Jedson Pinto
University of Texas at Dallas
Naveen Jindal School of Management
“Prof. Pinto was one of the best professors I’ve had, and I hope he will teach more accounting classes in the future. Even though I didn’t understand accounting initially, the professor taught me all the basics and guided the class efficiently. We were able to learn several important concepts and apply them to the real world. Prof. Pinto also gave us assignments that were specific to our lives, which showed us the value of accounting beyond the corporate world.” – Student Evaluation
Jedson Pinto, 29, is Assistant Professor at University of Texas at Dallas’ Naveen Jindal School of Management. He conducts archival research in financial accounting, focusing on disclosure, transparency, and puzzles in capital markets.
Before joining UTD, he held research and teaching assistant positions at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and at FUCAPE Business School in Brazil. He is an ad hoc reviewer for multiple journals in Accounting including The Accounting Review, Management Science, Journal of Accounting Economics, Journal of Accounting Research, and Journal of Banking & Finance. He also serves as a reviewer and discussant for multiple conferences in his field.
He has been honored with multiple awards and recognitions for his research and service to the field including the 2022 Naveen Jindal School of Management Outstanding Undergraduate Teacher of the Year. He was also the finalist of the OWLIES’s 2023 Jindal Faculty of the Year and the 2023 President’s Teaching Excellence Award at UTD. In 2022, he received the 2022 FARS Excellence in Reviewing Award and the 2022 FARS Outstanding Discussion Award.
BACKGROUND
At current institution since what year? 2020
Education: Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina – At Chapel Hill; B.A. And MSc. in Accounting from FUCAPE Business School
List of Undergraduate courses you teach: Managerial Accounting
TELL US ABOUT LIFE AS A BUSINESS SCHOOL PROFESSOR
I knew I wanted to be a business school professor when… As an undergraduate student, I remember constantly having my mind blown away by my professors debunking several misconceptions we are taught in life. I learned early on that economics and business thinking can help us make better decisions and are present everywhere in our lives. To this day, I am constantly amazed by how many new things I learn from my peers. After finishing my first year of my undergraduate, I remember thinking: “I want to be able to do that. I want to be able to understand and help people understand the world.”
What are you currently researching and what is the most significant discovery you’ve made from it? I study puzzles and new relevant topics in accounting. My most significant discovery… is my next paper, which I cannot talk about. I am kidding. I discovered that less information is actually better for capital markets (which is super counter-intuitive). I discovered that there is a lot of hate speech, even in capital markets, especially targeting female CEOs. Finally, I recently discovered that several judges appear to have conflicts of interest, but they still preside over cases that they legally shouldn’t.
If I weren’t a business school professor, I’d be… teaching something, learning something, and doing science of some sort.
What do you think makes you stand out as a professor? I think my students would say that is the fact that I am constantly trying to speak their language and approach the problems and topics from their perspective. Sometimes, we (professors) forget that we already studied a topic for 5 or 10 years, but for many students, it is their first time. I build the classes based on the students’ intuition and show that a lot of the insights in business follow a strong economic framework and logic.
One word that describes my first time teaching: Exhilarating
Here’s what I wish someone would’ve told me about being a business school professor: Teaching can help you become a better researcher in general. It helps put structure in your knowledge; it helps you become a better presenter; it helps you find your style; it helps you learn how to navigate several different situations; and it helps you lose the fear of public-speaking (or not, hehe).
Professor I most admire and why: I honestly admire all the professors and colleagues who touched my life because they all taught me something. To name a few: Robert Bushman and Wayne Landman, who took a big risk on a student who barely knew anything about life and made me someone somehow presentable. Mark Lang, who taught me a lot about becoming more passionate about what we do (research and teaching). Eva Labro, who taught me a lot about what it takes to be a great instructor, professional, and mentor. Bruno Funchal, Arilton Teixeira, Fernando Caio, and Thomas Hemmer for seeing some potential in me when I was no one. Valcemiro and Silvania for building an amazing institution and embracing me. Victor Borges for the way in which he manages to explain complex topics in simple ways. Finally, someone who truly inspired me and taught me a lot about my style is a professor at Arizona State University now, Francisco Dimas Pena-Romera. I believe I owe 90% of my crazy teaching style to him, which is truly something that I am grateful for. (I told you it was a long list. Hehe! I probably forgot many names. I am sorry!)
TEACHING BUSINESS SCHOOL STUDENTS
What do you enjoy most about teaching business students? I truly enjoy showing students why what we learn is important and how it applies to the world outside the classroom. I also enjoy the constant fact that I am learning new tools and techniques that are relevant to students in this ever-changing world.
What is most challenging? Reminding students that a good grade is not the only thing that matters and that getting a good grade no matter what is not a smart strategy.
In one word, describe your favorite type of student: Enthusiastic.
In one word, describe your least favorite type of student: Disengaged.
When it comes to grading, I think students would describe me as: Fair
LIFE OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM
What are your hobbies? Traveling, spending time with people I am fond of, learning new things, and fitness training/bodybuilding.
How will you spend your summer? Learning something new, traveling, and teaching something new.
Favorite place(s) to vacation: Brazil and Mexico.
Favorite book(s): Outliers: The Story of Success; Freakonomics; The Five Love Languages; Rich Dad, Poor Dad; The WEIRDest People in the World; The Visual MBA; Information Choice in Macroeconomics and Finance;
What is currently your favorite movie and/or show and what is it about the film or program that you enjoy so much? I like shows that are unpredictable. For example, Game of Thrones had a really unpredictable ending.
What is your favorite type of music or artist(s) and why? My playlist changes depending on my life situation. When I miss Brazil, I love to listen to Portuguese songs. Now, I am listening to lo-fi to help me code and do research.
THOUGHTS AND REFLECTIONS
If I had my way, the business school of the future would have much more of this… Students would be required to create or develop new products or services. Business students need as much exposure to an entrepreneurship mindset as possible. Trying and failing is a big part of the business world. Business knowledge will help you avoid making some obvious mistakes, identify bad ideas faster, and manage your costs. However, you internalize concepts much better when you apply them.
In my opinion, companies and organizations today need to do a better job … at retaining good talent. It is astonishing that companies often lose their best employees because of conservative policies and short-term thinking. Employee turnover has significant costs for companies (searching, training, …). High employee turnover also hurts the development of any proper organizational culture, which has been shown to add significant firm value.
I’m grateful for … my life partner, Cassia, for putting up with all of my crazy schedules and ideas and pushing me to be better every day. I am also truly grateful for everyone who helped me in my journey (and who are still helping). As a first-generation graduate student coming from an emerging country, I never thought I would be where I am. We were just not taught to dream this big. Great professors and mentors taught me differently. I am far from being there, but I hope to be to others an epsilon of what my mentors were to me. I need to pay it forward.
DON’T MISS THE ENTIRE ROSTER OF 2023’S 50 BEST UNDERGRADUATE BUSINESS SCHOOL PROFESSORS.
Questions about this article? Email us or leave a comment below.