Kriengsak Chareonwongsak

Early life and education

Chareonwongsak was born Bangkok. After finishing high school at the New Berlin High School in Wisconsin on a one-year American Field Service (AFS) scholarship, he completed a Bachelor of Economics and PhD in Economics, both on scholarship at Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

He completed a Master of Public Administration degree at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; and holds a master's degree, from Cambridge Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge, UK and postdoctoral studies at University of Oxford.

Institute of Future Studies for Development

The theses of most of Chareonwongsak's writings centre on promoting national development. To this end, he established Thailand’s first institution for futures studies in 1994. Institute of Future Studies for Development (IFD), a non-profit academic research organization, conducts futures studies especially in the fields of economic and human resource development which focuses on interdisciplinary future studies contributing to economic, human resource, and national development. IFD takes a multi-disciplinary approach to its research across a broad spectrum of academic fields and emphasizes sustainable solutions to offset future problems in Thai society. IFD, under Chareonwongsak's leadership, has worked for change in Thailand’s banking, finance, governance, and education infrastructures. The IFD focuses on research activities, and also organizes and hosts seminars, talk-shows, academic conferences, and forums among Thai intellectuals and policy-makers, publishing findings in newspapers, magazines, and academic journals.

Business career

As a businessman, he is Chairman of the Success Group of companies, a conglomerate of media businesses including, broadcasting, publishing, educational multimedia production and distribution, internet web site and domain development, web hosting, web-based applications, systems integration and retail outlets, internet service provision (ISP), hotel booking online, e-commerce, and web portals. Other areas under the Success umbrella include biotechnology, finance and securities, investment, trading, animal health products, hotel, travel industry, and management consultancy. He also chairs the Lao-Thai Business Corporation. He is an active Board member of ASTI Holdings and is an Advisor to the Executive Chairman of CP All, both of which are publicly listed companies in Thailand.

Writing

Although an economist by training, Chareonwongsak also writes on education policy, business, politics/governance, policy formation, organization restructuring, theories of change, environment, future studies, and social enterprise. He has published more than 200 books and numerous articles, presented over 500 academic papers, 5000 newspaper & magazine articles.

He is a radio and TV commentator, and a newspaper and magazine columnist, on current political and economic issues. His perspectives are often highlighted in interviews both in Thailand and overseas.

His books published in English include Insights into Thailand’s Post-Crisis Economy, Reflections on The Economy: An Economist’s View of Thailand’s Recent Past, Critiquing Thaksin’s Policies, and Moving Thailand Forward.

Academic career

Chareonwongsak is an Eminent Member of the Education Council on Standard and Quality Assurance of the Office of the National Education Commission, and has also filled fifty other positions in a number of national organizations and committees.

He spent years as a Senior Fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in the US, and was elected member of the Harvard Kennedy School Alumni [Association Board of Directors. He was also an Associate at the Weatherhead Centre for International Affairs, at Harvard, and is a member of the university's Thai Studies Committee.

He is an Advisor at the Doctoral Programme in International Human Resource Management at Burapha University, Thailand, and is a University Council Member of the Doctoral Programme in Business Administration at Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, Thailand. He is also on the Board of Trustees at the Asian Institute of Technology and is a member of the Thailand National Research Council Board. At Oxford University, UK, he was a Visiting Fellow at the Oxford Internet Institute, and was a Fellow of the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at the university's Said Business School.

He is also a Research Professor at Regent University, USA and a Business Administration Member of the Advisory Council of the University of the People (UoPeople), USA.

Political career

He was a member of the National Economic and Social Advisory Council (NESAC), as Chair of the Education, Religion, Arts and Culture Commission and Vice Chair of the Economic, Commerce and Industry Commission.

In 2004, he was elected as a Member of Parliament for the Democrat Party and served until the Dissolution of Parliament in 2006.

In 2005, he ran as a party list Member of Parliament in the elections for the Democrat Party. He was subsequently elected to the executive board of the party and was appointed Deputy Head of the Democrat Economics Team. However, in 2007, he resigned from the Democrat Party due disagreement with the party leader due to disagreement over some party policies and practices.

Chareonwongsak is an Advisory Committee Member to an International Advisory Panel for the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Business Council, and he is a Member of the Committee for Anti-Corruption Cooperation, at the Ministry of Finance. He is Chair and President of the Political Leaders for Social Enterprise, USA, as well as Chair of the Social Entrepreneurship Institute, Thailand.

He has represented Thailand at the following forums and conferences: