Rolf Alter

Dr. Rolf Alter is an experienced economist and Senior Fellow at the Hertie School. He spent over 25 years at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris. In 2006, he was appointed Chief of Staff to the OECD Secretary-General, and in 2009 he became Director of Public Governance. Alter built a team of over 200 staff to support governments in improving their public sector performance for inclusive growth and economic competitiveness. He previously also worked for the IMF in Washington, DC, and for the German Ministry of Economy in Bonn. For the last several years, he has been a member of the Advisory Board of the Global Risks Report of the World Economic Forum. Alter’s interests include institutional and regulatory reform, productivity, innovation, results-oriented budgeting, transparency, leadership and integrity. He holds a doctorate from the University of Göttingen. In 2013, he received a doctorate h.c. from the National University of Hungary and in 2016 was awarded the O.P. Dwivedi Award by the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration (IASIA) for his outstanding contribution to public administration and policy. In July 2021, the UN Economic and Social Council approved Rolf’s appointment of to the UN Committee of Experts on Public Administration (UNCEPA) following his nomination by the UN Secretary-General for a four-year term. UNCEPA provides expert policy advice and programmatic guidance to the UN Economic and Social Council on issues relating to governance, public administration structures and processes. The Committee plays a key role in supporting the implementation of the SDGs of the UN Agenda 2030.