[citation needed] He is the founder and director of TIGER – Transformation, Integration, and Globalization Economic Research at Kozminski University in Warsaw.

[citation needed] After graduating from Main School of Planning and Statistics in 1972 and earning his Ph.D. in 1976, Kołodko lectured at the same university and was appointed to a chair in economics in 1984.

He participated in the historic ‘Round Table’ negotiations in 1989, which led to the formation of the first post-communist government in Eastern Europe.

[citation needed] Kołodko is the author and editor of 58 books and over 400 articles and research papers, published in 26 languages, with many in English.

Notable books include “The Quest for Development Success: Bridging Theoretical Reasoning with Economic Practice” (Rowman & Littlefield - Lexington Books, 2021), “China and the Future of Globalization: The Political Economy of China's Rise” (Bloomsbury I.B.

He was nominated as the Best Minister of Finance in East Central Europe by Euromoney in 1996 and was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta by the President of Poland in 1997 for his achievements in managing transformation and development policy.