# Alastair Adam

> Alastair Adam is the co-founder and Co-CEO of FlatWorld, the Boston-based publisher on a mission to bring US college textbook prices back down to earth. A Cambridge-trained lawyer who started in London M&A, he spent two decades advising the information and publishing world before buying the assets of the old Flat World Knowledge in 2016 and rebuilding it. Today FlatWorld's peer-reviewed, low-cost titles are used by faculty at well over 1,500 North American institutions. He also chairs the board of PLOS, the nonprofit open-science publisher.

- **Role:** Co-founder & Co-CEO at FlatWorld; Board Chair at PLOS
- **Organizations:** FlatWorld, PLOS, The Callidon Group, Oliver Wyman, OC&C Strategy Consultants, The Parthenon Group, Cazenove & Co.
- **Nationality:** British
- **Education:** MA in Law, University of Cambridge
- **Known for:** Co-founded and scaled FlatWorld, whose textbooks are used by faculty at 1,500+ North American institutions, Built and sold The Callidon Group, eventually exiting to Oliver Wyman in 2014, Serves as Board Chair of PLOS, a leading nonprofit open-science publisher

## Career timeline

- **1993** — Earns an MA in Law from Cambridge University
- **1993-1998** — Works in corporate finance and M&A at Cazenove & Co. in London
- **1998** — Moves to Boston and joins strategy consultancy The Parthenon Group
- **2002** — Co-founds The Callidon Group, advising the information and publishing sector, with John Eielson
- **2007** — Callidon merges into OC&C Strategy Consultants
- **2014** — Leads the sale of the business to Oliver Wyman (Marsh & McLennan)
- **2015** — Leaves Oliver Wyman to pursue direct investments in information and publishing
- **2016** — Acquires the assets of Flat World Knowledge and launches FlatWorld as Co-CEO

## Achievements

- Co-founded and scaled FlatWorld, whose textbooks are used by faculty at 1,500+ North American institutions
- Built and sold The Callidon Group, eventually exiting to Oliver Wyman in 2014
- Serves as Board Chair of PLOS, a leading nonprofit open-science publisher
- Sustained a 20+ year business partnership with co-CEO John Eielson

## Latest updates

- **2023-12** — Featured in a 'Clues of Success' YouTube interview discussing FlatWorld's affordable-textbook model
- **2023-01** — Continued promoting FlatWorld's expanding catalog and homework system to higher-ed faculty

## Links

- Website: https://flatworld.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/alastairadam
- Twitter/X: http://twitter.com/flat_world
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6UhtJyReQ8
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/flatworldknowledge

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/alastair-adam
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-19