The Long Run Institute

What The Long Run Institute does

The Long Run Institute (LRI) is an independent, non-profit forum headquartered in Toronto, Canada, founded in October 2018 through a partnership between SIERC (Signal Influence Executive Research & Communications, Inc.) and Queen's University Belfast's Centre for Economic History. It convenes academic experts in economic and business history, senior business leaders, and public policymakers to provide historical context for grand challenges facing business and government, including climate transition, economic nationalism, technology disruption, risk, and the role of the public corporation. The organization operates across the North Atlantic world (Canada, the UK, the US, and the EU) and is led by co-founders Dr. Laurence B. Mussio (Chair; CEO of SIERC), Professor John Turner (Queen's University Belfast), and Dr. Michael Aldous (Queen's University Belfast), with Dr. Judy Z. Stephenson (UCL) joining the Board of Directors in March 2022.

LRI's core "products" are high-impact roundtable events, conferences, online briefings, and a video series called Cup of Tea hosted by Director Judy Stephenson. It disseminates analysis through articles on its website, op-eds in The Globe and Mail and World Commerce Review, YouTube video content, and co-authored research outputs such as the 2023 RAND Corporation report on applying history to inform anticipatory AI governance. There is no proprietary technology platform; the offering is fundamentally a convening and knowledge-production service delivered through live events, owned media, and partner channels.

Commercially, LRI does not charge for access to its events or content. Operational support is generated through event co-sponsorships and institutional partnerships with organizations including BMO Financial Group, BMO Climate Institute, Queen's University Belfast, the Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership at Ivey Business School, Rotman School of Management, RAND, the Economic History Society, and The Globe and Mail. These partners provide venue support, funding for initiatives such as doctoral-student attendance at conferences, and promotional reach. The organization is governed by an international Board of Governors and is independent of a controlling parent entity.

Name

The Long Run Institute

Legal name

The Long Run Institute

Website

https://longruninstitute.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Long Run Institute is an independent, non-profit forum based in Toronto that convenes academic historians, senior business leaders, and public policymakers to provide historical context on grand challenges facing business and government through roundtables, conferences, publications, and media partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Historical Policy Research Forum

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Academic & Scientific Conferences (MPAGAGAD), Training, Enablement & Talent Development Summits (THAHAMAH)

Keywords

• Historical policy analysis
• Non-profit research forum
• Academic business roundtables
• Economic history conferences
• Thought leadership events

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Event Sponsorships and Co-Presentations: LRI generates operational support through co-sponsorship of events with corporate partners such as BMO Financial Group, BMO Climate Institute, and academic institutions like Queen's University Belfast. These partnerships provide venue support, funding for doctoral student attendance at conferences, and promotional assistance.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Long Run Institute is an independent, non-profit forum that organizes high-impact roundtable events, conferences, online briefings, and video content to deliver insights from the historical analysis of long-run forces and trends. It convenes academic experts, business leaders, and public policymakers to discuss grand challenges including climate transition, economic nationalism, risk management, technology disruption, and the role of the public corporation.

Product overview

The Long Run Institute is a non-profit forum that operates as a single, unified offering centered on connecting historical analysis with contemporary challenges facing business and government. The organization delivers its mission through events and roundtables, the Cup of Tea video series, and research publications—all unified under the LRI brand to serve academic experts, business leaders, and public policymakers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Long Run Institute Forum An independent, non-profit forum for academic experts, business leaders, and public policymakers that provides insights from the historical analysis of long-run forces and trends to deepen understanding of the grand challenges facing businesses and government.
• High-Impact Events & Roundtables Organization of conferences, roundtables, online briefings, and dinner discussions that bring together speakers and participants from academic, corporate, and policy backgrounds to discuss historical trends shaping contemporary challenges such as climate transition, ESG, risk, economic nationalism, and Big Tech.
• Cup of Tea Video Series Video dialogue series hosted by LRI Director Professor Judy Stephenson featuring conversations with leading scholars including Professor Matthew J. Smith, Professor Dame Henrietta Moore, Professor Ella Cockbain, and Professor Daniel Miller, covering topics such as the human consequences of AI.
• Research Publications & Articles Published articles and op-eds analyzing monetary sovereignty, AI consequences, economic nationalism, productivity challenges, risk management, and defence strategy through historical perspectives, disseminated via the LRI website, The Globe and Mail, and World Commerce Review.

Quantifiable outcome

• LRI sponsors doctoral students to attend the Economic History Society's Centenary conference at LSE (2026)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor and core.

• Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership (Ivey Business School, Western University)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2023Co-presenter of the three-part ESG, Purpose, Character & Leadership roundtable series held in Toronto (December 2023), London (January 2024), and New York (January 2024). The partnership combines LRI's historical perspective with the Institute's leadership expertise.
• Centre for Economics, Policy and History (CEPH)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023Co-presenter of the Navigating Economic Nationalism roundtable in Dublin, Ireland (October 2023). CEPH is directed by Dr. Marvin Suesse, author of The Nationalist Dilemma: A Global History of Economic Nationalism.
• RAND CorporationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2023Two-year collaboration producing the report 'Applying History to Inform Anticipatory AI Governance: Using Foresight and Hindsight to Inform Policymaking.' The collaboration brought together RAND researchers with LRI directors to explore how historical analysis can inform AI governance frameworks.
• Queen's University Belfast Centre for Economic HistorycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2018Co-founding institutional partner alongside SIERC. The Centre for Economic History at Queen's University Belfast is one of the largest groups of Economic and Business Historians in the world. The partnership provides academic expertise, venue support for events, and connections to the academic community. LRI is the evolution of the Centre's mission to apply historical insight to contemporary business and policy challenges.
• SIERC (Signal Influence Executive Research & Communications, Inc.)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2018Co-founding corporate/academic partner based in Toronto, Canada. SIERC is a boutique consulting firm specializing in the strategic application of organizational experience for senior leadership. CEO Dr. Laurence B. Mussio serves as LRI Co-Founder/Director. The partnership combines consulting expertise with academic historical analysis.
• BMO Financial GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor corporate partner and co-sponsor of multiple LRI events including the Calibrating the Climate Transition Symposium, ESG roundtable series, Metamorphosis Roundtables on risk, and Women's Executive Leadership events. BMO is North America's eighth-largest financial institution. The partnership provides funding, venue support (BMO Climate Institute co-sponsorship), and executive participation in events.
• William J. Clinton Leadership Institute, Queen's Management School BelfastminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost venue partner for LRI briefings including the Bubbles briefing (July 2021) and Precedents in an Unprecedented World pandemic insights briefing (June 2020). Provides physical venue and institutional support.
• Rotman School of Management, University of TorontomajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsor of the Big Tech conference (October 2020) along with the Wilson/Currie Chair in Canadian Business History. The partnership provided academic venue support and promotional reach for the conference that attracted nearly 1,000 registrations.
• Economic History SocietymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLRI co-sponsored the Economic History Society's Centenary Conference at the London School of Economics (April 2026). LRI sponsored doctoral students to attend the conference and LRI directors chaired key sessions.
• The Globe and MailmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor media partner that publishes LRI commentary, op-eds, and research findings. Dr. Laurence B. Mussio regularly publishes articles in the Globe and Mail analyzing Canadian economic policy, economic nationalism, and institutional challenges. The partnership extends LRI's reach to Canada's national business audience.
• Artemis 50minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-presenter of the ESG and Its Discontents dinner discussion in Montreal (June 2023). Artemis 50 creates opportunities for interdisciplinary discussions about climate/energy transition and ESG concerns aimed at senior decision-makers.
• Chief Executives' Club, Queen's University BelfastminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-presenter of the De/Re-Industrialisation briefing (January 2021). The partnership connects LRI to senior business executives in Northern Ireland for dialogue on economic challenges.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Chatham House (Royal Institute of International Affairs): Independent policy institute that convenes senior policymakers, business leaders, and academics around long-run global challenges. Directly comparable to LRI as a non-profit forum hosting invitation-only roundtables and conferences that blend historical context with policy analysis.
• Conference Board of Canada: Membership-based research organization that produces economic and business research, hosts executive conferences, and convenes senior decision-makers. Comparable to LRI in its dual focus on applied research and high-level convening for business and policy audiences.
• Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR): European-based network of academic economists and policy researchers that organizes conferences, policy discussions, and publishes research. Comparable to LRI as a non-profit academic-policy convener with cross-Atlantic reach and a focus on economic history and policy application.
• Economic History Society: UK-based learned society that promotes economic and social history through conferences and publications. LRI is a co-sponsor of the Society's 2026 centenary conference, and the two share a mission of applying historical scholarship to contemporary economic understanding.

Broad incumbents

• RAND Corporation: Large, well-established policy research organization that works on economics, security, and emerging technology governance. LRI is an active two-year research partner of RAND on AI governance, making it a relevant incumbent collaborator with comparable applied research and convening capabilities.
• Brookings Institution: Major American think tank conducting research and hosting events on economic, foreign policy, and governance topics. Comparable to LRI as a non-profit convener blending academic and policy expertise, though operating at significantly larger scale and broader thematic scope.
• Council on Foreign Relations: U.S.-based non-profit membership organization focused on international affairs and foreign policy, with an invitation-only network of senior leaders and a robust events program. Comparable to LRI's membership-style model of convening senior decision-makers around long-run strategic themes.
• Peterson Institute for International Economics: Non-profit research institution producing analysis on international economic policy, with frequent events and policy convening. Comparable to LRI's blend of historical economic analysis and senior decision-maker engagement, particularly on globalization and economic nationalism themes.
• McKinsey Global Institute: Established research arm of a major consulting firm producing long-run, evidence-based analysis on global economic trends. Comparable to LRI in its long-run analytical framing and high-level business audience, though delivered as a commercial consulting product rather than a non-profit forum.
• World Economic Forum: Global non-profit foundation best known for convening senior political and business leaders at large-scale forums. Comparable to LRI in its convener role and thought-leadership publications, though at vastly greater scale and with broader global reach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCzQvcN2b9cPbGmFNqrjkvHw
• Xx.com/LongInitiative
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-long-run-initiative

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Long Run Institute