For more than 40 years, Northern Economics has been Alaska’s trusted economics expert. Increasingly, our clients’ trust has allowed us to perform meaningful, unbiased analyses of projects throughout Alaska, across the Pacific Northwest and around the world. Our clients’ confidence in our services is founded in our over 40-year track record and our ability to bring clarity to complex issues through meaningful economic, financial and planning analysis. We have a well-earned reputation for transforming data into wisdom for our clients, enabling them to make better decisions
Northern Economics’ performance is the direct result of our excellent staff. Our professionals are experts in economics, financial feasibility analysis, business planning, demographics and population studies, resource economics, market research and socioeconomic impact assessment.
Simply put, we know where to look and how to weigh multiple variables to interpret data without bias.
Our Areas of Expertise
A feasibility study is a process that defines exactly what a project is and what strategic issues need to be considered to assess its feasibility, or likelihood of succeeding.
Feasibility analysis evaluates all key factors pertinent to a project, including the economic, technological, and legal aspects and project time frame — all of which help predict the likelihood of project success.
Feasibility analysis, also known as Feasibility Study, intends to equitably and logically examine the pros and cons of an existing or a proposed business, dangers related to the venture, required resources to carry out the operations, and eventually the probability of success.
Feasibility analysis gives a clear picture of the budget required and the returns that can be expected. A feasibility study is not restricted to forecasting monetary benefits. It can be used for other purposes depending upon the target of the project and the industry to which it belongs.
A cost-benefit analysis is the process of comparing the projected or estimated costs and benefits (or opportunities) associated with a project decision to determine whether it makes sense from a business perspective.
Cost–benefit analysis (CBA), sometimes also called benefit–cost analysis, is a systematic approach to estimating the strengths and weaknesses of alternatives. It is used to determine options which provide the best approach to achieving benefits while preserving savings in, for example, transactions, activities, and functional business requirements.[1] A CBA may be used to compare completed or potential courses of action, and to estimate or evaluate the value against the cost of a decision, project, or policy. It is commonly used to evaluate business or policy decisions (particularly public policy), commercial transactions, and project investments.
A business plan is a written document that describes in detail how a business—usually a startup—defines its objectives and how it is to go about achieving its goals. A business plan lays out a written roadmap for the firm from marketing, financial, and operational standpoints.
What are the three main purposes of a business plan?
The three most important purposes of a business plan are 1) to create an effective strategy for growth, 2) to determine your future financial needs, and 3) to attract investors (including angel investors and VC funding) and lenders.
What are the five elements of a business plan?
At their core, business plans have five basic pieces of information. They include a description of your business, an analysis of your competitive environment, a marketing plan, a section on HR (people requirements) and key financial information.
A market analysis is a thorough assessment of a market within a specific industry. With this analysis, you will study the dynamics of your market, such as volume and value, potential customer segments, buying patterns, competition, and other important factors.
What should a market analysis include?
What to include in your market analysis. Your market analysis should include an overview of your industry, a look at your target market, an analysis of your competition, your own projections for your business, and any regulations you’ll need to comply with.
How is market analysis done?
Take the time to research what other businesses are out there. Look at things like your competition’s offerings, location, targeted customers, and disadvantages in the market. Make a list of all of your main competitors. Go through each one on the list and determine their strengths and weaknesses (SWOT analysis).
What are the 4 types of market analysis?
Four common types of market research techniques include surveys, interviews, focus groups, and customer observation.
What is market analysis of a project?
Market analysis studies market needs and consumer preferences for a given project idea and demand analysis aims at calculating the aggregated demand for a particular product or service.
Financial Analysis
Financial analysis is the process of evaluating businesses, projects, budgets, and other finance-related transactions to determine their performance and suitability. Typically, financial analysis is used to analyze whether an entity is stable, solvent, liquid, or profitable enough to warrant a monetary investment.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- If conducted internally, financial analysis can help fund managers make future business decisions or review historical trends for past successes.
- If conducted externally, financial analysis can help investors choose the best possible investment opportunities.
- Fundamental analysis and technical analysis are the two main types of financial analysis.
- Fundamental analysis uses ratios and financial statement data to determine the intrinsic value of a security.
