Goodman Research Group

What Goodman Research Group does

Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) is a privately-held, woman-owned program evaluation and applied research firm headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1989 by Irene F. Goodman, Ed.D. as Sierra Research Associates and incorporated in 1995, GRG has spent 35 years conducting evaluation research for a prestigious institutional client base that includes federal agencies (NSF, NASA, NCI), universities (Harvard, MIT, Brown, Columbia, Dartmouth), foundations (Ford Family, Alfred P. Sloan), museums and cultural institutions (Harvard Museums of Science and Culture, Metropolitan Opera, Space Telescope Science Institute), and public media organizations (WGBH-TV, PBS). Across its history the firm has formulated and carried out over 500 evaluation studies covering feasibility studies and needs assessments, formative research, process evaluation, outcome evaluation, and summative evaluation across educational programs, scholarship initiatives, broadcast media, exhibits, and workforce programs.

The firm operates with a deliberately small core staff—at its peak 16 employees plus several research consultants, intentionally scaled back in 2018 to a 'lean and mighty' operating model—and augments capacity with long-standing consulting associates and graduate student interns from local universities. Technical capabilities are centered on advanced quantitative methodology including hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), survival analysis, item-response theory, logistic regression, confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling, and social network analysis, applied to mixed-methods data collection spanning surveys, interviews, longitudinal panels (e.g., 1,300+ students followed over three years in M-LEAP), and site visits. GRG has publicly disclosed exploration of AI tools for productivity enhancement in literature review, instrument development, data analysis, visualization, and reporting; AI is not currently a commercial product or differentiator.

GRG generates revenue through project-based professional services engagements sold via direct client relationships and reputation, with multi-year contracts and quote-based pricing typical of B2B research consulting. Business development is almost entirely referral- and reputation-driven with no paid advertising or active social media presence; the company operates a passive WordPress website and archives newsletters from 2003 onward. In October 2023, Colleen F. Manning—a 30-year internal veteran who progressed from research assistant through Director of Research and Vice President—assumed the presidency from founder Irene F. Goodman, who transitioned to President Emerita. The firm maintains no external investors, no parent company, and no subsidiaries, and operates exclusively in the United States.

Name

Goodman Research Group

Legal name

Goodman Research Group, Inc.

Website

https://grginc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Goodman Research Group is a woman-owned, Cambridge-based program evaluation and applied research firm conducting custom quantitative and qualitative evaluation studies for federal agencies, universities, foundations, museums, and public media organizations in the United States since 1989.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Program Evaluation Services: GRG provides professional evaluation research services for educational programs, materials, and services. This includes feasibility studies and needs assessments, formative research, process evaluation, outcome evaluation, and summative evaluation. Revenue is generated through project-based fees for evaluation consulting services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) is a professional services firm that conducts program evaluation, consultation, and applied research for institutional clients. Since 1989, the firm has formulated and carried out over 500 evaluation studies covering feasibility studies, needs assessments, formative research, process evaluation, outcome evaluation, and summative evaluation for government agencies, foundations, universities, museums, and broadcast media organizations.

Product overview

Goodman Research Group (GRG) is a research company that provides program evaluation and consultation services rather than a traditional software product. The company specializes in evaluating programs, materials, and services across various sectors including formal education, independent organizations, foundations, research and development companies, broadcast media, and government agencies. Their expertise spans all areas of evaluation research including feasibility studies, needs assessments, formative research, process evaluation, outcome evaluation, and summative evaluation. They also conduct their own research projects such as the Massachusetts Linking Experiences and Pathways (M-LEAP) and Women's Experiences in College Engineering (WECE) studies. The company offers evaluation services for diverse products including informal education programs, public media campaigns, online and broadcast programs, instructional materials, professional development, websites, and scholarship programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Program Evaluation

Quantifiable outcome

• Conducted over 500 evaluation studies since 1989
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Mills Consulting Group, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFor over 20 years, GRG has carried out many early care and education studies in collaboration with Mills Consulting Group, a global child care consulting firm. Collaboration includes client meetings, survey development consultation, programming and administration of online surveys, data analysis, and report preparation including recommendations.
• Education Development Center (EDC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGRG has been evaluating EDC's STEM Learning and Research (STELAR) Center since 2013, assessing NSF ITEST community projects. Also evaluating EDC's Young Mathematicians in Worcester Program, Massachusetts Exploring Computer Science Partnership, and Girls Communicating Career Connections (GC3) project.
• Space Telescope Science InstitutemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGRG supports NASA's Universe of Learning project team through strategic learning and evaluation, including portfolio evaluation and individual project evaluation. The multi-institution team includes Caltech/IPAC, Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
• Dartmouth CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGRG evaluated Dartmouth's Rural Gateways program for rural librarians' STEM professional development, and the SPLICE project's Broadening Participation Committee. Also evaluated the Dartmouth Learning Fellows Program.
• Columbia UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGRG served as external evaluator of PoLAR Climate Partnership, a Phase II NSF Climate Change Education Partnership project led by Columbia University.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Education Development Center (EDC): Large nonprofit research and evaluation organization that designs and evaluates STEM education, early childhood, and health programs. EDC is both a direct peer and a long-standing GRG partner (GRG has evaluated multiple EDC initiatives since 2013), making it the closest comparable on mission, methodology, and client base.
• Wilder Research: Mid-sized nonprofit research arm of Amherst H. Wilder Foundation conducting program evaluation and applied social research for community organizations and government agencies. Closely comparable to GRG in size, methodology, and mission focus on education and human services evaluation.
• Mills Consulting Group, Inc. Global child care consulting firm that has partnered with GRG for 20+ years on early care and education studies. Comparable niche focus and overlapping client base in early childhood evaluation, making it a natural peer and complementary partner.

Broad incumbents

• Mathematica: Large, well-established policy research and evaluation firm conducting program evaluations for federal agencies and foundations. Operates in the same government-funded evaluation market as GRG but at substantially greater scale, with broader service lines including data analytics and health policy.
• Abt Associates: Major research and evaluation firm with extensive federal contracting in education, health, and social programs. Competes with GRG for federal evaluation RFPs (NSF, NIH, HHS) but at significantly larger scale and with broader international and consulting capabilities.
• Westat: Employee-owned research firm conducting statistical surveys, program evaluations, and policy studies for federal agencies. Comparable to GRG in evaluation methodology and federal client base, but operates at substantially larger scale with broader statistical and survey capabilities.
• NORC at the University of Chicago: Independent research organization affiliated with the University of Chicago conducting social science research and program evaluation. Comparable in social science methodology and federal evaluation work, but affiliated with a major university and operating at much greater scale than GRG.
• American Institutes for Research (AIR): Large nonprofit behavioral and social science research organization with substantial work in education evaluation, assessment, and program improvement. Competes with GRG for federal and foundation evaluation contracts but offers a much broader portfolio including assessment design and technical assistance.
• RAND Corporation: Major nonprofit research institution conducting policy analysis and program evaluation across education, health, and social programs. Overlaps with GRG in education program evaluation but operates at dramatically larger scale with policy research and consulting capabilities.

Emerging players

• Knology: Nonprofit research organization generating practical knowledge about education, science, and public engagement. Overlaps with GRG in evaluation of informal STEM learning and museum/audience research, though with a different organizational structure and emerging profile.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/goodman-research-group-inc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Goodman Research Group