Economist-manager: characteristics, functions, work and training

The profession, called the economist-manager, involves working in the field of economics of an enterprise or organization. Specialists of this level are in demand both in government agencies and in private commercial companies.

An economist-manager is a specialist who owns the basic foundations in economics, management, accounting, and also has knowledge in the field of finance and credit, investment economics. In large enterprises, an economist can hold a mid-level position and be directly subordinate to the chief accountant, director of finance, or chief economist. In companies of a more modest scale, the economist-manager can be a manager and an executor in one person, reporting directly to the general director or manager.

In general, the activity of an economics manager implies analytical work aimed at studying, forecasting and managing business processes from an economic point of view. An economist, endowed with management functions, is not only well versed in the norms and laws, but also knows how to do analytical work. The responsibility of the economist-manager is the basis of any business is its profitability.

To master this difficult profession, a person requires an inclination of the mind to exact sciences and a special character set. Of the personal qualities of people who have dedicated their lives to the profession of economist, the following can be distinguished:

• attentiveness, accuracy and a high level of responsibility;
• interest in studying such disciplines as mathematics, logic, economics;
• the ability to clearly structure and analyze a large amount of information consisting of numbers;
• well-developed ability to express their thoughts and be able to convince other people, justifying their arguments with facts;
• high level of self-discipline, accuracy, attention to detail, perseverance;
• desire for self-improvement and increase the level of their knowledge;
• interest in global economic trends;
• the ability to predict and make analytical forecasts.

There is no novelty and frequent change of scenery in this profession, but the economy attracts those people who, having a good memory and the ability to operate with numbers, find pleasure in this.

The profession of economist-manager in Russia and abroad is considered prestigious. Not every graduate of a specialized educational institution is able to become a professional. But whoever remains faithful to the chosen business finds certain advantages for himself in it:

• high demand for a profession in the labor market;
• rapid career and wage growth;
• a wide range of skills and the ability to work in your own business;
• the opportunity to work in related specialties related to the economy.

The disadvantages of the profession include the following:

• activity is associated with the constant use of a computer, while the daily load on the organs of vision and spine can lead to health problems;
• it is difficult for a graduate without work experience to start work in the chosen direction;
• very high responsibility and risk of error create stress;
• for promising positions with high earnings quite high competition.

At first, a career may not be as well paid as we would like. A graduate of the university will at best be taken by an intern or assistant of an experienced specialist, while the salary at first will be small - from 15 to 25 thousand rubles. And only after 3-5 years, when experience will be gained, can we expect a salary increase of 30-35 thousand or more.

Depending on the volume of the company and the annual cash turnover, the responsibilities that the economist manager deals with will vary. But the main tasks, the implementation of which implies this specialty, are the following:

• performance of work on market analysis and planning, based on it, of a company's development strategy;
• short-term and long-term business development planning of the company;
• profit calculation for current business projects and their economic feasibility;
• promotion of economic and managerial decisions for the development of the company;
• analysis of the competitive environment and assessment of their positions;
• control over the movement and distribution of financial flows in the company;
• forecasting possible risks and choosing a method for their optimization;
• economic justification of pricing, investment efficiency, determination of the volume of the wage fund, current household expenses.

The scope of the knowledge and skills of an economist is very large. To solve the tasks set before him, a specialist needs to master not only theoretical knowledge, but also be able to put it into practice. Besides, the position implies knowledge of computer programs used at this enterprise for carrying out entrepreneurial activities.

The profession of economist-manager is quite universal and can be in demand in various sectors of the economy.High qualifications and work experience will make it possible to find a job in the field of IT-technologies as an economist in the department of computer information systems. In commercial structures, the economist will find application as a marketing analyst, procurement or sales manager, accounting specialist, be able to fulfill the duties of an employee of the planning department or engage in investments.

Often, enterprises require experienced economists in labor and wages, managers of the contract department, specialists in working with complaints. If you wish, you can find work in the banking sector, engage in trade, production, the provision of educational or business services, scientific research. All these areas are associated with the economy, therefore, for their development, the profession of economist is simply irreplaceable.

If you decide to look for work abroad, then it is worth considering that diplomas of some Russian universities are very appreciated and there. For example, they are willing to hire specialists with experience who have graduated from Plekhanov University of Economics, MGIMO, Lomonosov Moscow State University, and Higher School of Economics. For successful employment, additional profile education will be a good plus.