Bart van Ark is Executive Vice President and chief economist of The Conference Board. He leads a team of almost two dozen economists in New York, Brussels and Beijing, who produce a range of widely watched economic indicators and growth forecasts, as well as in-depth global economic research.

A Dutch national, he is the first non-U.S. chief economist in the nearly one century history of The Conference Board. Van Ark is also responsible for the entire research program at The Conference Board which, in addition to Economics and Business Environment, includes research on Human Capital and Corporate Leadership.

He continues to steward the longstanding research collaboration of The Conference Board with the University of Groningen in the Netherlands; a professor there since 2000, he holds the university’s chair in Economic Development, Technological Change and Growth.

Dr. Van Ark has been extensively published in national and international academic journals, and is frequently featured in major international business media, including Bloomberg, CNBC, the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal.