Technical article: Policy consulting and public affairs – understanding the practice. (2026)
Part 9: Economic policy
Unlike many other policy areas, economic policy is not a clearly defined subject but rather a cross-cutting task that spans ministries and levels of government.
This article shows how economic policy decisions emerge from the interplay of industrial, energy, climate, labor market, innovation, digitalization, and European policies, and why successful policy advisory work must systematically take this complexity into account.
The focus is on the specific logic governing actors and decision-making in economic policy, the critical importance of economic analysis, and the impact of international competitiveness on Germany as a business location. At the same time, the article highlights the key trade-offs between growth, transformation, sustainability, and global competitive pressure, and analyzes common misconceptions in economic policy advocacy.
It becomes clear that effective public affairs in this policy area can only succeed if in-depth expertise, international context, and strategic coordination are brought together across ministerial, administrative, and sectoral boundaries.
This article is part 9 of a ten-part series titled “Policy consulting and public affairs – understanding the practice.” In the tenth part, real estate policy is examined as a policy area, and it is shown how issues related to tax, fiscal, economic, and construction policy converge in this area to form a particularly complex policy arena.
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