Design Consultant - Economic and Community Development, Sports & Major Events

Fourth Economy is a national consulting firm that collaborates with communities, organizations, and regions to imagine and build resilient, inclusive, and thriving futures. Founded in Pittsburgh in 2010, we believe that lasting impact comes from genuine partnership. Each client and each project is distinct. We intentionally combine research, analytics, planning, strategy development, and community engagement to create data-driven strategies that will be shaped by the people they touch.

We work across a wide range of markets and industries, including business districts, housing, community health, cultural and outdoor economies, equitable development, emerging industries, organizational strategy, environment and climate, and quality of life and place. In each of these areas, we help clients solve complex problems by exploring new ideas, elevating community voices, and designing solutions that are practical, creative, and grounded in equity.

In 2021, Fourth Economy joined Steer, a global consultancy specializing in transportation, infrastructure, and urban development. Steer brings deep expertise in strategy, advisory, planning, and design, helping clients worldwide navigate the systems that shape how people move, live, and work.

Together, we combine innovative, people-centered solutions with global expertise. Our expanded team helps communities and organizations not only plan for the future, but create it – delivering measurable outcomes that strengthen economies, improve quality of life, and expand opportunity for all.

The Opportunity

Fourth Economy is seeking a Design Consultant to lead visual design and technical communication across economic development projects, with some involvement in sports and major events work.

This role sits at the intersection of analysis, strategy, and storytelling. You will work comfortably with data and complex content, producing clear, client-ready materials that support decision-making. You will be embedded in project teams alongside analysts, economists, planners, and project managers, shaping how insights are communicated from early drafts through final delivery.

Approximately 75-80 percent of your time will be dedicated to client work, primarily economic development projects, with a portion allocated to sports and major events initiatives. The remaining time will support marketing, business development, and firm-wide design needs. This includes proposal materials, conference presentations, website content, pitch decks, internal templates, and brand-aligned materials across both external and internal audiences.

This is a highly integrated design role. You will help maintain visual consistency across client deliverables, proposals, digital platforms, and internal communications, while adapting tone and format to different audiences. Over time, there is an opportunity to help strengthen the design foundation of both Fourth Economy and Steer’s North America Sports and Major Events practice and elevate the overall visual quality of the firm’s work.

How You’ll Spend Your Time

Client Work (approximately 75-80%)

You will lead and produce visual materials that support economic development and, secondarily, sports and major events client work, including:

• Client presentations and executive decks designed for clarity, storytelling, and decision-making
• Reports and technical documents, including layout, graphics, and visual hierarchy
• One-pagers, executive summaries, and briefing materials for boards, elected officials, funders, and partners
• Brand-aligned visuals for initiatives, programs, and place-based strategies
• Data visualization, including charts, infographics, and economic impact graphics
• Spatial, movement, and flow diagrams, including mass movement graphics where relevant

You will collaborate closely with analysts, economists, planners, and project managers to translate quantitative and qualitative analysis into accurate, accessible visuals. You will ensure visual quality and consistency while tailoring materials to different audiences.

Business Development & Internal Support (approximately 20-25%)

In addition to client work, you will contribute to strengthening the firm’s visibility, proposal competitiveness, and overall design consistency across external and internal platforms.

• Lead proposal design for economic development and sports-related pursuits
• Design materials for conferences, presentations, and business development
• Maintain and evolve internal design templates, toolkits, and visual standards
• Collaborate with marketing and leadership on visual positioning and storytelling

Requirements

• Comfort working in a fast-paced consulting environment with shifting timelines
• 5+ years of professional experience in design, visual communications, or technical communications
• Strong experience producing PowerPoint and Google Slides for client and executive audiences
• Demonstrated ability to translate data, analysis, and technical content into clear visuals
• Experience designing reports, presentations, one-pagers, and branded materials
• Strong project management skills and ability to manage multiple priorities independently

Required Tools & Platforms

• Candidates must have working proficiency in:
• Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop)
• PowerPoint and Google Slides
• Canva and Figma for collaborative design and layout
• Wix, WordPress, and Squarespace for client-facing and internal web content

A creative, growth-oriented mindset is essential, along with the initiative to identify and adopt new tools and approaches that strengthen design quality and improve how we work.

Additional Experience That Is Valuable

• Experience with economic development or place-based strategy
• Experience supporting sports or major events initiatives
• Videography and/or photography skills
• Copywriting and editing
• Bilingual English/Spanish

Location & Travel

This role is primarily remote but is intended for candidates only based in or near: Atlanta, GA; Boston, MA; Buffalo, NY; Cleveland, OH; Philadelphia, PA; Pittsburgh, PA; Providence, RI; Richmond, VA; Rochester, NY; and Syracuse, NY.

At this time, we are not considering candidates from other locations. The role may require travel up to 2-3 times per month for client meetings and project work.

Benefits

Salary and Benefits

• This is a full-time remote position with a salary range of $60-80K/year plus benefits, which include:
• Health, dental, vision & life insurance
• Short-term & long-term disability
• 3% of salary is automatically contributed to the employee's 401K retirement plan
• Monthly phone stipend
• 20 Days PTO, 9 holidays, 3 floating holidays, and 10 sick days annually
• Paid parental leave
• Workplace ergonomic assessment and resulting accommodations
• Professional development funds for training and pursuit or maintenance of a recognized credential.

Be advised that this is an estimated benchmark salary of good faith. All compensation, regardless of location, may be subject to change as skills, abilities, and internal equity are considered. In addition to base salary, all employees will be eligible for an annual discretionary performance bonus. Fourth Economy reserves the right to ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and offer additional compensation.

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

We welcome all candidates regardless of race, color, ancestry, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, Veteran status, or any other legally protected status. Any other human expressions and experiences not mentioned here are equally welcome. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and will provide reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants, unless such accommodation would cause an undue hardship for the company.

Application & Interview Process

We use a structured, skills-focused hiring process.

Application materials:

• Resume
• Portfolio of work demonstrating visual storytelling, data visualization, and client-ready design

Interview process

We use a structured, stage-based hiring process. Not all applicants will advance to each round.

Stage 1: Initial Interview (30 minutes, Zoom): A conversation with the hiring and reporting manager focused on your background, interest in the role, and alignment with the position.

Stage 2: Team Interview & Portfolio Review (60 minutes, Zoom): Selected candidates will meet with members of the team to discuss experience in more depth and walk through relevant portfolio examples.

Stage 3: Design Exercise (Short Assignment & Blind Review): A small group of finalists will complete a brief design exercise. Submissions will be reviewed anonymously by members of the team before a discussion conversation.

Stage 4: Final Conversation (30 minutes, Zoom or in person): One to two finalists will meet with leadership to discuss role expectations, team fit, and compensation.