Mehmet Ali Soytas
Senior Economic Advisor, National Labor Observatory (NLO), Saudi Arabia
I am a Senior Economic Advisor for labor markets and research at the National Labor Observatory (NLO) of Saudi Arabia. Previously I worked as an Associate Professor of Economics at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals Business School, as a researcher at King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Saudi Arabia and as an Associate Professor of Economics at Ozyegin University, Istanbul. I have been a consultant for the World Bank and the Energy Exchange Istanbul. I also served as the director of the TUSIAD-Ozyegin University Sustainable Development Forum between 2018-2020 and as the Rapporteur of the Turkish Ministry of Development Special Commission Report - “Savings and Consumption Trends in Turkey in 2018. I have also been a visiting scholar at the St. Louis FED, Washington University in St. Louis, Turkish Central Bank, Australian National University and KAPSARC. I hold a Ph.D. in Economics from University of Pittsburgh.
Areas of Interest:
- Labor Economics
- Empirical Microeconomics
- Intergenerational Mobility
- Industrial Organization
Education:
- PhD, Economics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA, 2011
- MA, Economics, Marmara University, Istanbul, Turkey, 2005
- BSc, Civil Engineering, Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey, 2001
Experience:
- Senior Advisor for Labor Markets & Research, National Labor Observatory, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 2023 - Present
- Associate Professor of Economics, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals Business School, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, 2020 - 2023
- King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 2018 - 2020
- Associate/Assistant Professor of Economics, Ozyegin University, Istanbul, Türkiye, 2011 - 2020
Latest Publications:
- “Intergenerational Income Mobility and Income Taxation”, Musab Kurnaz and Mehmet A. Soytas, Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, 105111. (2025).
- “Extending behavioral theory of the firm to new ventures: Dispositional optimism as a moderating influence on new product introductions in high-tech ventures”, R. Isil Yavuz, Dev K. Dutta, Mehmet A. Soytas, Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 22, November (2024).
- “The Gig Economy and the Future of Work: Global Trends and Policy Directions for Non-Standard Forms of Employment”, Zeid, R., Mohamed, R. Y., Alrayess, D. J., Ajwad, M. I., Soytas, M. A., & Rivera Guivas, N., World Bank Social Protection Discussion Papers and Notes, No.: 190908 (2024).
Nonlinear Excess Demand Model for Electricity Price Prediction
Areas of Interest: Labor Economics Empirical Microeconomics Intergenerational Mobility Industrial Organization Education: PhD, Economics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh,... Read More
December, 2020
Working Papers