March 5-7, 2026

Snowbird Resort

The Organizational and Political Economics conference is sponsored by the Marriner S. Eccles Institute for Economics and Quantitative Analysis at the University of Utah, Columbia University, the London School of Economics and Political Science, Kellogg School of Management, and MIT. The aim of the conference is to stimulate theoretical and empirical connections between the fields of Organizational Economics and Political Economy. The program includes formal presentations, informal discussion, and skiing. 

Organizers: Rafaella Sadun (Harvard University), Bob Gibbons (MIT), Adam Meirowitz (Yale University),
and Erik Snowberg (University of Utah)

Discount Ski Lift Tickets and Rentals
We encourage you to buy lift tickets and secure equipment rental before you arrive.  Use this link to get a discount on the following:

  • Full Day Winter Lift Ticket
  • Fast Tracks
  • Equipment Demo and Rental
  • Helmet Rental
  • Adult Workshop 16+
  • Adult Beginner Special | Ages 16+
  • Adult Workshop | Ages 16+
  • Adult Mountain Experience | Ages 16+

Meals
The conference fee covers breakfasts and dinners Thursday night through Saturday night. There are a large number of locations in the resort and near the lifts where lunch may be purchased. Please visit the dining tab on Snowbird’s website for additional information.

Accommodations
We have a block of rooms at the Snowbird Resort. To take advantage of our special pricing ($415 per night), be sure to reserve a room before Tuesday, February 3, 2026. You can make a reservation online, or call Snowbird Central Reservations at 800-453-3000 and mention you are with the Utah Winter Business Economics Conference 2026.

Travel
The nearest airport is Salt Lake International Airport. Taxis and rideshares available from the airport, although please be aware that not every taxi and rideshare can handle the canyon during inclement weather. Airport shuttles can be arranged while booking lodging through Snowbird Central Reservations at 1-800-453-3000 at least 48 hours prior to arrival date. The current group pricing is $114.00 per person round-trip or $57.00  one-way pre-paid. Same-day walk-ups are accepted at a higher rate on a space available basis at the Alta Shuttle desk located on Level 1 (Ground Transportation) of the Salt Lake International Airport. Cancellations within 72 hours of arrival are non-refundable. Prices are subject to change. Rates include driver gratuity.

Questions
Please let us know if we can provide any additional information or assistance. Contact us at Marriner.Institute@Eccles.Utah.edu.

Dates:

March 5-7, 2026

2026 Agenda

Agenda Coming Soon

Archives

2025 Utah Winter Organizational and Political Economics Conference

Thursday, March 6
6:30 pm – 8:00 pm Welcome Reception (Primrose A)

Friday, March 7
6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast (Primrose A)

7:00 am – 9:00 am Session One (Primrose B)

Technological change and the organization of work in a Colombian bank, Virginia Minni, University of Chicago
Discussant: Claudio Ferraz, Vancouver School of Economics

Veto Players and Policy Development, Ken Shotts, Stanford University
Discussant: Ravideep Sethi, University of Utah

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski (Primrose B)

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Two (Primrose B)

Manufactured Grievances, Maria Titova, Vanderbilt University
Discussant: Namrata Kala, MIT

How to make aging leaders concede gracefully, Guido Friebel, Goethe University, Frankfurt
Discussant: Garance Genicot, Georgetown University

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Dinner (Primrose A)

Saturday, March 8
6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast (Primrose A)

7:00 am – 9:00 am Session Three (Primrose B)

Personal Connections and Hiring Decisions in the Public Sector, Eleonora Patacchini, Cornell University
Discussant: Leander Heldring, Northwestern University

How is a Dictatorship (Not) Like a Firm?, Scott Gehlbach, University of Chicago
Discussant: Bob Gibbons, MIT

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski (Primrose B)5

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Four (Primrose B)

Multidimensional Learning in Committee Deliberations, Nathan Canen, University of Warwick
Discussant: Laura Boudreau, Columbia University

