Sep

Cost-benefit analysis for non-economists

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Event description

This online course provides an overview of cost-benefit analysis (CBA) for non-economists in government, consulting and finance.

About this event

The course

This course provides an overview of cost-benefit analysis (CBA) for non-economists. Delivered fully online in three half-day sessions of 2 1/2 hours each, the course is designed to support your training from the comfort and safety of your own home.

The course covers all key aspects of cost-benefit analysis including how to value the benefits of policies, discounting, distributional analysis, risk and sensitivity analysis and appropriate summary measures. Limitations of cost-benefit analysis are also covered.

The course facilitates learning by providing a mixture of direct training and interactive exercises. The course draws on UK Green Book appraisal techniques and guidance used in other countries, and uses real world case studies to demonstrate CBA techniques applied in practice.

Who should come?

This course is designed for government analysts (outside economics), and policy and finance professionals who are involved in business cases and impact assessments. It is also ideal for non-economists in consultancies, think tanks or charities who work on policy issues or closely with government where cost-benefit analysis is used.

Learning outcomes

The course will give you the tools to effectively understand, participate in and review cost-benefit analysis. In particular, you will:

gain a solid understanding of relevant terminology such as discounting, optimism bias and non-market valuation, and how assumptions and choices made shape the results of CBA;
acquire the skills to quickly and effectively critique CBA analysis; and
gain confidence in discussions on CBA, including with senior decision makers and Ministers.

Course delivery

The course is delivered fully online over three half-day sessions. It will be presented by Catherine Connolly from economicsense and is highly interactive with whiteboards, chats, Q&A and surveys. A copy of the slides will be circulated after the course.

There is no need to download any apps or software as the course is delivered through a web-based application - you only need to click on a web link. Full joining instructions will be sent ahead of the course.

Price

The price for the course is £270, which includes £45 of VAT. Your invoice will state the VAT paid and Economicsense Ltd's VAT Registration Number of 376550278.

Your tutor

Catherine Connolly is the founder of economicsense, a specialist economics training provider. Catherine is also on the Council of the Society of Professional Economists, and teaches policy economics at Leeds University.

Since establishing economicsense in 2018, Catherine has taught hundreds of professionals in government ministries, corporates and regulators across the UK, delivering both online and in direct training sessions. Catherine has also provided technical assistance to international economic institutions.

Prior to setting up economicsense, Catherine was in the British Civil Service where she was a member of the Government Economic Service and the Senior Civil Service. She worked at HM Treasury, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), and at the former Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). She has also worked for Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt, the New Zealand Treasury and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. In these roles Catherine worked on a wide range of economic topics covering macroeconomic forecasting, globalisation, monetary policy and cost-benefit analysis, the latter including working on the 2018 edition of HM Treasury’s Green Book.

Catherine studied at Otago University in New Zealand, where she gained a post-graduate honours degree, specialising in macro-economics.