WPI Economics has recruited expert economist Rob Fontana-Reval to its London wing. He joins a the firm’s chief economist – a role he also recently held with the UK Government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
Founded in 2016, WPI Economics is a London-based consultancy which helps inform clients on areas of economics, policy consulting and data insight. The firm works with a range of organisations – from FTSE 100 companies, to SMEs, charities, central and local government – to assist them in influencing and delivering better outcomes through improved public policy design and delivery.
Central to this is a senior team which is involved in all of WPI’s work, giving clients access to economics, policy and data experts with decades of experience of working at the highest level of policy and analysis within and outside of government. To help the firm maintain that guarantee, as demand continues to grow, WPI has appointed a new expert to serve as its chief economist.
A statement from WPI’s LinkedIn said, “We’re delighted to welcome Rob Fontana-Reval to the team at WPI Economics. Formerly Chief Economist at the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport, Rob previously spent nine years at the Treasury, where he built broad and deep macroeconomic expertise and led major analyses of Brexit, Covid and net zero as a senior civil servant.”
Fontana-Reval arrives at WPI following almost two decades working as an economist in the public sector. With a Master’s in Economics and Public Policy from the University of Bristol, Fontana-Reval soon found himself working for the national government, first as a tax economist with HM Revenues and Customs, then as an economic advisor with HM Treasury.
Fontana took on a two-year stint as the head of economic policy at the Confederation of British Industry, before re-joining the Treasury, latterly serving as deputy director for structural economic analysis. Finally, he spent a year with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, as chief economist, before joining WPI.
Looking ahead, Fontana-Reval will focus on increasing WPI’s portfolio of clients and offering his expertise in developing impactful and insightful economic analysis, including modelling, impact assessments and evaluations. At the same time, he will have the chance to collaborate with the firm’s outgoing chief economist, James Edgar, who has decided to remain with WPI in a new part-time role as senior advisor on specific projects.
Speaking on his new challenge, Fontana-Reval said in his own LinkedIn post, “It’s a big change for me – having spent most of my career in the Civil Service – and one I’m really excited about. WPI Economics piqued my interest from the outset, given their nimble, innovative and insightful approach to a broad spectrum of big economic issues, and then I met the fantastic team which completely sold it for me! It’s fantastic to now be part of that team and to get started – watch this space!”
