Deputy Director: Modelling and Economics at City of Johannesburg

Minimum Requirements: 

• Postgraduate Degree with either Economics and Statistics or Econometrics (NQF level 7), Masters will be an added advantage; 
• 7 - 9 years’ experience in policy research and statistical modelling. At least 3 years’ middle management experience in managing research projects and a proven track record of successful completion of such projects. Experience in setting up and managing, monitoring, and evaluating systems for the public sector. Experience in business intelligence, data analysis, interpretation, and reporting on socio-economic statistics and macroeconomic trends; 
• Significant experience in data analysis and modelling and/or econometric techniques and familiarity with South African sub-national data – province, municipal, and sub-municipal; 
• Experience of working on regional and local economic development issues; 
• Sound knowledge of research techniques; 
• Experience in preparation of high specification data-driven interpretative economic reports and publications; 
• Significant insight into survey data and data collection techniques; 
• Experienced user of Microsoft Excel in data analysis and presentation, and experience in the use of industry standard software for statistical analysis, database development, spatial mapping, or economic modelling – examples include: STATA, EViews, GIS, ArcView, RStudio, GAMS, or other CGE modelling software; 
• Ability to work accurately under pressure and to tight deadlines; 
• Self-management skills. 

Primary Function: 

• To support City economic development planning and strategy formulation and related research and stakeholder engagement activities, to lead database development and data acquisition, economic and data modelling, statistical analysis, and reporting on the socio-economic and economic context and performance of the economy of the City of Johannesburg. 

Key Performance Areas: 

• Develop an execution strategy and plan for the sub-unit using the strategy planning framework and process of the Department in order to provide input into the Strategic Planning of the Department. 
• Lead high-quality and relevant economic development research by providing forward-looking economic policy advice and acting as an advisor to the Chief Economist of the Department of Economic Development (DED) on economic issues. 
• Lead and design, development, and maintenance of a database of socio-economic, economic data, and City service delivery performance information relevant to economic development and related strategic planning in the City. 
• Provide quality reporting and monitoring on the functions and performance of the Staff & Governance of the Sub-Directorate, which are factual, accurate, complete, timely, and are in line with the City’s requirements. 
• Maximise the productivity of staff by optimizing the effectiveness of its employees in order to enable the achievement of the objectives of the Directorate and manage the human resources thereof. 
• Maximise the productivity of Logistics by optimizing the effectiveness of its employees in order to enable achievement of the objectives of the Sub-Directorate. 
• Build and maintain strong relations with internal and external business units, City entities, key stakeholders (Private Sector), and peers to ensure all appropriate economic development issues are incorporated within the City’s plans and strategies. 
• Comply with all relevant legislative frameworks, including the City’s Code of Ethics, and manage and mitigate risk effectively.