Junior Research Analyst

The Junior Research Analyst provides the data-driven foundation for our advisory work by verifying the financial assumptions that underpin major corporate decisions. This role currently supports a high-stakes project where our client is an East Coast industrial group evaluating the long-term economics of its current portfolio.

About Blue Oak Consulting
Blue Oak Consulting provides independent advisory on pricing, portfolio economics, capital allocation, and acquisition assumptions. We are not a traditional consulting firm focused on broad transformation programs or high level strategy decks. Instead, we interrogate specific commercial decisions where the financial stakes are high and the existing narrative is not sufficient. Our team looks past corporate language and P&L complexity to identify where value is leaking or capital is trapped.
We work across sectors like software, manufacturing, and healthcare to test whether the assumptions behind a growth plan or an acquisition actually hold under pressure. We are a small, principal-led firm where the people who do the work are the ones accountable for the results. We do not take transaction contingent fees, which allows us to be completely honest about whether the economics of a decision make sense. Our goal is to provide clarity through financial discipline and a healthy amount of skepticism. We stay through the execution phase because decisions that look sound in theory often fail when they meet real world friction.

The Role
As a Junior Research Analyst, you work directly with our firm principals to dismantle complex financial problems. This is a fully remote position that requires a high degree of self-discipline and a genuine interest in what makes a business profitable. Rather than producing dozens of aesthetic slides, your focus is on the integrity of the data and the logic of the argument. You will spend your time looking under the hood of financial statements to find where the numbers do not align with the stated corporate strategy. The environment is quiet and focused, prioritizing deep thinking over constant meetings.

What You Will Be Doing

• Reviewing historical P&L data to identify trends in margin erosion or unexpected cost spikes.
• Testing the validity of pricing assumptions in financial models to see how they perform under different market scenarios.
• Gathering market data and benchmarks to compare client performance against industry standards.
• Building and maintaining spreadsheets that isolate specific commercial variables for closer inspection.
• Extracting key data points from dense annual reports and internal financial documents.
• Supporting the drafting of memos that translate complex data into clear, actionable findings.
• Verifying that acquisition targets meet the economic criteria established at the start of an engagement.
• Monitoring the progress of execution phases to see if realized results match the original projections.

What You Bring

• A university degree in finance, economics, mathematics, or a similar field involving quantitative analysis.
• Practical comfort with Microsoft Excel, including the ability to organize large datasets clearly.
• A skeptical mindset that looks for evidence before accepting a conclusion.
• The ability to write clearly and concisely without relying on corporate jargon.
• Strong attention to detail and the patience to check work for accuracy multiple times.
• A preference for working independently in a remote environment where communication is primarily written.
• An interest in learning how capital is actually allocated within large organizations.
• Basic understanding of financial statements, including balance sheets and cash flow reports.

What We Offer

• A permanent, full-time position with a competitive salary for the entry-level market.
• A fully remote work arrangement that respects your time and focuses on output.
• Direct mentorship from senior principals who have decades of experience in financial advisory.
• The opportunity to work on high-stakes projects that have a direct impact on client economics.
• A workplace culture that values financial discipline and intellectual honesty over optics.
• Exposure to a variety of industries, from healthcare to industrial manufacturing.
• Structured training on our specific methods for analyzing portfolio economics and pricing.

Working at Blue Oak Consulting means choosing a path that prioritizes substance. We believe that clarity comes from a willingness to ask difficult questions and a commitment to following the data wherever it leads. Our team values colleagues who take pride in the accuracy of their work and who understand that even small errors in a model can lead to significant consequences in the real world. You will find that we are more interested in your ability to think critically than in your ability to follow a standard consulting script.