Strategy and Politicking: A Game-Theoretic Interpretation of the Passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957, Dennis Yao, Harvard University
Discussant: Andrea Prat, Columbia University

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Dinner and Conference Conclusion (Primrose A)

2025 Organizers: Rafaella Sadun (Harvard University), Bob Gibbons (MIT), Adam Meirowitz (Princeton University), and Erik Snowberg (University of Utah)

2024 Utah Winter Organizational and Political Economics Conference

Thursday, March 7
6:30 pm – 8:00 pm Welcome Reception (Primrose A)

Friday, March 8
6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast (Primrose A)

7:00 am – 9:00 am Session One (Primrose B)
Research Waves, Gilat Levy, London School of Economics
Discussant: Ken Shotts, Stanford Graduate School of Business
Innovation Adoption by Committee: An Empirical Analysis of Deliberations in FDA Advisory Committees, Matias Iaryczower, Princeton University
Discussant: Namrata Kala, MIT Sloan

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski (Primrose B)

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Two (Primrose B)
Ethnic Bias in the State: Experimental Evidence from Peru, Michael Best, Columbia University
Discussant: Silvia Vannutelli, Northwestern University

State Paralysis: The Impacts of Procurement Risk on Government Effectiveness, Diana Moreira, University of California, Davis
Discussant: Maria Titova, Vanderbilt University

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Dinner (Primrose A)

Saturday, March 9
6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast (Primrose A)

7:00 am – 9:00 am Session Three (Primrose B)
Bureaucratic Deliberation and Performance: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Benin, Shan Aman-Rana, University of Virginia
Discussant: Virginia Minni, Chicago Booth School of Business

Sharing Models to Interpret Data, Josh Schwartzstein, Harvard Business School
Discussant: Florian Ederer, Boston University

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski (Primrose B)

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Four (Primrose B)
Bourbon Reforms and State Capacity in the Spanish Empire, Luis Martinez, University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy
Discussant: Charles Angelucci, MIT Sloan

Conservation by Lending, Bard Harstad, Stanford Graduate School of Business
Discussant: Guido Friebel, Goethe University

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Dinner and Conference Conclusion (Primrose A)

2024 Organizers: Rafaella Sadun (Harvard University), Bob Gibbons (MIT), Adam Meirowitz (Princeton University), and Erik Snowberg (University of Utah)

2023 Utah Winter Organizational and Political Economics Conference

Thursday, January 26

6:30 pm – 8:00 pm Welcome Reception Magpie A (Floor L1)

Friday, January 27

6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast Superior (Floor L)

7:00 am –9:00 am Session One Superior (Floor L)

From Lapdogs to Watchdogs: Random Auditor Assignment and Municipal Fiscal Performance in Italy
Presenter: Silvia Vannutelli, Northwestern University
Discussant: Rafaella Sadun, Harvard Business School

Accountability in Governing Hierarchies
Presenter: Christopher Li, Vanderbilt University
Discussant: Michael Powell, Northwestern University

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski Superior (Floor L)

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Two Superior (Floor L)

Simon Says? Equilibrium Obedience and the Limits of Authority
Presenter: Heikki Rantakari, University of Rochester
Discussant: Christopher Li, Vanderbilt University

Ancestral Livelihoods and Moral Universalism: Evidence from Transhumant Pastoralism
Presenter: Sara Lowes, University of California, San Diego
Discussant: Jon Bendor, Stanford University (via Zoom)

7:30 pm –9:00 pm Dinner Maybird (Floor L)

Saturday, January 28

6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast Superior (Floor L)

7:00 am – 9:00 am Session Three Superior (Floor L)

Organizing and Kingdom
Presenter: Charles Angelucci, MIT
Discussant: Michael Ting, Columbia University

Organizational Capacity and Project Dynamics
Presenter: Dana Foarta, Stanford University
Discussant: Wouter Dessein, Columbia University

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski Superior (Floor L)

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Four Superior (Floor L)

Collective Screening
Presenter: Peter Buisseret, Harvard University
Discussant: Daniel Barron, Northwestern University

