| 1974-1980 | Studies, Social Economics, Johannes Kepler University Linz |
| | Chairman of Student's Union, Johannes Kepler University Linz |
| 1979-1981 | Assistant, Department of Agricultural Policy, University of Linz |
| 1981-1984 | Head, Economic Policy Division, Austrian Farmers' Federation |
| 1985-1986 | Employee, Provincial Government of Upper Austria |
| 1985-1987 | Municipal Councillor in Sierning |
| 1987-1989 | Secretary of the Office, Federal Minister Dr. Josef Riegler |
| 1989-1990 | Head of the Office, Federal Minister Dr. Franz Fischler |
| 1990-1993 | Director, Austrian Farmers' Federation |
| 1990-1994 | Member, National Council of Austria |
| 1993-1994 | Secretary-general, Austrian People's Party |
| 1994-2000 | Austrian Federal Minister of Agriculture and Forestry |
| 2000-2003 | Austrian Federal Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management |
| 2003-2007 | Chairman, Austrian People's Party Parliamentary group |
| 2007-2008 | Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister of Finance of the Republic of Austria |
| Chairman, Austrian People's Party |
| 2008-2011 | Member, National Council, Spokesperson on Constitutional Matters |
| 2011-2015 | Vice-President, European Investment Bank, Luxembourg |
| since 2015 | Managing Director, EFSI - European Fund for Strategic Investments, Luxembourg |
| 1973 | Staff Assistant to the Subcommittee on Antitrust and Monopolies, Judiciary Committee of the United States Senate |
| 1974 | Staff Assistant to United States Senator Phillip A. Hart |
| 1977 | Student Intern at Federal Research Board, Washington, DC |
| 1978 | Visiting Scholar, Institute for International Economic Studies, Stockholm |
| 1978-1980 | Junior Fellow, Harvard Society of Fellows, Cambridge, MA |
| 1979-1980 | Research Associate, Falk Institute of Economic Research, Jerusalem, Israel, Collaboration with Michael Bruno |
| 1981 | Visiting Research Associate, London School of Economics |
| 1982 | Consultant, International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC |
| 1983 | Consultant, OECD - Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and Visiting Professor, Ecole des Haute Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris |
| 1984-2002 | Galen L. Stone Professor of International Trade, Harvard University (Assistant Professor, 1980-1982, Associate Professor, 1982-1983, Full Professor 1984-2002) |
| 1984-1986 | Visiting Professor, Institute of World Economics, Kiel |
| 1986-1987 | Visiting Scholar, Bank of Japan and Japan Ministry of Finance, Tokyo |
| 1990-1992 | Visiting Professor of Macroeconomic Policy, WIDER - World Institute of Development Economics,Research, United Nations University, Helsinki |
| 1994-1996 | Founder and Chair, Executive Committee, Institute of Economic Analysis, Moscow |
| 1995-1999 | Director, Harvard Institute for International Development, Cambridge, MA |
| 1998-2002 | Director, Center for International Development, Harvard University |
| 1999-2000 | Member, International Financial Institutions Advisory Commission appointed by U.S. Congress |
| 2000-2001 | Chair, Commission on Macroeconomics and Health for the World Health Organization, Geneva |
| 2002-2006 | Special Advisor to U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan on Millennium Development Goals; Director, United Nations Millennium Project |
| 2002-2016 | Director, The Earth Institute and Quetelet Professor of Sustainable Development, Colombia University, New York |
| 2007-2016 | Special Advisor to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon on Millenium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals |
| 2010-2015 | Member, UN Secretary General's MDG Advocacy Group |
| | |
| | Current functions: |
| | Director, Center for Sustainable Development, Columbia University, New York |
| | Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres |
| | University Professor, Columbia University, New York |
| | Director, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network |
| | Distinguished Fellow, IIASA - International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis |
| | Co-Founder and Director, Millennium Promise |
| | Founder and Chair, SDG USA |
| | Economic Advisor to governments in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia |
| | Research Associate, National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, MA |
| | Member, Brookings Panel of Economists, Brookings Institution, Washington, DC |
| | Co-Chair, Asian Economic Panel of Economists |
