About

I am an applied economist with a background that spans engineering, statistics, and economics. I started my career as a software developer, which taught me how systems are built. Graduate training in statistics and then economics taught me how to extract rigorous signal from data. Two and a half years of client advisory work at Digonex taught me how to turn rigorous analysis into decisions that organizations actually make.

My doctoral dissertation at Iowa State University developed dynamic structural economic models of the U.S. beef cattle industry, with applications to disease outbreak scenarios and agricultural policy analysis. Calibration required designing a semi-genetic optimization algorithm combining biological population dynamics with market equilibrium conditions, an approach I developed because standard methods were insufficient for the problem structure. That work required building complex models from scratch in an unfamiliar domain using real industry data, the same challenge that every new consulting engagement presents. My working paper on two-sided marketplace pricing applies the same approach to e-commerce: start with the economics, build the framework carefully, and deliver findings that a practitioner can act on.

At Digonex I managed 20+ ongoing client accounts across the U.S., U.K., and Canada as the primary economist and strategic advisor. That meant conducting strategy sessions, presenting findings to executives, convincing skeptical clients to change how they price their products, and staying accountable for results across a portfolio of relationships over multiple years. The work generated $27M in incremental revenue impact across the client portfolio.

I am based in Indianapolis and fully open to relocating to Chicago or working remotely.

Education

  • PhD, Economics — Iowa State University
  • MS, Statistics — Iowa State University
  • MS, Information Systems — Iowa State University
  • BE, Electronics and Communication Engineering — CVR College of Engineering

Outside of Work

Aside from building models and working with data, I enjoy vegetable gardening, cooking, reading, and listening to podcasts. I weight lift regularly and rock climb both indoors and outdoors. I have climbed at Joshua Tree National Park in California, Fern in Arkansas, and Devil's Lake in Wisconsin.

Some books I have enjoyed:

  • The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves — Matt Ridley
  • Economics Without Equilibrium — W. Brian Arthur
  • The Evolution of Everything: How New Ideas Emerge — Matt Ridley
  • Causal Inference: The Mixtape — Scott Cunningham

Podcast I return to regularly: EconTalk hosted by Russ Roberts.

Some of my outdoor climbing adventures