Cost Researcher

Position Title: Cost Researcher

Type: Part-Time

Location: Remote in US

Strategic Goal: To provide high-fidelity market data that fuels primarily the Gordian Estimating application verticals through proactive outreach and digital validation.

Role Overview

The Cost Researcher is a critical "First Responder" in our data-to-product lifecycle. This is not a passive data-entry role; it is a role designed for an investigative researcher who enjoys "de-bottlenecking" complex pricing structures. You will be responsible for obtaining, verifying, and validating cost data through direct market engagement and digital research tools.

Primary Responsibilities

• Strategic Market Outreach: Execute professional inquiries via phone and digital channels to manufacturers, suppliers, and contractors to secure current labor and material costs.
• Data Integrity & Validation: You will not just "collect" numbers. You will validate data points against historical trends and current market logic to identify outliers or "Single Points of Failure" in the data.
• Forensic Documentation: Maintain a clear and traceable audit trail for all research, ensuring that our Engineering and Data Analyst teams can trust the "provenance" of every price point.
• Vertical Support: Assist in the maintenance and expansion of the CSI Divisional Engineers by researching specific technical specifications and regional cost variances.
• Tools & AI Integration: Utilize program management tools and productivity tools (including AI-augmented search and internal databases) to expedite the research process and improve data accuracy.

Required Competencies

• Investigative Mindset: A natural curiosity to look beneath the surface of a quote or price list to ensure it represents the true market reality
• Construction Understanding: Knowledge of construction from either school or work experience
• Technical Literacy: Proficiency with web-based research, Microsoft Office tools, especially Excel, and collaborative platforms (Slack/Teams). Familiarity with (or interest in learning) SQL or AI-assisted research tools is a significant plus, but not required.
• Communication Precision: The ability to represent Gordian professionally to external vendors and clearly articulate data anomalies to internal stakeholders.