About · biography
Miguel Ángel
Santos
Director, The Growth Co-Lab · LSE
Bio
From biographical files
I joined the School of Public Policy at the London School of Economics (LSE) in 2021 as Visiting Professor in Practice and Director of the Growth Co-Lab, a joint LSE-Harvard venture aimed at bringing together the capacities, expertise, and reach of two top academic institutions to expand the activities of the Harvard Growth Lab globally.
Previously, I worked as Director of Applied Research at the Harvard Growth Lab, leading teams in policy engagements aimed at developing top-notch research to help governments rethink their growth and development strategies. In these eight years at the Harvard Growth Lab, I was directly involved in projects at the national level in Mexico, Peru, Panama, Venezuela, Jordan, Albania, and Namibia; at the state level in Loreto (Peru) and Chiapas (Mexico); and at the city level in Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Hermosillo (Mexico). I also performed as Adjunct Lecturer at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and as a Visiting Lecturer at the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago, teaching courses in Empirical Methods, Development Economics, Economic Growth and Development, and Policy Development Strategy to graduate students in public policy and public administration over the same period.
Before joining the field of development economics, I worked for a decade in executive roles in corporate finance and business development in Latin America, performing as Director of Finance for the Cisneros Group of Companies (1997-2003), Head of Corporate Finance for Mercantil Servicios Financieros (2005-2007), and Business Vice-President for Sony Pictures and Entertainment Latin America (2008-2009).
I hold two Master of Science degrees in International Finance and Trade (2011) and Economics (2012) from Universitat Pompeu Fabra, a Master in Public Administration from Harvard University (2014), and a Ph.D. in Economics at Universidad de Barcelona (2016).
Academic trajectory
Five institutions, thirty years.
-
1995 — Present
IESA
Caracas · VenezuelaMBA (1995). Aggregate Professor since 2007 — the Venezuelan academic home I never fully left behind.
-
2011 — 2012
Pompeu Fabra
Barcelona · SpainTwo consecutive master’s degrees in Economics and International Finance. The late academic reinvention begins here.
-
2014 — 2023
Harvard Growth Lab
Cambridge MA · USAMPA (2014). Director of Applied Research. Engagements in Mexico, Peru, Panama, Jordan, Albania, Namibia.
-
2021 — 2023
LSE Growth Co-Lab
London · UKFounder and director · Visiting Professor in Practice. An LSE—Harvard partnership to scale the methodology.
-
2023 — Present
Tec de Monterrey
Monterrey · Mexico CityDean, EGAP — training the public leaders Latin America will need over the coming decade.
Research
The ten areas that have shaped my work.
Click any area to see its associated papers, essays and projects — cross-referenced with the Atlas taxonomy.
Academic appointments
-
2023 — Present
Dean · School of Government and Public Transformation Tecnológico de Monterrey · Mexico
-
2021 — 2023
Director · Growth Co-Lab London School of Economics · Visiting Professor in Practice
-
2014 — 2023
Director of Applied Research Harvard Growth Lab · Center for International Development
-
2014 — Present
Adjunct Lecturer Harvard Kennedy School
-
2007 — Present
Aggregate Professor IESA · Caracas, Venezuela
Education
-
2016
PhD in Economics Universidad de Barcelona
-
2014
Master in Public Administration (MPA) Harvard Kennedy School
-
2012
MSc in Economics Universitat Pompeu Fabra · Barcelona GSE
-
2011
MSc in International Finance and Trade Universitat Pompeu Fabra · Barcelona GSE
-
1995
MBA IESA · Caracas, Venezuela
Career
Three decades in one line.
— Bio
From biographical files
Director, The Growth Co-Lab at LSE
School of Public Policy, London School of Economics and Political ScienceI joined the School of Public Policy at the London School of Economics (LSE) in 2021 as Visiting Professor in Practice and Director of the Growth Co-Lab, a joint LSE-Harvard venture aimed at bringing together the capacities, expertise, and reach of two top academic institutions to expand the activities of the Harvard Growth Lab globally.
Previously, I worked as Director of Applied Research at the Harvard Growth Lab, leading teams in policy engagements aimed at developing top notch research to help governments rethink their growth and development strategies. In these eight years at the Harvard Growth Lab, I was directly involved in projects at the national level in Mexico, Peru, Panama, Venezuela, Jordan, Albania, and Namibia; at the state level in Loreto (Peru) and Chiapas (Mexico); and at the city level in Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Hermosillo (Mexico). I also performed as Adjunct Lecturer at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and as a Visiting Lecturer at the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago, teaching courses in Empirical Methods, Development Economics, Economic Growth and Development, and Policy Development Strategy to graduate students in public policy and public administration over the same period.
Before joining the field of development economics, I worked for a decade on executive roles in corporate finance and business development in Latin America for a decade, performing as Director of Finance for the Cisneros Group of Companies (1997-2003), Head of Corporate Finance for Mercantil Servicios Financieros (2005-2007), and Business Vice-President for Sony Pictures and Entertainment Latin America (2008-2009).
I hold two Master of Science degrees in International Finance and Trade (2011) and Economics (2012) from Universitat Pompeu Fabra, a Master in Public Administration from Harvard University (2014), and a Ph.D. in Economics at Universidad de Barcelona (2016).
In the press
Cited, discussed and reviewed.
Appearances of the work in international media, academic blogs and official reports.
-
London School of Economics
Knowledge Diffusion as a Cornerstone of Economic Recovery in the Post-COVID World
-
Naciones Unidas · DESA
Promoting Sustainable and Inclusive Growth in Namibia
-
Alnavío
El equipo de Hausmann tumba las «evidencias engañosas» de Sachs y Weisbrot sobre las sanciones contra Maduro
-
Banca y Negocios
Venezuela necesita hasta 70.000 millones de dólares para superar la crisis económica
-
El Mercurio
El costo para que Venezuela salga adelante podría ser de US$ 80 mil millones
-
The New Yorker
Venezuela’s Food Crisis Reaches a Breaking Point
-
El País
¿Cuántos días hay que trabajar en Venezuela para comprar un kilo de pollo?
-
Financial Times
IMF Crunches the Numbers for Possible Venezuela Rescue