Economist

Overview

Nakupuna Companies is looking for an Economist to support the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition (ASN RD&A) at the Pentagon. This position is 100% on-site. The ideal candidate is detail oriented, excels at multi-tasking in a fast-paced environment, and is a top-notch communicator.  The ideal candidate is a detail-oriented self-starter with significant DoW and economic analysis experience in support of high-level officials, to include in-depth familiarity with macroeconomic trends and microeconomic behaviors.

Responsibilities

The following reflects management’s definition of essential functions for this job but does not restrict the tasks that may be assigned. Management may assign additional duties and responsibilities to this job at any time due to reasonable accommodation or other reasons.  

• Serves as the team's lead subject matter expert on both macroeconomic trends and microeconomic behaviors. This individual is responsible for monitoring the global economic landscape, identifying over-the-horizon threats through quantitative analysis, and providing deep, data-driven context on everything from international policy down to firm-level incentives for senior leadership and the case-focused analysts.
• Monitors and analyzes global economic indicators, including Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) flows, to identify key trends by country of origin, industry sector, and strategic importance.
• Analyzes aggregated internal case data and open-source M&A research to produce the team’s authoritative "Quarterly Economic Threat & Trend Report."
• Applies microeconomic principles to conduct "Sector Health Assessments," quantifying risks such as market concentration, anti-competitive behavior, and the specific incentives driving firm-level decisions.
• Develops firm-centric risk profiles, evaluating corporate structures, financial health, and potential for undue influence based on an understanding of their unique market position and business strategy.
• Quantify the health of key market sectors with DON equity, assessing risks like over-leveraging, lack of competition, or adversarial market manipulation.
• Each quarter, select one high-interest industrial sector (e.g., hypersonics, unmanned systems) and conduct a quantitative "Sector Health Assessment."
• Develops and maintains a "Watchlist" of at-risk technologies by modeling how both macro trends and micro-level competitive dynamics could create future vulnerabilities.
• Authors strategic "Economic Deep Dive" reports on complex topics that integrate both macro policy and micro behavioral analysis.
• Develop predictive models to forecast how emerging economic trends will impact the defense industrial base and future acquisition programs.
• Based on identified analytical gaps, design and propose new dashboard widgets or data fields that will help the team better visualize and understand macro-level risks.
• Develop and refine the methodologies used to assess sector health and quantify the economic risk to DON equities, ensuring the team's analytical approach remains cutting-edge.
• Submit one "Analytic Improvement Proposal" each quarter, suggesting a new methodology, data source, or dashboard feature to the Senior Analyst.
• Maintain and refine the documentation for all predictive models and statistical tools used in trend analysis.
• Provide executive-level assistance in program planning, scheduling, and document development, to include preparation of point and talking papers, executive summaries and executive correspondence for Department senior leaders. 
• Use standard formats and guidelines to draft and prepare official documents and communications.

Qualifications

Skills/Qualifications:  The ideal candidate is familiar and has experience with the following technical knowledge, skills, and abilities: 

• Experience in advanced economic analysis and modeling.
• Outstanding skills in quantitative analysis and statistical techniques.
• Self-motivated and self-monitoring, exceptional oral and written communications, and ability to multi-task. 
• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail. 
• Experience editing technical documents to ensure proper format, grammar, and style. 
• Highly proficient in Microsoft Office Suite, including Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.  

Education and Experience: This position requires a bachelor’s degree in economics from an accredited university and four to seven years utilizing statistical analysis, mathematical methodologies, and modeling techniques to develop data for conducting research and analysis on economic data/trends and producing forecasts, interpretive reporting, and media used for risk assessment, communication, and decision making. Should be able to design and organize data into reports and illustrations to present economic information used for decision making and solution development. Department of Navy experience strongly preferred.

Clearance: Active Secret. Must be a U.S. citizen.  

Physical Requirements: The ideal candidate must at a minimum be able to meet the following physical requirements of the job with or without a reasonable accommodation:

• Ability to perform repetitive motions with the hands, wrists, and fingers.
• Ability to engage in and follow audible communications in emergency situations.
• Ability to sit for prolonged periods at a desk and working on a computer.

The Nakupuna Companies use a market-based compensation strategy to ensure that our employees are compensated within applicable market ranges commensurate with multiple factors, including but not limited to the individual’s particular combination of education, knowledge, skills, competencies, and experience, as well as contract-specific affordability, organizational requirements, and position location. The projected compensation range for this position is $125,000.00 to $140,000.00 (annualized USD). The salary range displayed represents the typical salary range for this position and is just one component of Nakupuna Companies total compensation package for employees.