Benjamin Wild Pugsley

Robert and Irene Bozzone Associate Professor of Economics, University of Notre Dame, 2022---Present

Previous Appointments

Assistant Professor of Economics, University of Notre Dame, 2017--- 2022

Visiting Scholar, Becker Friedman Institute for Economics, University of Chicago, Spring 2022

Adjunct Assistant Professor, Columbia Business School, 2015---2017

Economist, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, 2012---2017

Lecturer, University of Chicago, 2010---2012

Education

Ph.D. Economics, University of Chicago, 2012

M.A. Economics, University of Chicago, 2008

B.A. Economics, Columbia University, 2004

Research

Publications

"The Nature of Firm Growth" with Petr Sedlacek and Vincent Sterk, American Economic Review, February 2021

"Grown-up Business Cycles" with Ayşegül Şahin, Review of Financial Studies, March 2019

"Older and Slower: The Startup Deficit's Lasting Impact on Productivity Growth" with Titan Alon, David Berger, and Rob Dent. Journal of Monetary Economics, January 2018

"Do Job to Job Transitions Drive Wage Growth over the Business Cycle" with Fatih Karahan, Ryan Michaels, Aysegul Sahin and Rachel Schuh. American Economic Review, Papers and Proceedings, May 2017

"The Role of Startups in Structural Transformation" with Rob Dent, Fatih Karahn, and Aysegul Sahin. American Economic Review, Papers and Proceedings, May 2016

"Wealth, Tastes and Entrepreneurship" with Erik Hurst. Chapter in Measuring Entrepreneurial Businesses: Current Knowledge and Challenges, 2017

"Are Household Surveys Like Tax Forms: Evidence from Income Underreporting of the Self-Employed" with Erik Hurst and Geng Li, Review of Economics and Statistics, March 2014

"What do Small Businesses Do?" with Erik Hurst. Brookings Papers on Economic Activity. Fall 2011

"The Mistake of 1937: A General Equilibrium Analysis" with Gauti Eggertsson. Monetary and Economic Studies, Dec 2006

Published Comments

"Comment on `Structural Transformation and the Rise of Information Technology' by Gallipoli and Makridis" Journal of Monetary Economics, August 2018

Working Papers

"Demographic Origins of the Startup Deficit" with Fatih Karahan and Aysegul Sahin, January 2022. Conditionally accepted at American Economic Review.

"Inequality in the Welfare Costs of Disinflation" with Hannah Rubinton, September 2021.

"Taxes, Private Equity, and Evolution of Income Inequality in the U.S." with Sebastian Dyrda, September 2021

"How to Tax Capitalists in the 21st Century" with Sebastian Dyrda, September 2021

Research in Progress

"Liquidity Effects of Unemployment Benefit Extensions: Evidence from Consumer Credit Data" with Rene Chalom, Fatih Karahan and Kurt Mitman

"Macroeconomic Effects of the Rise in Pass-through Businesses" with Sebastian Dyrda

"How Free is Free Entry" with Fatih Karahan and Aysegul Sahin

Census Research Projects

Principal Investigator: “Industry and Sectoral Variation in Firm Dynamics,” with Erik Hurst, April 2011. US Census Research Data Center project 908, August 2013 through August 2017

Principal Investigator: “The Dynamics of the Small Business Sector: Evidence from the Survey of Business Owners and the Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs,” with Sari Kerr, Robert Fairlie, William Kerr, and Alicia Robb. US Census Research Data Center proposal 1731, June 2018 through June 2023.

Teaching

University of Notre Dame

  • Undergraduate Microdata for Macro Models, Fall 2017

  • Intermediate Macroeconomics, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021

  • Graduate Microdata for Macro Models, Fall 2020, Fall 2022

Columbia Business School

  • MBA Global Economic Environment (Macroeconomics): Fall 2016, Summer 2015

University of Chicago

  • Undergraduate Econometrics: Spring 2012, Winter 2011, Spring 2010

Awards

  • Kauffman Foundation Junior Faculty Fellowship, 2017---2020

  • Kauffman Foundation Dissertation Fellowship, 2011---2012

  • University of Chicago Hentry Morgenthau, Jr. Dissertation Fellowship, 2010---2011

  • University of Chicago, Department Fellowship, 2007---2010

  • Phi Beta Kappa, Columbia University, 2004

Seminar and Conference Presentations

Includes scheduled

  • 2022: AEA meetingsº, University of Pavia, University of Connecticut, University of Chicago, SED Meetings, NBER Entrepreneurship Bootcamp, Cornell, UNC, Ohio State, McMaster, Halle Institute, PUC Rio, Insper

  • 2021: AEA meetings, FIRSº, SED, NBER SI Entrepreneurshipº, Bank of Mexico

  • 2020: Chicago Fed, Korean Economic Review International Conference, Atlanta Fed, Norges Bank Central Bank Modeling Workshop

  • 2019: ASU Advances in Macroeconomics Conference, Fordham Macro/IF Conference, Midwest Macro Meetings, LSE Entrepreneurship conference, SED, Meetings NBER Summer Institute Economic Growth meeting, Notre Dame PAELLA Workshop, USC Marshall Junior Macro Meeting, Drexel, Philly Fed

  • 2018: ASSA meetings^ , University of Western Ontario (canceled), University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, Cambridge/INET Macro Heterogeneity Conference^, Midwest Macro Meetings, SED Meetings, NBER Summer Institute EFG meeting^, NBER Macro Perspectives, NBER Macro Public Finance^, Minnesota Macro^, Cleveland Fed, Middlebury College, Cornell, Utah State, European/Midwest Macro Micro Conference, LSE, Canadian Macro Study Group, Philly Fed Macro Finance Conference, Amherst, Bank of Italy/CEPR Firm Dynamics Conference, RIDGE Macro/Trade/Growth Conference

  • 2017: ASSA meetings^ , University of British Columbia, New York University (macro lunch), Spring Carnegie-Rochester-NYU conference^, Federal Reserve Board Macro Labor Conference, Barcelona GSE Summer Forum, NBER Summer Institute Entrepreneurship Group^, NBER Summer Institute Macro Productivity Group^ , Carnegie-Rochester-NYU conferenceº, Ifo Conference on Macroeconomics and Survey Data

  • 2016: ASSA meetings, Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN), NBER Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth pre-conference; Brigham Young University, Utah State, CUNY Graduate Center, Hunter College, Cowles Conference in Macroeconomics, Barcelona GSE Summer Forum, NBER Income Distribution and Macroeconomics^, INET/Cambridge Firms in Macroeconomy^, St Louis Fed conference on Inequality, Federal Reserve Board, Harvard Business School, Richmond Fed, CIREQ Workshop, NBER Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth conference^, Columbia Macro Lunch, Notre Dame, Ifo Conference on Macroeconomics and Survey Data^, St Louis Fed

  • 2015: ASSA meetings, NBER EFJK Group, NBER Productivity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Group (canceled), Federal Reserve System Committee on Macroeconomics, St. Louis Midwest Macro Meeings, Tsinghua University Macroeconomics Workshop, Cowles Conference in Macroeconomics, SED, NBER SI Entrepreneurship Group, NBER SI Macro/Productivity Group^, Census Bureau Center for Economics Studies, IZA/Kauffman Entrepreneurship Workshop, Stanford RDC Network Conference, Banco de Mexico, University of Toronto, University of Rochester, Fuqua School of Business, NBER/Philly Fed Time and Space, Rochester Midwest Macro Meetings^, University of Maryland, University of Montreal, Ifo Conference on Macroeconomics and Survey Data^, University of Bonn

  • 2014: Columbia Macro Lunch, Atlanta Fed Workshop on Monetary Policy and Inequality, Penn State Census RDC Conference, Census Bureau Center for Economic Studies, Council on Economic Policies Bellagio Conference on Monetary Policy and Sustainability, Urban Institute Conference on Student Debt and Entrepreneurship, Banco de Mexico, New York University Macro Lunch, Washington University / St. Louis Fed, CIREQ Labor Workshop, Ifo Conference on Macroeconomics and Survey Data, Sveriges Riksbank and Euro Area Business Cycle Network Conference on Inequality and Macroeconomics, NBER/CRIW Measuring Entrepreneurial Businesses conference

  • 2013: Cleveland Fed Policy Summit, Southern Economics Association Annual Meetings (canceled), Ifo Conference on Macroeconomics and Survey Data

