Position Overview: The Economic Research & Policy Department (ERP) conducts industry and economic research, performs fiscal and economic impact modeling, and analyzes NYCEDC projects to inform key policy and investment decisions. The team tracks economic trends and provides insights to City Hall, policymakers, and the public, while also developing tools to evaluate, measure, and report on project outcomes. ERP advances high-impact thought leadership on inclusive and innovation-driven economic development. 

The VP of Policy will drive high-impact policy research and analysis, developing rigorous, actionable work on emerging economic and policy issues facing New York City. This role will lead major research initiatives from question development through analysis and communication, develop new areas of policy research, and help translate economic evidence into policy insights. The VP of Policy will serve as a senior thought partner to agency and City leadership, working closely with internal teams and external stakeholders to develop policy approaches grounded in research and informed, where possible, by data analysis and stakeholder engagement. This role requires strong economic and policy judgment, the ability to frame complex questions and develop sound approaches to answering them, excellent communication skills to translate findings into clear insights, and the ability to move effectively between research, strategy, and policy implementation. 

Essential Duties & Responsibilities:

• Lead high-impact policy research and analysis on issues affecting New York City’s economy, households, businesses, and communities, taking projects from problem definition and research design through analysis, interpretation, and communication. 
• Serve as a senior thought partner to agency and City leadership, providing research, analysis, and policy perspectives on complex and emerging issues and helping inform policy development and decision-making.
• Develop comparative research on New York City and peer cities, including analysis of relevant policies, programs, and approaches in other jurisdictions and assessment of their applicability to New York City.
• Work closely with EDC’s Government and Community Partnerships team to help shape and support the agency’s legislative priorities, providing research, policy analysis, and briefing materials to inform legislative engagement.
• Represent NYCEDC’s policy research externally through presentations, publications, briefings, convenings, and other engagements with policymakers, researchers, business and community stakeholders, and the broader public.
• Monitor external policy changes and research, synthesizing relevant findings and implications for agency and City leadership.
• Respond to ad-hoc data requests from internal teams, agencies, agency leadership, and City Hall staff.
• Lead or contribute to high-priority research initiatives that advance NYCEDC’s thought leadership on key issues, serving as project manager or lead analyst as appropriate, and communicate findings to internal and external stakeholders through presentations and publications.
• Other duties as assigned. 

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Public Policy, Government, Statistics, Economics, Urban Planning, or a related field. Master’s degree preferred. 
• 7+ years of relevant professional experience in policy research and analysis. 
• Demonstrated experience leading complex research and policy projects, from framing research questions and developing analytical approaches through analysis, synthesis, and communication of findings. 
• Strong economic and policy judgment, with the ability to translate complex evidence into clear, actionable insights. 
• Demonstrated ability to build productive relationships and collaborate effectively with senior officials, government agencies, external researchers, business and community stakeholders, and other partners. 
• Demonstrated written and verbal communication skills with the ability to convey technical data and the results of complex analyses clearly and effectively to a variety of audiences. Demonstrated ability to create clear, accurate, and engaging presentation materials. 
• Ability to manage multiple recurring deliverables and competing priorities effectively, and to work both independently and collaboratively in a high-pressured, fast-paced environment. 
• Strong project management skills, including the ability to develop workplans, coordinate across teams and stakeholders, and move complex projects from concept to completion. 
• Proven ability in using database and presentation tools, including Excel, PowerPoint, and Word. Proficiency analyzing data in R is a plus. 
• Experience with public data sources, administrative data, or other economic and demographic datasets. Familiarity with Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, or other federal, state, and local data sources is a plus. 
• Experience with spatial data and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a plus.  
• Demonstrated attention to detail, and a commitment to producing high-quality, accurate work. 
• Proactive and resourceful with a focus on continuous improvement. 
• Demonstrated enthusiasm for the mission of NYCEDC. 
• New York City residency is required within 180 days of hire.