Jomphong Mongkhonvanit

Jomphong Mongkhonvanit is a Thai academic and education policy specialist whose work focuses on technical and vocational education and training (TVET), future-skills development, and the digital transformation of education systems. He is Trustee and Vice President of Siam University in Thailand, Dean of the Siam University Graduate School of Business, and President of Siam Technological College (SiamTech). He also serves as a Visiting Scholar at the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (UNESCO-IIEP).

Mongkhonvanit's research and policy work bridges academia, government, industry and international organizations, with an emphasis on aligning skills development and human-capital policy with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. He has led national and international initiatives on TVET reform, foundational and green skills, and lifelong learning, and has been recognized in a World Bank report on foundational learning in crisis.

He holds a Doctor of Business Administration from the University of Bath, a Master of Education from Harvard University, a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University, and a Bachelor of Arts with High Distinction from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Career

Current positions

Mongkhonvanit serves concurrently in academic, government, and industry leadership roles. At Siam University, he is Trustee and Vice President, and Dean of the Graduate School of Business; he is also President of Siam Technological College (SiamTech).

He is a Board Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of Thailand's National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA), Chair of the Global Impact Council of Microeconomics of Competitiveness at Harvard Business School, and Chairperson of School Bright Thailand, one of the country's largest education-technology start-ups, which operates a digital school-management platform. He serves as Deputy Chair of the Human Capital Development Committee of Thailand's Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), and is Founder and Chair of iAM Digital Studio, a venture supported by the Digital Economy Promotion Agency (DEPA).

Mongkhonvanit is a Visiting Scholar at the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (UNESCO-IIEP). He is also President of the Wisconsin Alumni Association of Thailand and an Executive Board Director of the Harvard Club of Thailand.

Past appointments

He has previously served as Board Director and Chair of the Audit Committee at Thailand's National Institute of Educational Testing Service (NIETS); President of the Association of Private Colleges of Technology and Vocational Education of Thailand, an organization under the Royal Patronage of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn; Advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand for Economic Affairs; Expert on Education and Technology (P5) at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU); a member of the Educational Audit Committee at the Thai Ministry of Education; and a member of the editorial board of Social Science Asia, a journal of the National Research Council of Thailand. He has held visiting-scholar appointments at the London School of Economics and Political Science, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and Singapore University of Social Sciences.

Education

•        Doctor of Business Administration (DBA), University of Bath, United Kingdom

•        Master of Education (Ed.M.), Harvard University, United States

•        Master of Public Administration (MPA), Columbia University, United States

•        Bachelor of Arts (with High Distinction), University of Wisconsin–Madison, United States

Research and areas of expertise

Mongkhonvanit's work centers on three connected themes: future-skills development and the transformation of tertiary and TVET systems; the integration of digital, foundational, and green skills into education and workforce policy; and educational innovation, public–private partnerships, and lifelong-learning ecosystems.

He has directed research and policy projects on the Thai–German dual-education framework for the Thai Ministry of Education, evaluations of national vocational-education policies for Thailand's Office of the Education Council, impact evaluations of youth-employability programs for the Office of the Prime Minister, and national occupational standards and professional qualifications for school administrators with the Thailand Professional Qualification Institute. He led the United Nations ITU project E-learning in Thailand: Mapping the Digital Divide, and a UNESCO-IIEP visiting-research project on strengthening digital, foundational and green skills in Thailand's TVET system.

Awards and recognition

•        Thailand Princess Jubilee Award for Educational Contribution for STEM Education, bestowed by HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn

•        Distinguished Contributor to National Education Award, Ministry of Education, Thailand

•        Asia 21 Leadership Fellow, Asia Society

•        National Distinguished Educator, Thailand Education Deans Council

•        Featured in a World Bank report on foundational learning in crisis as an educational innovator

Selected publications

Books

•        Mongkhonvanit, J., Mieruch, Y. & Mizunoya, S. (2026). Strengthening Digital, Foundational, and Green Skills in Thailand's TVET System. Siam University.

•        KC, D., & Mongkhonvanit, J. (2022). E-learning in Thailand: Mapping the Digital Divide. United Nations ITU.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2017). Dual Technical and Vocational Education Management. Chulalongkorn University Press.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2013). Coopetition for Regional Competitiveness. Springer.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2013). Management of Education Staff and Organization (2nd ed.). Chulalongkorn University Press.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2010). Industrial Cluster & Higher Education. Xlibris.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2009). Regional Development in the Knowledge Economy. VDM Verlag.

Selected articles and chapters

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2026). Strengthening foundational skills in Thailand's TVET system. UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning Visiting Researcher Notes.

•        Wisetsombut, B., Mongkhonvanit, J., Piriyasurawong, P., & Nilsook, P. (2024). Artificial intelligence (AI): the educational supervision model. Journal of Buddhist Education and Research, 10(4).

•        Mongkhonvanit, J., & Choomnoom, S. (2023). Vocational education and training in Thailand. In International Handbook on Education and Southeast Asia. Springer.

•        Yenmee, K., & Mongkhonvanit, J. (2021). The international co-founded/co-developed university model: considerations for tertiary education providers. Scholar: Human Sciences, 13(2).

•        Meintarakerd, I., Mongkhonvanit, J., Limpawattana, M., & Suksai, C. (2020). Integrated approach of cooperative education management to develop entrepreneurial graduates. Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, Thonburi University, 14(3).

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2017). Thailand dual education system: a way forward. Higher Education, Skills and Work-based Learning, 7(2), 155–167.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2014). Thailand's occupational standard of school administrator. Journal of Education Studies, Chulalongkorn University, 45(4), 257–273.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2014). From internet game centres toward e-community learning centres in Thailand. ICFOL, Hong Kong.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2010). Impacts of Thailand's national training program for the unemployed. RPBIC Conference, Malaysia.

•        Mongkhonvanit, J. (2008). Thailand's automotive cluster in the knowledge economy. In Handbook of Blended Shore Education. Springer.