Samuel Leiken

Samuel Leiken is senior director of policy studies for the Council on Competitiveness. Prior to coming to the Council, he served as senior policy analyst in the division of Social, Economic and Workforce Policy at the National Governors Association’s (NGA) Center for Best Practices.

At the NGA, he was involved in planning and delivering numerous training academies on economic development, workforce and education issues. Previously, he was the vice president for policy for the Council on Adult and Experiential Learning, a Chicago-based national non-profit specializing in adult learning and workforce development.

Earlier in his career, Leiken was the founder and president of the Massachusetts Product Development Corporation, a state-owned, privately operated venture capital fund investing in the new products of traditional manufacturing enterprises. He has also been the chief of staff to a Massachusetts state senator, a product development machinist at the General Electric Company and the director of a youth employment program in New York City.

A graduate of Columbia University, Leiken holds an Master of Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University, and a journeyman machinist’s license from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Leiken has written for a number of national publications, including The New York Times, The Boston Globe and The New Republic Magazine.