Madhav Rajan
Dean and George Pratt Shultz Professor of Accounting
How to Listen for the Hidden Data in Earnings Calls
Research is uncovering messages that managers may not be intending to send—and that investors should listen for.
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Biography
Madhav Rajan joined the Chicago Booth faculty on July 1, 2017, as Dean and George Pratt Shultz Professor of Accounting, and began his second term in July 2022.
Before joining Booth, Rajan spent 16 years on the faculty of the Stanford University Graduate School of Business where he was the Robert K. Jaedicke Professor of Accounting, with a courtesy appointment in the Law School. He served as senior associate dean for academic affairs from 2010-2016, overseeing the school’s MBA program. From 2002-2010, he was area coordinator for the accounting faculty group. Previously, he served on the faculty at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, from 1990-2001.
While at Stanford, Rajan received the Robert T. Davis Award for Lifetime Achievement and Service (2017), and the Notable Contribution to Management Accounting Literature Award (2004). He also was the recipient of the David W. Hauck Award for Outstanding Teaching at Wharton (2000) and the Alexander Henderson Award for Excellence in Economic Theory (1990).
As Dean of Booth, Rajan has focused on deepening the school’s ties to the University of Chicago, attracting and retaining the best faculty, and raising money for research support and scholarships. He has launched new master’s programs and joint degrees, and expanded the school’s footprint in Asia and EMEA.
Rajan’s primary area of research interest is the economics-based analysis of management accounting issues, especially as they relate to the choice of internal control and performance systems in firms. He has carried out studies on the role of information in incentive contracting, the value of nonfinancial and subjective performance measures, and the structural properties and usefulness of common financial ratios.
Rajan has served as editor of The Accounting Review, as well as Associate Editor for both the Accounting and Operations areas for Management Science. He is coauthor of Cost Accounting: A Managerial Emphasis, whose 17th edition was published by Pearson Prentice Hall in 2020. He is also coauthor of Managerial Accounting, whose first edition was published by Pearson in January 2013.
Rajan received his Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from the University of Madras, India, and an MS in Accounting, an MS in Industrial Administration, and a PhD in Accounting from Carnegie Mellon University.
He is a Director of iShares, Inc. and a Trustee of the iShares Trust, and also serves on the boards of CM Capital Corporation and WellBe Holdings.
Get Insights from Madhav Rajan in Chicago Booth Review
On Earnings Calls, Listen for a Chatty CEO
How can you tell how much a CEO knows relative to subordinates? Measure how much the CEO speaks.
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