How to hire an economic consultant

How to hire an economic consultant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step economic consultant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an economic consultant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new economic consultant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an economic consultant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the economic consultant you need to hire. Certain economic consultant roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect economic consultant also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   The following list breaks down different types of economic consultants and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Economic Consultant	Description	Hourly rate
   Economic Consultant	Management analysts, often called management consultants, propose ways to improve the efficiency of an organization. They advise managers on how to make organizations more profitable through reduced costs and increased revenues.	$26-58
   Analyst	Analysts are employees or individual contributors with a vast experience in a particular field that help the organization address challenges. They help the organization improve processes, policies, and other operations protocol by studying the current processes in place and determining the effectiveness of those processes... Show more	$25-47
   Data Analyst	Data analysts are responsible for interpreting the company's statistics and providing sound recommendations to the organization. They manage the organization's data sets, usually related to market performance, finance, or human resources... Show more	$25-49

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • SAS
   • SQL
   • Data Analysis
   • Financial Analysis
   • PowerPoint
   • Statistical Analyses
   • Analyze Data
   • Medicaid
   • Claims Data
   • Financial Models
   • VBA
   • Economic Impacts
   • Statistical Models
   • Litigation

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Provide SharePoint development and administration, budget and financial reporting; manage invoicing; and develop training manuals and user guides.
   • Generate and analyze data sets using SAS.
   • Modify legacy SAS code to run more reliably and e ciently.
   • Educate professionals on the CPT coding system and the circumstances under which private insurers and Medicaid would accept claims.
   • Focuse on business strategy, sustainability in LATAM, and the influence of macro trends on specific investment opportunities.
   • Maintain and handle the delivery of key findings base on clinical results and financial risk to improve customer ROI.

   More economic consultant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the economic consultant job description is a good way to get more applicants. An economic consultant salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for an economic consultant in Montana may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level economic consultant. Additionally, an economic consultant with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average economic consultant salary

   $81,767yearly

   $39.31 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level economic consultant salary

   $55,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 28, 2025

   Average economic consultant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	District of Columbia	$127,998	$62
   2	Massachusetts	$119,087	$57
   3	New York	$116,450	$56
   4	Maryland	$97,309	$47
   5	Texas	$97,127	$47
   6	Pennsylvania	$96,369	$46
   7	Washington	$96,362	$46
   8	Illinois	$92,123	$44
   9	Virginia	$91,388	$44
   10	California	$91,264	$44
   11	Connecticut	$90,705	$44
   12	North Carolina	$89,514	$43
   13	Michigan	$84,264	$41
   14	Oregon	$77,980	$37
   15	Colorado	$77,759	$37
   16	Georgia	$77,567	$37
   17	Louisiana	$75,117	$36
   18	Arizona	$74,604	$36
   19	Minnesota	$73,947	$36
   20	Nevada	$69,329	$33

   Average economic consultant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Bates White, LLC	$121,084	$58.21
   2	Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi L.L.P.	$116,024	$55.78
   3	Bank of America	$107,329	$51.60	119
   4	FTI Consulting	$102,459	$49.26	27
   5	Berkeley Research Group	$101,052	$48.58	30
   6	Highmark	$94,620	$45.49	253
   7	DFS Corporate Services LLC	$93,990	$45.19
   8	Unitedheath Group	$90,889	$43.70
   9	Meteor Creative	$89,684	$43.12
   10	3M Company	$89,673	$43.11	5
   11	Deloitte	$88,083	$42.35	3,607
   12	London Economics	$84,916	$40.83
   13	Central Coast Agriculture	$84,845	$40.79
   14	The Marsh	$84,438	$40.60
   15	StoneTurn	$82,864	$39.84
   16	Wsp USA Buildings Inc.	$81,085	$38.98	45
   17	Optum	$76,465	$36.76
   18	Guidehouse	$76,021	$36.55	481
   19	Americorps	$73,956	$35.56	4
   20	Apria Healthcare	$71,628	$34.44

4. Writing an economic consultant job description

   An economic consultant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of an economic consultant job description:

   Economic consultant job description example

   Complex questions, powerful answers.
   
   Steer is a consultancy that combines commercial, economic, technical and planning expertise to find powerful answers to our clients' complex questions. We are a global firm spanning over 400 staff across 21 offices across four continents working together to make a real difference across cities, infrastructure and transportation. Founded in 1978, we are a truly international business with global reach, insight and capabilities.
   
   Infrastructure, cities and transportation are constantly evolving in response to new demands, new ideas, and new technologies. We help our clients maximize opportunity and realize value within this rapidly-changing landscape by mixing rigor and technical expertise with an open-minded, imaginative approach.
   
   At Steer, we actively invest in developing new ideas and ways of working. We encourage our staff to think creatively about their work and how we can help clients maximize opportunities and commercial benefits.
   
   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   
   We are seeking an experienced and motivated Senior Consultant with experience in economic analysis and modelling to support our Toronto office on a range of transport planning, strategy, policy, and business case/evaluation projects. The ideal candidate will bring a strong theoretical understanding of evaluation concepts, behavioural economics, and transportation economics with an established track record of high-quality analysis that contributes to policy formulation.
   
   Our team is undergoing rapid growth and is looking for candidates who are ready to work with clients across North America on complex transport policy, strategy, and business case problems. The team in the Toronto office has delivered strategic advice to top public servants to advance some of North America's most complex transport challenges and opportunities.
   
   Requirements
   
   Leading economic and financial appraisal as a core team member on strategy and business case work
   
   Conducting applied economic research in support of public sector project appraisal - including resiliency, wider economic benefits, behavioural studies, and transit pricing
   
   Supporting clients on economic/financial appraisal issues
   
   Managing junior staff as part of larger projects
   
   Supporting the development of business case and transport strategy work undertaken from the Toronto office
   
   Reviewing trends and new ideas in the market to ensure our work remains cutting edge
   
   Your Skills and Experience
   
   Expertise in economic appraisal, financial analysis, or business case development
   
   Strong communication skills - you can fluently discuss appraisal approaches and results in a compelling manner both verbally (written/oral) and graphically (graphs, flow charts, infographics)
   
   Well developed proficiencies in Microsoft Excel (spreadsheet modelling best practice)
   
   Familiarity with large dataset analysis and modelling using software like R, Python and/or STATA
   
   Strong understanding of transport policy and the role of economic analysis in policy formulation
   
   Experience with public sector clients in the GTHA is desirable
   
   Project and team management skills
   
   Econometric modelling experience is considered an asset
   
   Wider Economic Benefit analysis experience is also considered an asset
   
   Publications in economic, transportation planning, or public policy journals or conferences is considered an asset
   
   Education and Qualifications
   
   Master's/Bachelor's degree in economics / transport economics, a thesis or research-oriented program is an asset
   
   3-5 years of experience
   
   Benefits
   
   Our social and cultural responsibilities form an important part of our culture and values. We believe that actions speak louder than words, and therefore have annual measurable targets across all social impact areas, particularly DEI and sustainability. We have also committed to successfully operate as a Net Zero Carbon company by 2025.
   
   We offer a competitive package of benefits including private medical, dental, and vision insurance, commuter benefits, group Share Incentive Plan, 20 vacation days, and a discretionary bonus scheme.
   
   Steer is an equal opportunities employer and encourages applications regardless of age, race, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity or gender. Part-time and flexible working applications will be considered.
   
   

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find economic consultants for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any economic consultants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level economic consultants with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your economic consultant job on Zippia to find and recruit economic consultant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with economic consultant candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new economic consultant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the economic consultant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new economic consultant. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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