The Naveen Jindal School of Management at The University of Texas at Dallas welcomed 13 new faculty members this fall, including nine assistant professors who are on the tenure track.
The Jindal School gained new faculty in each of its academic areas: accounting, finance and managerial economics, information systems, marketing, operations/supply chain management, and organizations, strategy and international management. At the start of the academic year, the largest school at the University boasted 226 full-time and 93 part-time faculty members.
“The Jindal School and the University worked diligently — and speedily — to accommodate students after the COVID-19 pandemic began. The result is our fall enrollment numbers remain strong, and I am delighted to be able to hire so many talented educators and researchers across disciplines this fall,” said Dr. Hasan Pirkul, Caruth Chair and Jindal School dean.
Also new to the Jindal School this fall are three fully online master’s degree programs, doubling the school’s online Master of Science offerings. The MS in Business Analytics Cohort Online, the MS in Management Science Online and the MS in Supply Chain Management Online are 36-credit-hour, asynchronous programs that allow students to access coursework on their own time.
“Educating students continues to be our top priority at the Jindal School, and these offerings will prove useful to students who may need to continue their educations remotely this fall,” Pirkul said. “The programs also are appealing to busy professionals seeking to earn advanced degrees.”
Several administrative appointments in the Jindal School became effective Aug. 1. The Institute for Excellence in Corporate Governance is now led by Gregg Ballew, a professor of practice in accounting, who succeeded Dennis McCuistion, who retired as the institute’s executive director.
Steven Haynes joins the faculty as the director of the risk management and insurance concentration and an assistant professor of practice in finance and managerial economics. Haynes most recently served as the property risk and claims manager for Lennox International Inc.
Sarah Moore MA’07, PhD’17, clinical assistant professor of organizations, strategy and international management, serves as director of the Business Communication Center. Dr. David Widdifield, clinical associate professor of operations management and director of the MS in Supply Chain Management program, is the new assistant dean for master’s programs.
The Jindal School continues to move up in various rankings. Earlier this year, U.S. News & World Report placed the school’s online MBA program at No. 6 in its rankings of Best Online Master’s in Business Programs.
The Jindal School ranked No. 33 (tied) overall among the Best Business Schools listed in the U.S. News 2021 Best Graduate Schools rankings.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the school’s Career Management Center moved operations online and continues to provide career services to students. Career preparation workshops, appointments with career development specialists and interviews with employers are held virtually at this time.
The Jindal Young Scholars Program continues to grow. A new scholarship endowment initiative intends to raise $25,000 toward establishing the EMBA Equity Scholarship for the program.
New Tenure-Track Faculty
Dr. Soraya Fatehi, assistant professor of operations management
Education: PhD in operations management, University of Washington, 2020; MS in systems engineering, University of Arizona, 2015; BS in industrial engineering, University of Tehran, 2013
Previous position: PhD candidate, University of Washington
Research interests: on-demand and crowdsourced platforms, operations research, retail operations, operations management-finance interface
“Joining the Naveen Jindal School of Management means continuing to conduct valuable and impactful research in the field of operations management. Moreover, I hope to excel in teaching by creating engaging classrooms where I can pass my knowledge and expertise to the great students of UT Dallas. By being an inspiring teacher, I want my students to keep all their learning in mind and use the tools that I give them for a lifetime.”
Dr. Jason Kautz, assistant professor of organizations, strategy and international management
Education: PhD in management, University of South Carolina, 2020; MBA, Canisius College, New York, 2013; BS in entrepreneurship, Canisius College, 2010
Previous position: PhD candidate, University of South Carolina
Research interests: interpersonal social dynamics at work
“I am excited to join UTD because it is a great group of bright minds trying to navigate the dark and foggy realities of the working world. And this applies not just to my new colleagues, but also to the wonderful and inquisitive students. Pushing beyond what we read in a textbook helps us to understand and better the lives of the people we work with, now and in the future.”
