Rachel Yost
Managing Partner
As a Managing Partner at SIR, Rachel leads SIR’s practice areas in tourism, cities, economic development, and placemaking. Previously, Rachel led SIR’s ongoing quantitative and qualitative research efforts. Since joining the team in 2005, she has immersed herself in every aspect of the research and planning process. She works closely with the SIR team to coordinate thoughtful project design, questionnaire development, fieldwork supervision, data analysis, reporting, and presentation — all to inform a final data-driven strategy that supports the client’s business goals.
Rachel is also a national keynote presenter and has shared SIR’s research with many audiences across the country. Notably, Rachel is one of America’s experts on how millennials think and behave as young professionals.
Rachel is not your typical millennial — her first job out of college over a dozen years ago was with SIR. She’s grown here and is now shaping our internal culture while delivering strategies for clients that make a difference. She is especially adept at seeing the broader implications often buried in the data.
The best way to describe Rachel is “engaging.” She has a way of connecting with people that results in deep and lasting relationships. You can tell she genuinely cares about her work and that she is passionate about helping clients uncover insights that can change their futures.
Outside of SIR, Rachel is actively involved in the local community. She serves on numerous boards including ChamberRVA and For Richmond. In 2017, she became the youngest-ever member of the MCV Foundation Board of Trustees. She previously served on the young professionals board for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation – which also named her Outstanding Young Professional in 2016. She also has an eye for global work. In 2019 she was specially invited to join 70 other younger leaders from across the world to meet in Dubai and in Israel to strategically think about the future of the global church. In 2007, Rachel served as a mentor for an international business initiative with her alma mater Grove City College, studying business in China.
Adventure is Worthwhile:
In college, I studied abroad in Spain. I remember when I first arrived — I was in a hotel room with my new roommate before we were off to meet our host family. The program had given us a map and a pocket guide. I remember poring over them, wanting to learn as much as possible about the city I would call home for the next couple of months. My roommate looked at me like I was the biggest nerd.
But that’s what I do. I love cities. I love learning them. I love learning what makes them tick, what makes them unique, how the locals live and work and get around. At the time, I didn’t know about firms like SIR, but when I landed at SIR shortly after graduation, I knew I found the place for me.
I absolutely love the work we get to do in partnering with communities — whether that’s helping identify their unique story, assessing the talent pipeline of today and tomorrow, understanding who comes to visit and what they want to experience while there, or how to make the community a better place for all to live, work, and play. Using data to peel back the layers and uncover insights that can help drive a community forward is what I get to do day in and day out. Today, it’s more critical than ever. With the ever-changing demographics, competition for workers, residents, and tourists, it is fiercer than ever. The joy that comes with helping our clients navigate these challenges is one of the many reasons I’ve stayed at SIR for over 15 years.