial assessments and diagnostics through experimental evaluations and the formulation of data-driven recommendations for implementation. Primarily supporting federal agencies, the role enables advanced compliance initiatives through the development of analytical models and decision-making frameworks that enhance operational efficiencies and promote effective compliance practices.

This is a senior-level, client-facing role that demands a robust foundation in behavioral science methodologies coupled with the program management expertise to operate effectively within federal governance structures. Success in this role requires the ability to present to executive-level stakeholders and ensure the timely delivery of high-impact deliverables against established program milestones.

This position aligns with Cayuse’s core values of Innovation, Excellence, Collaboration, Adaptability, and Integrity by fostering technical solutions that meet customer needs, promoting teamwork, and prioritizing quality in deliverables.

Responsibilities

• Engage with senior government stakeholders to understand complex business needs, translate them into advanced data engineering and analytics objectives, and develop comprehensive strategies for data integration, transformation, and analysis.
• Strong consultative and relationship‑building abilities; adept at influencing decision‑makers and partnering across agencies or departments.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor junior researchers and guide cross‑functional teams through the behavioral insight process.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams of data scientists, engineers, and analysts to design and deploy innovative data-driven solutions and ensure seamless integration into operational frameworks.
• Provide technical mentorship and guidance to junior team members, ensuring quality work-product development and fostering skill development within the team.
• Drive projects independently by demonstrating ownership, accountability, and leadership for deliverables, ensuring timely and high-quality outcomes.
• Stay at the forefront of industry trends in data engineering, big data tools, and analytics methodologies to continually improve processes and solutions.
• Ability to develop behavioral strategies aligned to organizational priorities and measurable outcomes.
• Competence in managing multiple projects, setting research priorities, and delivering high‑quality insights under tight timelines.
• Comfortable presenting findings to executive leadership and shaping strategic policy or program design.
• Identify behavioral frictions, biases, and decision bottlenecks affecting organizational performance or customer experience.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of interventions and translate results into recommendations that inform policy, operations, or strategic direction.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree (master’s or PhD) in Public Policy, Behavioral Economics, Psychology, Cognitive Science, Decision Sciences, Human Factors, or a related field.
• 7–10+ years of experience applying behavioral science in organizational, government, consulting, or policy environments.
• Formal training in experimental design, statistical analysis, customer experience, or behavioral research methodologies.
• Demonstrated success designing, implementing, and evaluating behavioral interventions that influence decision‑making, improve program outcomes, or shift organizational behavior.
• Strong working knowledge of experimental design, statistical analysis, and interpretation of quantitative results.
• Experience translating academic research into practical, scalable solutions for complex real‑world problems.
• Demonstrated experience in leading cross-functional teams to successfully deliver large-scale data solutions.
• Prior work within public sector, regulated environments, or mission‑driven organizations is strongly preferred.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a Federal Public Trust Clearance.

• Must be able to pass a background check. May require additional background checks as required by projects and/or clients at any time during employment.

Minimum Skills:

• Knowledge of statistical programming languages (e.g., SAS, R) or data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, or similar) is valuable.
• Strong command of data security, governance, and compliance principles for government and regulated environments.
• Exceptional ability to communicate complex data engineering and analytics concepts to a diverse range of stakeholders, including technical teams, senior leadership, and non-technical audiences.
• Strong critical thinking, problem-solving, and organizational skills, with meticulous attention to detail in both written and technical deliverables.
• Proven ability to drive outcomes in dynamic, deadline-oriented environments with minimal oversight, managing competing priorities effectively.
• Ability to synthesize large volumes of data and convert behavioral insights into actionable recommendations.
• Familiarity with data analytics, causal inference, and behavioral measurement frameworks.
• Proficient in MS Office, Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Excel.

Our Commitment to you / overview of benefits

• Medical, Dental and Vision Insurance; Wellness Program
• Flexible Spending Accounts (Healthcare, Dependent Care, Commuter)
• Short-Term and Long-Term Disability options
• Basic Life and AD&D Insurance (Company Provided)
• Voluntary Life and AD&D options
• 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan with matching after one year
• Paid Time Off

Reports to: Program Manager

Working Conditions

• Professional office environment, with the ability to work onsite in the main office.
• Must be physically and mentally able to perform duties extended periods of time.
• Ability to use a computer and other office productivity tools with sufficient speed to meet the demands of this position.
• Must be able to establish a productive and professional workspace.
• Must be able to sit for long periods of time looking at computer screen.
• May be asked to work a flexible schedule which may include holidays.
• May be asked to travel for business or professional development purposes.
• May be asked to work hours outside of normal business hours.

Other Duties: Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive list of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job.  Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Cayuse is an Equal Opportunity Employer.  All employment decisions are based on merit, qualifications, skills, and abilities. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment in accordance with any applicable federal, state, or local law.