- Technical analysis assumes a security’s value is already determined by its price, and it focuses instead on trends in value over time.
Fiscal Analysis involves activities such as formulating budget and cost estimates to support plans, programs and activities. Fiscal Analysts review and evaluate budget requests, review requests for apportionment and allotments and review, control and report obligations and expenditures.
In the broadest sense, fiscal analysis is any analysis that has to do with budgets, finances, and money matters over time. The phrase is most frequently found in government settings, however.
There exist several prevailing methods of financial analysis, but all draw a connection between three factors: money available, money requested, and money spent. Analysts are usually looking at government spending with budget as a backdrop, but the point of the analysis is not always to track whether a government or government entity stayed within any prescribed budget. Fiscal analysis studies are usually more concerned with how money was delegated and whether certain groups or entities received disproportionate payouts.
The job of a fiscal analyst is usually different from that of a financial analyst. Both work with money and track spending, but a financial analyst is usually concerned only with a single private sector company’s spending or solvency. Corporate financial analysts work with accountants and budget executives to track a company’s stability over time. On the surface, financial analysis can look like fiscal analysis, but the end results are usually used very differently.
Socioeconomic is relating to or concerned with the interaction of social and economic factors.
What are the 5 socioeconomic factors?
Socio-economic factors include occupation, education, income, wealth and where someone lives.
What is the study of socioeconomics?
Social economics, also known as socioeconomics, is the social science and branch of economics that studies the interrelation between economic activity and social behavior. Social economics analyzes how the economy is affected by social norms, ethics, sentiments, and other factors.
What is socioeconomics example?
Social and economic factors, such as income, education, employment, community safety, and social supports can significantly affect how well and how long we live. These factors affect our ability to make healthy choices, afford medical care and housing, manage stress, and more.
What Are Demographics?
Demographic analysis is the study of a population-based on factors such as age, race, and sex. Demographic data refers to socioeconomic information expressed statistically, including employment, education, income, marriage rates, birth and death rates, and more.
Governments, corporations, and non-government organizations use demographics to learn more about a population’s characteristics for many purposes, including policy development and economic market research.
The U.S. Census Bureau collects demographic data on the American population every year through the American Community Survey (ACS) and every 10-years via an in-depth count of every American household
Socioeconomic analysis and demographics are closely related, and both are used in things like environmental impact statements for things like environmental justice assessments.
Depending on their size and complexity, cities may prepare fiscal impact analyses and/or comprehensive annexation studies to evaluate the impacts of proposed annexations. These are often detailed reports prepared by consultants.
General statements consist of descriptions of county, special district, or municipal services, and may include information on service areas and boundaries, policies, rates, deficiencies, costs, and effects of annexation on level of service and costs.
RCAC provides rate studies to water and wastewater utilities to promote utility sustainability, rate stability, and fairness to ratepayers. While it can be challenging in tough economic times, setting an adequate rate structure is essential for the utility’s sustainability. Rates must recover the “true costs” of providing service, including all operational costs, funding of necessary reserve accounts, and debt service, if applicable.
To conduct a rate study, RCAC will review a utility’s current rate structure, historic financial and use information, balance sheet obligations, equipment, and planned improvements. From this information and factoring in inflation, a five-year annual cost estimate will be projected. Once the projected costs have been determined, an analysis of the current rate structure’s ability to produce adequate revenue to recover the costs for the five-year period will be conducted. Depending on the analysis results, a rate adjustment or alternative rate structure may be recommended.
Surveys are used to gather or gain knowledge in fields such as social research and demography. Survey research is often used to assess thoughts, opinions and feelings. Surveys can be specific and limited, or they can have more global, widespread goals.
Surveys can be used as a method of primary data collection.
Is a survey qualitative or quantitative?
A survey can be qualitative, quantitative or mix methods. If your survey involves a questionnaire with scalable answers then it is a quantitative survey. If your survey has descriptive questions with in-depth answers then it is a qualitative survey.
What kind of research is a survey?
Survey research is a quantitative approach that features the use of self-report measures on carefully selected samples. It is a flexible approach that can be used to study a wide variety of basic and applied research questions.