Maggie Switek, PhD, is senior director of the Milken Institute’s Research Department, where she heads all projects related to competitiveness and access to economic opportunities across regions and communities in the US and abroad. Before joining the Institute, Switek worked in academia and consulting, developing a broad range of expertise in antitrust, intellectual property, labor, public policy, and well-being. Her experience in antitrust includes working with counsel and enforcement agencies to evaluate the impacts of changes in the competitive landscape on consumers’ welfare.

In research, Switek’s interests include regional competitiveness, economic mobility, development, and labor. She has published studies on the topics of the US-Mexico commercial relationship, growth and access to economic opportunities across communities in the US, factors driving global investment patterns, and the impact of rapid economic growth (and accompanying economic changes) on well-being in China. Switek received her PhD in economics from the University of Southern California in 2014.