Principal, Economics

Overview

As a Principal in Ofcom’s Economics and Analytics Group, you will lead teams of economists and data analysts to support evidence-based policymaking across telecoms, online safety, and related sectors. You will drive robust economic analysis, empirical evaluation, and data-driven methods to inform regulatory decisions and policy design. The role blends leadership with hands-on quantitative work, collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver impact at scale. You will shape projects, mentor colleagues, and contribute to public discourse through policy-relevant research.

Pay / Benefits

• training on advanced methods
• participation in economics conferences
• flexible working arrangements
• part-time or job-share options
• supportive wellbeing and rewards information

Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional teams of economists, econometricians, and data analysts on multiple projects
• Identify, analyse, and frame economic and policy issues using a range of empirical methods and theoretical insights
• Provide strategic direction for analysis, incorporating stakeholders’ perspectives and counter-arguments
• Communicate complex economic concepts persuasively in meetings and with stakeholders
• Support publication-ready documents and contribute to colleague development through training and mentoring
• Collaborate with directors to drive leadership, motivation, and development within the group

Key requirements

• Solid foundation in applied microeconomics and econometrics (competition economics, regulatory economics, industrial organisation, causal inference)
• Extensive experience applying economic and quantitative analysis across various sectors (consultancy, regulator, consumer authority, or regulated company)
• Interest or experience in applying machine learning or AI to economic analysis and regulatory questions
• Experience with at least one analytical software package (R or Python)
• Postgraduate qualification in economics; PhD preferred but not essential

• Articulating ideas and good collaboration
• Building solutions with thought leadership and creative approaches
• Executing plans with project management and timely delivery
• Econometrics (e.g., difference-in-differences, regression discontinuity, structural estimation)
• Data science techniques (e.g., NLP, classification, regression trees)
• Machine learning methods in economic analysis

…