Rolf Alter joined the David Hume Institute in a conversation about public sector productivity, discussing its macroeconomic significance, (failed) approaches to measuring it and its public policy and governance implications.

Dr Rolf Alter, an experienced economist, is a Senior Fellow of the HERTIE School of Governance in Berlin, and a member of the Advisory Board of the WEF Global Risk Report. This follows over 25 years at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris. He was Chief of Staff to the current OECD Secretary-General and was appointed Director of Public Governance in 2009, when he built a team of 200 staff to support governments around the world in improving their public sector performance for inclusive growth and the competitiveness of their economies. Dr Alter has also worked for the IMF in Washington, and for the German Ministry of Economy in Bonn. 

Dr Alter has a strong interest in research of empirical evidence and good policy practice in all areas of public sector governance, including institutional and regulatory reform, productivity, innovation, results-oriented budgeting, transparency, leadership and integrity. 

Dr Alter has a doctorate degree from the University of Göettingen, Germany. In 2016 he was awarded the O.P. Dwivedi prize by the IASIA for outstanding contribution to public administration and policy in the world.