Strengthening State Capacity: Civil Service Reform and Public Service Delivery During the Gilded Age
Presenter: Guo Xu, University of California, Berkeley
Discussant: Steve Callander, Stanford University

7:30 pm –9:00 pm Dinner and Conference Conclusion Maybird (Floor L)

2022 Utah Winter Organizational and Political Economics Conference

Thursday, February 10

5:00 pm – 7:00 pm Welcome Reception

Friday, February 11

6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast

7:00 am –9:00 am Session One

An Organizational Theory of State Capacity
Presenter: Mike Ting, Columbia University
Discussant: Charles Angelucci, MIT

Inside the Real State: Corruption in the Hierarchy of the Traffic Police Agency of Kinshasa
Presenter: Raul Sanchez, University of Chicago
Discussant: Allison Stashko University of Utah

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Two

Optimal Political Career Dynamics
Presenter: Elliot Lipnowski, Columbia University
Discussant: Ravideep Sethi, University of Utah

Endogenous Contribution Cycles
Presenter: Mattias Iaryczower, Princeton University
Discussant: Joseph McMurray, Brigham Young University

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Dinner

Saturday, February 12

6:15 am – 7:00 am Breakfast

7:00 am – 9:00 am Session Three

Task Allocation and On-the-Job Training
Presenter: Leeat Yariv, Princeton University
Discussant: Avidit Acharya, Stanford University

The Impacts of Managerial Autonomy on Firm Outcomes
Presenter: Namrata Kala, MIT
Discussant: Wouter Dessein, Columbia University

9:00 am – 4:45 pm Skiing and Spa Activities

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm Après Ski

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session Four

Union Leaders: Experimental Evidence from Myanmar
Presenter: Laura Boudreau, Columbia University
Discussant: Dana Foarta, Stanford University

Conference Summary and Discussion

7:30 pm –9:00 pm Dinner and Conference Conclusion

2020 Utah Winter Organizational and Political Economics Conference

Thursday, January 30

5:00 pm – 7:00 pm Welcome Reception (Magpie A)

Friday, January 31

6:30 a.m. – 7:30 a.m. Breakfast (Magpie A)

7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Session 1 (Magpie B)

Achieving Scale Collectively
Presenter: Vittorio Bassi, University of Southern California
Discussant: Guo Xu, University of California Berkeley

Policy Decay and Political Competition
Presenter: Steve Callander, Stanford University
Discussant: Nicola Persico, Northwestern University

9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Ski or Spa

4:45 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Après Ski (Magpie A)

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session 2 (Magpie B)

The Politics of Asymmetric Extremism
Presenter: Alexander V. Hirsch, California Institute of Technology
Discussant: Allison Stashko, University of Utah

What Prevents Firms from Improving their Management Practices? Experimental Evidence on the Role of Managers’ Turn over from Middle and Large Ethiopian Firms
Presenter: Stefano Caria, University of Bristol
Discussant: Charles Angelucci, Columbia University

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Dinner (Magpie A)

Saturday, February 1

6:30 a.m. – 7:30 a.m. Breakfast (Magpie A)

7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Session 3 (Magpie B)

Endogenous Experimentation in Organizations
Presenter: Germán Gieczewksi, Princeton University
Discussant: Avidit Acharya, Stanford University

Aid Crowd-Out: The Effect of NGOs on Government-Provided Public Services
Presenter: Erika Deserranno, Northwestern University
Discussant: Laura Boudreau, Columbia University

9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Ski or Spa

4:45 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Après Ski (Magpie A)

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Session 4 (Magpie B)

Ownership Changes, Management and Efficiency: Evidence from Rwanda’s Coffee Industry
Presenter: Ameet Morjaria, Northwestern University
Discussant: Michael Best, Columbia University

Wait and See or Step In? Dynamics of Interventions
Presenter: Dana Foarta, Stanford University
Discussant: Ravideep Sethi, University of Utah

7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Dinner (Magpie A)