King County is seeking a Chief Economist to lead its Office of Economic and Financial Analysis (OEFA). This office provides the King County Executive and the King County Council independent economic analyses to support sound budgeting and fiscal management decisions.

Job Duties

• Administer the Office of Economic and Financial Analysis, including the hiring of staff, preparation of the proposed budget for the office, and administration of the office budget as adopted by the County Council.
• Develop an annual work plan for the office which will be approved by the KCFC.
• Forecast and track major county revenues, including, but not limited to, property taxes, sales taxes, real estate excise taxes, and investment pool yield.
• Monitor and forecast key economic and regional indicators, including inflation, population, employment, and construction activity.
• Prepare detailed economic and revenue reports to support the budget process and other periodic publications for internal and external audiences.
• Develop, implement, and manage financial models, databases, and reporting systems necessary to support the forecasting responsibilities of the office.
• Supervise office staff and assist staff with the development of revenue forecasts.
• Identify and assess information and data management system requirements to improve forecasting methods and processes.
• Support economic and financial analyses of proposed county policies, debt rating presentations, discount rate updates, proposed legislation, and staff the county credit committee.
• Track and monitor pending local, state, and federal legislation affecting county revenues. Analyses of state legislation is often performed on an expedited basis during the legislative session.
• Analyze complex issues and communicate results to non-financial managers, elected officials, and program stakeholders.
• Work with agencies across King County government, including Executive, departmental, and Council staff, and other jurisdictions.
• Interact with elected officials and external agencies, provide direct or indirect briefings for the County Executive, County Council, city representatives, other external entities, and staff.

Experience, Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills:

• A combination of education and experience that clearly demonstrates the ability to successfully perform the job duties listed above.
• Econometric and model building professional experience.
• Strong written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to innovate, embrace data, and solve analytical and economic problems.
• Demonstrated work ethic and independent time management skills.
• 10+ years of work experience in economics, forecasting, budgeting, or finance.

DESIRABLE, BUT NOT MANDATORY, CHARACTERISTICS:

• PhD or Masters degree(s) in economics, finance, statistics, or a related field.
• Working knowledge of government finance and revenues streams in Washington state.
• Familiarity with EViews, STATA, R, MATLAB or other modeling programs.
• Experience managing a team.