Economist

West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA),

Do you want your economic expertise to help shape decisions that have a real impact across the West Midlands?

Are you curious and analytical, with a passion for turning complex evidence into actionable insights that improve outcomes for people and places?

Do you have experience of economic appraisal, evaluation and assessing the impact of policies, programmes and investments?

If so, we'd love to hear from you.

We are looking for an Economist to join our Strategy Unit. You will deliver high-quality economic analysis, modelling, appraisal, research and evaluation to support evidence-based policy, investment and strategic decision-making across the West Midlands.

You will assess the economic, social and environmental impacts of policies, programmes and investments, helping to strengthen our evidence base and build in-house evaluation capability.

By ensuring decisions are informed by robust evidence, you will help maximise the impact of public investment, deliver value for money, support inclusive growth, and improve opportunities and outcomes for communities across the West Midlands.

• Lead the design and delivery of evaluations across WMCA's portfolio, demonstrating the economic, social and environmental impacts of initiatives and investments.
• Apply HM Treasury Magenta Book guidance and experience to evaluation design, delivery and interpretation.
• Assess not only economic impacts, but also wider outcomes such as for place, inclusive growth, social value, health equity, poverty reduction and reducing regional inequalities
• Support development of theories of change, outcomes and evaluation frameworks, facilitating input from a mix of stakeholders
• Develop and apply economic models, analytical tools and evaluation methodologies to support evidence-based decision-making.
• Deliver economic appraisal, cost benefit analysis and evaluation of policy projects, programmes and investments, managing diverse stakeholders.
• Analyse and synthesise quantitative, qualitative and stakeholder evidence to generate robust place-based insights and recommendations.
• Translate complex economic and evaluation evidence into actionable recommendations for a range of audiences.

You will bring:

• A strong understanding of the West Midlands regional economy and the institutions that support economic development.
• Experience designing and delivering economic analysis, appraisal and evaluation using robust models and methodologies to support strategic decisions.
• Experience of public sector evaluation, social value, outcomes-based approaches, and strong understanding of wider system impacts, including inclusive growth, health equity and reducing inequalities.
• Experience of using national and local datasets to generate insights and inform decision-making across complex policy areas, such as transport, skills, employment, housing, regeneration, public health and economic development.
• Strong quantitative and qualitative research skills, with the ability to work with incomplete or imperfect data and apply sound analytical judgement.
• Experience applying HM Treasury Magenta Book to evaluation design, delivery and interpretation.
• Strong analytical capability, including proficiency in Excel, Power BI, R and other open-source analytical tools, with the ability to develop datasets, dashboards and analytical products, and undertake robust economic analysis and evaluation.
• Ability to translate complex evidence into clear, data-driven insights for decision-makers, and to critically assess and challenge externally commissioned analytical and evaluation work.
• Excellent communication, influencing and stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to lead collaborative approaches to developing evidence, outcomes and evaluation frameworks for complex policy challenges
• Ability to manage competing priorities, work independently and build effective relationships with internal and external partners.

The location for this role is Summer Lane with at least 2 days a week spent in the office.

We advertise salary ranges, with new appointments typically starting at the lowest…