  • 2012: Kellogg School of Management, Fuqua School of Business, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Business School, Federal Reserve Board, University of Michigan, University of Rochester, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Columbia Business School, University of Michigan Survey Research Center, International Industrial Organization Conference, NBER Productivity and Innovation Group, NBER Entrepreneurship Group

  • 2011: Duke/Kauffman Entrepreneurship Conference, International Industrial Organization Conference, Brookings Institution Panel on Economic Activity, University of Chicago Money and Banking Seminar, Federal Reserve Bank of New York

  • 2010: NBER Summer Institute Entrepreneurship Group

^ co-author presented, º discussant

Discussions

  • “The Effect of Aging on Entrepreneurship and Aggregate Productivity” by Kodama and Li, ASSA Meetings SGE Productivity Session, January 9, 2022.

  • "Did the Paycheck Protection Program Hit the Target?" by Granja, Makridis, Yannelis, and Zwick, NBER Summer Institute Entrepreneurship Meeting, July 19, 2021

  • "Reshaping the Local Marketplace: Financing, Independent Businesses, Large Firms and COVID" by Maksimovic and Yang, Financial Intermediation Research Society Meeting, June 6, 2021

  • “Structural Transformation and the Rise of Information Technology” by Gallipoli and Makridis, Carnegie Rochester NYU Conference on Public Policy, November 11, 2017.

  • “Firming up Inequality” by Bloom, Song, Price, Guvenen and von Wachter, 2016 Cowles Summer Macroeconomics Conference, June 8, 2016.

  • “Firm Age, Investment Opportunities and Job Creation” by Adelino, Ma and Robinson, 2016 ASSA Meetings (San Francisco), Jan 4, 2016.

  • “Jobs Incorporated: Incorporation Status and Job Creation” by Astebro and Tag , 6th IZA/Kauffman Foundation Workshop on Entrepreneurship, Sep 16, 2015.

  • “Young, Restless, and Creative: Openness to Disruption and Creative Innovation” by Acemoglu, Akcigit, and Celik, 2015 ASSA Meetings (Boston), Jan 5, 2015.

  • “Reallocation in the Great Recession: Cleansing or Not” by Foster, Grim and Haltiwanger, Penn State RDC Conference, April 7, 2014.

  • “House Prices, Collateral, and Self-Employment” by Adelino, Schoar, and Severino, NBER Entrepreneurship Working Group Meeting, Dec 12, 2012.

  • “Direct Estimation of Hidden Earnings” and “Foreign Corporations and the Culture of Transparancy” by Braguinsky, Mityakov and Liscovich, NBER Productivity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program Meeting, Mar 16, 2012.

  • “Procurement Auctions with Capacity-Constrained Bidders: Evidence from the Lab” by Saini and Suter, 2011 IIOC Meetings (Boston), April 2011.

Service

Referee

  • Economics: American Economic Review, Econometrica, Journal of Political Economy, Quarterly Journal of Economics, Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economics and Statistics, European Economic Review, Journal of European Economic Association; International Economic Review, American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Journal: Public Policy, Journal of Monetary Economics, Review of Economic Dynamics, Journal of Public Economics, Economic Journal, European Economic Review, Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Journal of European Economic Association, Empirical Economics, International Tax and Public Finance, Journal of Economic Geography, National Tax Journal, Small Business Economics, Fiscal Studies, Economic Governance

  • Management and Finance: Journal of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, Review of Financial Studies, Management Studies, Small Business Economics

Grant Reviewer

  • Kauffman Foundation Dissertation Fellowship Program, 2015--Present

  • Center for Equitable Growth, 2015

  • National Science Foundation, 2019

Board Member

  • New York Research Data Center Executive Committee (for New York Fed), 2014--2017

Department

  • Junior Recruiting, New York Fed, 2016--2017

  • Co-RA supervisor, New York Fed, 2013--2014

  • Seminar organizer, New York Fed, 2012--2013

Conferences

  • Program Committee, SED Meetings St Louis, 2019

  • Program Committee, SED Meetings Barcelona, 2020

  • Program Committee, SED Meetings Minneapolis, 2021

  • Co-organizer, New York Fed / Kiel Institute Macro Labor Conference co-organizer, 2016

  • Co-organizer, New York Fed Real Macro Workshop co-organizer, 2013