The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development’s (EOLWD) Department of Economic Research (DER) is seeking a Senior Applied Economist to lead the department’s effort to provide better workforce insights relative to specified industries, demographics, and programs in Massachusetts. This individual will report to the DER Chief Economist and will work closely with the DER engagement and research teams to help transform wage and unemployment data into actionable insights. Ideal candidates will have excellent analytic skills and can adapt large data sets to the needs of workforce stakeholders in state government, career centers, businesses, non-profits, and job seekers. Areas of focus for this position will include the management of the workforce longitudinal database, analysis of skills gaps in key areas of the economy, job equity analysis, and predictive analytics on unemployment benefit exhaustion.

As this candidate will deal with the production of some of the most useful economic and demographic data tools in Massachusetts, an understanding of socioeconomic factors and the intellectual curiosity to share key insights about equity in the Commonwealth will be prioritized. This position may require a high amount of interactivity with staff from other secretariats requiring economic data insights. The role will also at times partner with staff from EOLWD’s Department of Career Services and the Department of Unemployment Assistance to provide regional economic insights to help with re-employment. The ability to work in a remote/in-office hybrid model that is highly collaborative is essential for this position.

The selected candidate will fulfill a critical leadership position within the Economic Research team whose mission is to provide agile and accurate workforce forecasts and strategic economic insights so that policy makers and practitioners can succeed in providing workers and employers with the data and insights they need to succeed.

Duties Include:

• Collaborates with the Massachusetts State Workforce Board on the development of statewide economic data strategies and federal reporting metrics
• Participates in the promotion of workforce data products at internal and external workforce meetings
• Development and production of defined applied economic research projects related to the Massachusetts workforce
• Development and production of data projects relative to workforce programmatic performance analysis
• Leads effort to connect data sets between agencies and workforce aligned partners
• Collaborates with the Undersecretary of Labor and Workforce Development on data strategies and actionable economic insight generation
• Collaborates with the Department of Career Services on projects and modeling relates to the Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment Grants (RESEA)
• Analyzes unemployment data to better predict exhaustion rates and strengthen the programmatic and financial integrity of the system
• Data insight generation on emerging critical sectors of the economy such as green energy, bio tech, and robotics.
• Partnering with relevant staff at the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, Executive Office of Education, and Executive Office of Administration and Finance on relevant data projects
• Responds to economic data inquiries from the EOLWD Secretary, Governor’s Office, legislature, and press in a timely fashion.
• Works with DER operations, engagement, and research staff to help produce applied data stories that combine data visualizations, analysis, and graphics to communicate information in a compelling, action-oriented way to DER stakeholders
• Meets and collaborates regularly with DER leadership to maintain a thorough understanding of Department initiatives, current projects, and deadlines
• Provides and develops training and creates support materials and presentations to help DER staff and external stakeholders promote their applied data products
• Partners with and advises Massachusetts Career Center leadership as to how they can achieve their job seeker, employment, and business services needs
• Ensures accuracy and quality of deliverables through proper data use and documentation
• Follows Commonwealth’s policies and best practices related to information security; exercises good judgment to protect the confidentiality and integrity
• Other duties as assigned.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Knowledge of advanced micro and macro-economic theory, behavioral economics, experimental economics, and familiarity with relevant research requirements and methods
• Ability to use observational and empirical research methods to produce high quality data insights
• National public policy expertise relative to workforce data initiatives
• Excellent statistical background with knowledge of software such as R, Python, or Stata
• Experience performing data manipulations and cleaning to convert data into its desired form
• Ability to prioritize workload under changing conditions
• Critical thinking, detail-oriented, self-motivated, proactive and results-driven
• Excellent communication skills and ability to collaborate and build relationships
• Passion for design and aesthetics clearly displayed in story maps and visualizations
• Comfort using and learning new technologies
• Project management, stakeholder engagement, narrative and qualitative input analysis to form product goals and deliverables
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Products (Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel, Power Point, etc.)
• High level of commitment to public service and improving government service delivery to citizens of Massachusetts

Note on Preferred Qualifications: The Department of Economic Research is committed to hiring individuals that are public service driven and help provide a diversity of perspectives and insights into the state of the economy in Massachusetts. We encourage capable, mission motivated applicants to apply even if they don’t meet 100% of the above qualifications. Many of the qualifications above can be substituted with experience and/or taught through on-the-job training with DER experts.

About the Department of Economic Research

The Department of Economic Research (DER) is an energetic and cross-collaborative department within the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development that is dedicated to economic data collection, job forecasting, and applied research. In addition to producing, analyzing, and distributing longitudinal data sets in agreement with the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the DER team also produces economic data insights and visualization products to support informed programmatic and fiduciary policy decisions across the Commonwealth. Data and insights produced by the DER cover many topics and include but are not limited to:

• Labor force participation and demographics
• Employment and unemployment
• Salary and wages
• Occupations and industries
• Employees and businesses

The DER team also promotes the use of Massachusetts labor market information on such topics as the role and impact of emerging technologies, changes in the structure of the workplace, and the cost of living relative to the availability of employment opportunities in geographic areas. The economic information produced by DER is utilized by government figures and organizations to inform policymaking, but also within academia, large and small businesses, advocacy groups, as well as individuals seeking career advancement. The DER is currently expanding its research and analytics capabilities to meet the increased demands for timely, high-quality insights into the state of the Massachusetts economy.

About the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development

The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development (EOLWD) manages the Commonwealth's workforce development and labor departments to ensure that workers, employers, and the unemployed have the tools and training needed to succeed in the Massachusetts economy. EOLWD and its agencies are committed to developing a world-class, highly skilled labor force to support business growth and innovation in the Commonwealth. EOLWD oversees the Departments of Economic Research, Unemployment Assistance, Career Services, Labor Standards, Industrial Accidents, Labor Relations, Family and Medical Leave, as well as the Division of Apprentice Standards, Council on the Underground Economy, and the quasi-public agency, the Commonwealth Corporation.

Comprehensive Benefits

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