Allen Hicken is Professor of Political Science at the University of Michigan where he is also an affiliate at the Center for Political Studies, the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, and the Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies. He is currently a Visiting Professor at Singapore Management University in the School of Social Sciences. He works on political institutions, political economy, and policy making with a special focus on Southeast Asia. His primary research is on Thailand and the Philippines, but he has also worked in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, and Timor Leste.

His latest book (co-authored with Edward Aspinall, Meredith Weiss, and Paul Hutchcroft) examines clientelism and money politics in Southeast Asia and is entitled Mobilizing for Elections: Patronage and Political Machines in Southeast Asia (Cambridge). He is also the author or (co-)editor of the following books: Building Party Systems in Developing Democracies, (Cambridge 2009), Party and Party System Institutionalization in Asia (Cambridge 2014), Politics of Modern Southeast Asia: Critical Issues in Modern Politics (Routledge 2010), Electoral Dynamics in the Philippines: Money Politics, Patronage and Clientelism at the Grassroots (NUS 2019).

Nazhif Yusoff is Country Director, Malaysia at Vriens & Partners—Southeast Asia’s leading government affairs consultancy. With his team of consultants and senior advisors, he consults for clients in various verticals such as ICT, healthcare, transportation and tourism, helping them develop and implement their in-country government relations strategies.

Previously, Nazhif was in charge of export and investment promotion efforts at Malaysia Petroleum Resources Corporation, an agency under the Economic Planning Unit, Prime Minister’s Department. Nazhif was also a fellow under the prestigious two-year Teach for Malaysia program, which places Malaysia’s promising young leaders as teachers in socio-economically disadvantaged areas throughout Malaysia.

Sumana is a senior policy professional with 17 years of experience. Having worked at several dynamic and vibrant tech firms, Sumana designs and implements policies through advocacy, strategic communication and evidence-based analysis. With a flair for writing and communication, Sumana is able to negotiate complex engagements & cultivate senior-level internal/external relationships.

Sumana holds a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Michigan, as well as a B.A. in Political Science and Geography from UCLA.