John Van Reenen

Who is John Van Reenen?

John Michael Van Reenen is a Professor in the Department of Economics and Director of the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of Economics. He is the son of Lionel Van Reenen, formerly a sociologist at Goldsmith's College in the University of London and an immigrant from South Africa. His mother is Anne Van Reenen, a retired banker. He is married to Sarah Chambers, an Interior Designer in London's Carden Cunietti.

In 2009 Van Reenen was awarded the Yrjö Jahnsson Award. This is the European equivalent of the John Clark Bates Medal. It is awarded by the European Economic Association to the best economist in Europe under the age of 45. In 2011 he was awarded the Arrow Prize for the best paper in the field of health economics.

His research focuses on the causes and consequences of innovation. His early work focused on the impact of technology on wages, inequality, jobs and firm profits. A characteristics of his approach is a focus on empirical evidence of large-scale datasets and an emphasis on public policy.