Job Title: Quantitative Economist (7+ years of relevant experience)
Location: New Delhi (Preferred) / Chennai / Bengaluru, India (with travel as needed across India)
Employment Type: Full-time
Start Date: 26th January 2026
Reporting To: Team Leader
About Us
Celebrating over fifteen years of innovative and collaborative work, Athena Infonomics has established itself as a data-driven global consultancy that leverages social science research, data science, and technology to provide user-centric, context-specific solutions and advice to decision makers. Our multidisciplinary and multi-cultural team of 75+ professionals spread across Asia, Africa, US and Europe exemplify extensive experience in designing and applying research methods to co-design and co-produce useful research that is inclusive and relevant.
Our team of data scientists apply agile programming and ICT tools to deliver responsive and practical data and digital solutions—making an innovative, technology-oriented business model that sets us apart in the international development space.
The international business community is taking notice of this unique approach: in 2021 alone, Athena Infonomics was recognized on The Financial Times, Nikkei Asia, and Statista’s High-Growth Companies Asia-Pacific 2021 and 2022 ranking, and was selected as one of The Economic Times and Statista’s 2021, 2022 and 2023 India Growth Champions.
Position Overview
Athena will be assisting in the launch of a national-level project to accelerate AI adoption among Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). The project aims to create a replicable, evidence-driven model(s) that enables MSMEs to understand, adopt, and scale AI solutions backed by a robust ecosystem of service providers, policy support, skill upgradation and financing pathways. This project seeks to provide actionable economic insights and frameworks to inform strategy and decision-making by the national ministry and line ministries and engages externally with a wide range of stakeholders.
We are looking for creative, intellectually curious, highly motivated and mission-aligned Economist to join the AI-MSME Project Team. In this role, you will be an integral member of the core project team and you will be primarily responsible for designing and executing an economic and financial framework to capture the costs and benefits associated with adoption of artificial intelligence solutions by the MSMEs in India that can help in enhancing their business productivity and/or result in significant cost savings. You will have the opportunity to collaborate with industry leaders, Subject-Matter Experts, AI-ML Specialists and Senior Policy Leadership at the national and state level to understand the problem statements, policy and industry landscape and lead and propose practical recommendations to inform policy, schemes by the government and solutions offerings by the private sector. To perform your role effectively, you must have experience in conducting complex economic analysis and delivering real-world economic and financial solutions for industrial and digital infrastructure sectors in India. You are required to be familiar with business trends of the Indian MSME sector and have a strong command over economics concepts, tools and methods related to economic and statistical analysis, cost-benefit assessments using secondary and primary data in data-scarce environments.
Core Responsibilities:
- Design and implement a rigorous economic and financial framework to capture, a
- nalyze and interpret costs and benefits associated with adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions by the small and medium enterprises in India
- Identify the relevant data points to be captured from various secondary and primary sources for economic and financial analyses of MSMEs
- Conduct advanced quantitative analyses using advanced econometric techniques and statistical models to identify price points of AI solutions and its adoption at scale
- Perform data cleaning, manipulation, processing / transformation of complex datates and maintain data quality and integrity throughout the modelling process
- Perform cost-benefit analysis and scenario analysis of uptake and large-scale adoption of different AI solutions or set thereof by MSMEs
- Based on the above, inform the purchase and / or procurement strategy of AI solutions by the MSMEs and schemes / policies of the Government
- Translate highly technical findings into compelling, clear and impactful reports, briefs and presentations for audiences including policy makers, industry leaders and businesses.
- Structure and prepare a financial and procurement toolkit to guide Ministry and MSMEs on adoption of AI solutions considering costs, revenue potential, risks etc.
- Support project team members and other engagements of Athena on economic and financial analysis
Experience and Skills Required
Experience
- At least seven years of industry, research or consultancy experience out of which at least four years should be relevant to India-centric policy and project research
- Experience in conducting economic research and economic / financial analysis of projects / schemes / products using quantitative and empirical data.
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Technical Skills
- Strong technical (applied economics concepts, methods and tools) skills and knowledge
- Strong capability to conduct advanced quantitative analyses using advanced econometric techniques and statistical models
- Quantitative analysis, data visualization, and report writing
- Strong understanding of macro-economic datasets / business statistics (India and preferably international) and ability to identify relevant indicators for triangulation, validation and analysis
- Ability to process, manage and analyze large datasets comprising disparate data from different sources and time-periods
- Proficiency in any statistical package for advanced data analysis / science such as STATA / R (Studio) / SPSS etc.
- Proficiency in advanced MS Office including MS Excel and MS PowerPoint,
Strategic and Business Skills
- Ability to manage rigor with problem context, relevance and practical conditions of implementation
- Strong problem-solving and critical-thinking abilities, with a focus on delivering practical, actionable solutions.
- Strong organisational skills and ability to support multiple projects simultaneously, meeting deadlines and client expectations.
- Passion for innovation, sustainability, and contributing to meaningful societal outcomes through evidence-based economic advice.
Soft Skills
Fluency in English and any one official language of India
- Excellent communication (oral and written) skills in both technical and non-technical areas including ability to transmit, receive and accurately interpret ideas and information with senior leaders
Educational Qualifications:
Essential Qualifications:
- Advanced degree (Master’s) in business administration / economics / statistics / business economics / applied economics / finance / public policy or related discipline
- Graduate in economics / business economics / applied economics / finance / statistics from a reputed university
Desired Qualifications:
- PhD in Economics / Statistics from a reputed university
Additional Requirements
- This position requires successful completion of a reference check and employment verification.
- The successful candidate must not be subject to employment restrictions from a former employer (such as a non-compete) that would prevent the candidate from performing the job responsibilities as described.
- Only candidates who have India work authorization will be considered.
Athena’s Work Culture
At Athena, we function in an outcomes-based work environment with flexible hours and a high level of autonomy. Professional development and thought leadership are key elements of our business model: we support our team members' professional growth through on-the-job training, and we encourage the cultivation of our colleagues’ personal brands through participation in panels, events, publications, and other thought-leadership opportunities. We embrace a transparent, open work environment with meaningful leadership pathways for those with inventive ideas and initiatives.
Athena Infonomics is an Equal Opportunities Employer
Athena Infonomics is an equal opportunity employer with a commitment to diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, protected veteran status, or disability status.
