Chief Economist

The Beer Institute (BI) is a national trade association representing the American brewing industry. The organization traces its roots back to the early 1860s. It is one of the oldest trade associations in Washington, DC, representing the industry and its issues before Congress and in other public forums nationwide. The Beer Institute includes large and small brewers, beer importers, and industry suppliers. Beer in America is a more than $409 billion industry that includes more than 6,500 breweries and supports more than two million American jobs.

Position:            Chief Economist

The Chief Economist is a thought leader, researcher, collaborator and communicator. The ideal candidate would serve as the go-to source for industry performance by overseeing a data collection and processing operation to compile accurate industry-wide production and sales volumes, tax payments, and other economic and statistical information in support of the key objectives of the Beer Institute. The Chief Economist works closely with representatives of member companies, Beer Institute staff, outside public affairs firm, industry suppliers, distributors, allied trade associations and federal and state agencies.

Responsibilities include:

§ As a subject matter expert and seasoned professional, provide data, research and updates on industry performance.

§ Enhance and improve the usability of the economic reports:

o  Work with member companies to ensure and maintain alignment on a common set of analytic frameworks.

o  Improve and maintain routines to promptly secure and process member and government information.

§ Proactively identify areas of risk and opportunity for beer – economic, demographic, geographic, government (at both the state and national level), etc.

§ Provide ongoing assessment of beer performance relative to competing categories – total alcohol beverage.

§ Conduct ad-hoc analyses as needed to support key policy issues or the collective concerns of BI members, including efforts related to government, regulatory, and media affairs.

§ Anticipate data issues and proactively inform member companies on potential impact.

§ Develop a State of the Industry presentation that will enable this position to raise the profile of the Beer Institute as the go-to source for beer information and be proactive on beer speaker’s circuit.

§ Manage outside vendor to deliver monthly Sales-to-Retailer reports.

§ Oversee the biennial industry economic impact study (Beer Serves America) and other analyses on an as-needed basis and participate in producing advocacy materials based on those economic studies.

§ Work with BI staff to identify policy and public affairs-related research areas and conduct research as needed.

§ Increase members' value proposition through the data analytics program and advocate to attract new brewer and supplier members who share information.

• Compile and maintain historic presentations (State of the Industry Reports and Brewers’ Almanac).
• Handle member and public inquiries about industry and economic information and data.

Qualifications:

§ Required a college degree; Master’s degree or Ph.D. in business, economics, finance or statistics or a related field strongly preferred

§ Minimum 8-10 years of relevant experience. Trade association experience is a plus.

§ Data management and analytic competencies including but not limited to SQL and Excel, modeling experience a plus and basic knowledge of statistics required.

§ Excellent analytical, interpretive, evaluative, and constructive thinking skills to solve problems. 

§ Strong written and verbal communication skills. Presentation/public speaking experience is required and media experience is a plus.

§ Proven experience producing and managing complete economic analyses, including project design and development, statistical analysis, data collection, forecasting and quantitative analysis.

§ Demonstrate ability to manage multiple projects and objectives, deliver results on time and within budget, and build stakeholder consensus.

This full-time position offers a salary of $150-$175k (DOE) plus merit-based incentive pay. There is also a generous benefits package including employer-sponsored health, dental and vision coverage, 401(k) retirement contribution, paid life and disability insurance and generous paid time off, with a flexible work environment. The organization is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Please send a cover letter, resume and salary requirements to the Beer Institute at info@beerinstitute.org with ‘Chief Economist' in the subject line. No phone calls, no resume drop-offs and no recruiters.