Dr. Tongil “TI” Kim, assistant professor of marketing
Education: PhD in business administration, University of California, Berkeley, 2013; MS in management science and engineering, Stanford University, 2008; BASc in electronics engineering, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia, 2003
Previous position: assistant professor of marketing, Emory University
Research interests: health care marketing, marketing and public policy, advertising, franchising
“I’m excited to be around marketing colleagues who are widely known as bright minds with prolific publication records in the field. Also, UTD’s excellent support for research and connections to the health care industry in the area will greatly help me publish and disseminate my research in the health care domain.”
Dr. Christopher Mace, assistant professor of finance and managerial economics
Education: PhD in finance, University of Utah, 2020; MBA, Idaho State University, 2014; BS in microbiology, University of California, Davis, 2003
Previous position: PhD candidate, University of Utah
Research interests: intellectual property, innovation, firm value
“I am honored to be part of the UT Dallas community. I hope to be a great teacher and a productive researcher. My research interests tend to focus on corporate innovation, intellectual property and pharmaceutical development. I hope to get to know you all better, at a socially acceptable distance, of course.”
Dr. Zixuan (Maggie) Meng, assistant professor of information systems
Education: PhD in information systems, University of Washington, 2020; BS in accounting, Peking University, Beijing, 2015
Previous position: PhD candidate, University of Washington
Research interests: sharing economy, user-generated content, digital games
“UTD has an active and productive research group with a nice collaborative culture. I am deeply impressed by how actively people are involved in the research meetings and contribute their ideas. I am excited to join this group to produce high-quality research. As my research interest centers on platform strategies in the digital economy, which relates closely to business practice, I also hope to share my knowledge with my students.”
Dr. Jedson Pinto, assistant professor of accounting
Education: PhD in accounting, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2020; MA in accounting, FUCAPE Business School, Brazil, 2015; BA in accounting, FUCAPE Business School, 2015
Previous position: PhD candidate, UNC Chapel Hill
Research interests: disclosure, media, real effects, regulation, macro-accounting
“What excites me about joining UT Dallas is the opportunity to interact and work with great researchers and great students. My goal is to contribute to the culture and the growth of the University by conducting policy-relevant research and working on meaningful projects.”
Dr. Ignacio Rios, assistant professor of operations management
Education: PhD in operations, information and technology, Stanford University, 2020; MA in economics, Stanford University, 2020; MS in operations research, University of Chile, 2014; BS in industrial engineering, University of Chile, 2014
Previous position: PhD candidate, Stanford University
Research interests: market design, behavioral operations, online platforms
“I’m very excited to join UTD, as the business school is growing and the operations group is very active and productive. I hope to contribute to the group by starting new collaborations and producing high-quality research. In addition, I’m looking forward to interacting with students (either in person or online) and hopefully motivating them about the relevance of operations for organizations.”
Dr. Shujing Sun, assistant professor of information systems
Education: PhD in information systems, University of Rochester, 2020; BS in information systems, Tianjin University, China, 2014
Previous position: PhD candidate, University of Rochester
Research interests: health care information technology, social media analytics, economics of technology, online health community
“While technologies are designed to change the way of life at its best, there often remains a troubling gap between the inherent value of the technology and our ability to put it in the right context. My research, therefore, explores the economics of technological applications in nascent service settings, with a current focus on health care and social media. I’m excited to join this youthful institution with an innovative spirit and outpacing development.”
Dr. Pingle Wang, assistant professor of finance and managerial economics
Education: PhD in finance, University of Rochester, 2020; MS in finance, Washington University in St. Louis, 2014; BS in mathematics, University of New Mexico, 2012
Previous position: PhD candidate, University of Rochester
Research interests: empirical asset pricing, mutual funds, investor attention
“My research focuses on information transmission and its impact on the financial market. I am also interested in agency conflicts in the mutual fund industry. I aim to become an aspiring researcher and caring educator. I’m very excited to join the Jindal School of Management, collaborate with outstanding colleagues, and grow with UTD.”
New Faculty Series
News Center is publishing profiles of tenured and tenure-track professors who have recently joined the University. The following school profiles have been published:
School of Arts, Technology, and Emerging Communication
School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences
School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences