Associate Professor in Accounting
Deputy Director of the Centre for Financial Reporting and Accountability (CFRA)
Fellow of the Wo+Men’s Leadership Centre and the Cambridge Endowment for Research in Finance (CERF)
JM Keynes Fellow in Financial Economics, University of Cambridge
BBA (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor), MBA (University of California, Berkeley), PhD (University of California, Berkeley)
My research interests include corporate and sovereign disclosure, corporate governance, management incentives and compensation, and gender diversity. I combine teaching and research with a background in investment banking at Credit Suisse in Silicon Valley and portfolio management at the market neutral hedge fund division of Blackrock.
I’m a member of the Accounting subject group at Cambridge Judge Business School, which focuses on the creation, dissemination and governance of financial information.
Professional experience
Jenny combines teaching and research with a background in investment banking and portfolio management. She worked on corporate finance and M&A transactions for technology companies at Credit Suisse in Silicon Valley. She later transitioned into a portfolio management role at the hedge fund division of Barclays Global Investors (now Blackrock). Her research has been published in academic journals such as Management Science, as well as covered by the popular press such as the Financial Times, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal.
Publications
Selected publications
- Resick, C.J., Nadkarni, S., Chu, J., Chen, J., Lien, W.-C., Margolis, J.A. and Shao, P. (2023) “I did it my way: CEO core self-evaluations and the environmental contingencies on firm risk taking strategies.” Journal of Management Studies, 60(5): 1236-1272 (DOI: 10.1111/joms.12872)
- Chu, J., Florou, A. and Pope, P. (2022) “Auditor university education: does it matter?” European Accounting Review, 31(4): 787-818 (DOI: 10.1080/09638180.2020.1866633)
- Chu, J., Gupta, A. and Livne, G. (2021) “Pay regulation – is more better?” Accounting and Business Research, 51(1): 1-35 (DOI: 10.1080/00014788.2020.1815515)
- Chu, J., He, Y., Hui, K.W. and Lehavy, R. (2020) “New product announcements, innovation disclosure, and future firm performance.” Social Science Research Network Working Paper.
- Chu, J. (2019) “Accruals, growth, and future firm performance.” Abacus, 55(4): 783-809 (DOI: 10.1111/abac.12177) (also available online via the SSRN)
- Chu, J., Dechow, P.M., Hui, K.W. and Wang, A.Y. (2019) “Maintaining a reputation for consistently beating earnings expectations and the slippery slope to earnings manipulation.” Contemporary Accounting Research, 36(4): 1966-1998 (DOI: 10.1111/1911-3846.12492) (also available online via the SSRN)
Journal articles
- Chu, J., He, Y., Hui, K.W., Lehavy, R. and Chu, K. (2023) “New product announcements, innovation disclosure, and future firm performance.” Review of Accounting Studies (forthcoming)
- Resick, C.J., Nadkarni, S., Chu, J., Chen, J., Lien, W.-C., Margolis, J.A. and Shao, P. (2023) “I did it my way: CEO core self-evaluations and the environmental contingencies on firm risk taking strategies.” Journal of Management Studies, 60(5): 1236-1272 (DOI: 10.1111/joms.12872)
- Chu, J., Florou, A. and Pope, P. (2022) “Auditor university education: does it matter?” European Accounting Review, 31(4): 787-818 (DOI: 10.1080/09638180.2020.1866633)
- Chu, J., Gupta, A. and Livne, G. (2021) “Pay regulation – is more better?” Accounting and Business Research, 51(1): 1-35 (DOI: 10.1080/00014788.2020.1815515)
- Chu, J. (2019) “Accruals, growth, and future firm performance.” Abacus, 55(4): 783-809 (DOI: 10.1111/abac.12177) (also available online via the SSRN)
- Chu, J., Dechow, P.M., Hui, K.W. and Wang, A.Y. (2019) “Maintaining a reputation for consistently beating earnings expectations and the slippery slope to earnings manipulation.” Contemporary Accounting Research, 36(4): 1966-1998 (DOI: 10.1111/1911-3846.12492) (also available online via the SSRN)
- Chu, J., Faasse, J. and Rau, P.R. (2018) “Do compensation consultants enable higher CEO pay? A disclosure rule change as a separating device.” Management Science, 64(10): 4915-4935 (DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.2017.2845) (available online via the SSRN)
Working papers
- Chu, J., He, Y., Hui, K.W. and Lehavy, R. (2020) “New product announcements, innovation disclosure, and future firm performance.” Social Science Research Network Working Paper.
- Chu, J., Florou, A. and Pope, P.F. (2019) “Auditor education: does it matter?” Social Science Research Network Working Paper.
Awards and honours
- Best Paper Award (for “Auditor university education: does it matter?” with A. Florou and P.F. Pope), European Accounting Review, 2022
- J M Keynes Fellowship in Financial Economics Award, University of Cambridge, 2022-2024
- Cambridge Judge Business School Teaching Award, 2019
- Competitive Paper in Corporate Finance Award (for “Do compensation consultants enable higher CEO pay? New evidence from recent disclosure rule changes” with J. Faasse and P.R. Rau), FMA, 2015
- Cambridge Judge Business School Teaching Award, 2013
- Crawford Research Assistant Fellowship Award, University of California, Berkeley, 2008
- CJ White Investment Banking Scholarship, University of California, Berkeley, 2004
- Alumnae Council Scholarship, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1999-2000
- Class Honors, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1997-2000
- Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society
News and insights
Research centre news
Understanding the impact of sovereign accounting errors on financial markets
Cambridge Judge Associate Professor and Cambridge Endowment for Research in Finance (CERF) Research Fellow Dr Jenny Chu looks at the market consequences of sovereign financial reporting errors.
During the past few decades, corporate social responsibility (CSR) issues have attracted enormous attention from regulators and the investment community around the world. Until now, the most widely adopted measure is CSR-related reporting, which is believed to be a critical ingredient in achieving broader CSR goals.
Leadership and organisational behaviour
‘My way’? Not always. Why CEOs are not all cocky and overconfident
New study co-authored by Jenny Chu of Cambridge Judge Business School challenges the popular portrayal of CEOs as overconfident risk-seekers down each and every highway.
Media coverage
Cambridge Independent | 23 November 2023
Wo+Men’s Leadership Centre’s annual conference is at CJBS
Dr Jenny Chu, University Lecturer in Accounting at Cambridge Judge Business School and former Academic Director of the Business School’s Wo+Men’s Leadership Centre, talks about the Centre’s upcoming annual conference and a recent report from the WLC: “The report by Cambridge Judge Business School in partnership with Invesco and the Investment Association draws connections on diversity, equity and inclusion that have been little studied in past research and finds clear benefits of workplace diversity in the asset management sector.”
Bloomberg Tax | 31 May 2022
EY consulting split aims to free firm from ethics crackdown
Tighter ethics regulations are holding back the growth of Ernst & Young’s lucrative consulting business, a key reason firm leaders are considering whether to separate its global audit and advisory practices. The global accounting network is now discussing whether to spin off its global auditing business.
Jenny Chu, Associate Professor in Accounting at Cambridge Judge Business School, described the move as a watershed moment. “We need to wait and see,” she said. “The devil will be in the details on how the partners in the newly spun off audit firm may or may not retain financial interests in the consulting firm.”
Five female leaders share their advice on how to be more financially savvy
Dr Jenny Chu, University Senior Lecturer in Accounting at Cambridge Judge Business School, comments on how women can be more financially savvy. “For those women with an ambition to be more financially savvy my advice would be to take stock of your current income, assets, and liabilities, then map out detailed and realistic financial goals. With this roadmap, you will be in a position to seek trusted advice on specific actions to achieve those goals.”
Financial Times, 6 September 2017
How to spot companies at risk of earnings manipulation
European Business Review, 24 January 2017
We need a greater focus on the benefits women in top executive roles bring to companies
Business Because, 10 September 2016
Harvard Business School is helping women break into the boardroom
Cambridge Business Magazine, 1 September 2016
Theresa May won’t like this…
The Wall Street Journal, 9 August 2016
The morning risk report: CEO-employee pay ratio disclosure no panacea
Financial Times, 27 June 2016
UK disclosure rules tying CEO pay and performance not working
Test, 27 June 2016
Test Title
Cambridge Business Magazine, 1 May 2016
Gender diversity and executive roles
LexisNexis, 12 April 2016
Strategies to get women into senior roles – does any of it work?
The Wall Street Journal, 11 April 2016
Earnings season: Time to tweak Warren Buffett’s maxim
Business Times Singapore, 1 April 2016
Diversity works
Reuters Breakingviews, 9 March 2016
Boardroom gender quotas have hidden value
Business Standard, 9 March 2016
Targets with teeth
The Scotsman, 8 March 2016
Workplace pay statistics make disheartening reading
City AM, 8 March 2016
International Women’s Day 2016: Sorry, but quotas aren’t the way to get more women into executive roles
Cambridge Business Magazine, 1 February 2016
Earnings manipulation unmasked
Reuters Breakingviews, 10 December 2015
Beat surrender
The Economist, 8 December 2015
How companies massage their profits to beat market forecasts
The Economist, 21 November 2014
Executive compensation: If you hire them, pay will come
The Times, 17 November 2014
Hiring pay ‘experts’ brings rich rewards for chief executives
The Economist, 11 November 2014
If you hire them, pay will come
New York Times, 10 November 2014
Dealbook: More transparency, more pay for CEOs
The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance & Financial Regulation, 16 October 2014
New evidence on compensation consultants and CEO pay
Financial Times, 21 June 2012
Women working in financial education