I have been a teacher of accounting, financial analysis and corporate valuation since 1989. During this time I have had wonderful students and colleagues at INSEAD, Penn State (University Park), Susquehanna University and Seattle University.
I come from a family of naval officers and teachers. Mostly teachers. But my first dream was a life at sea. Raised in Rio, just two blocks from Ipanema beach, two of the most enduring memories of my childhood are the sound of waves in the morning and the soft glow from an offshore lighthouse on the walls of my room at night.
I graduated as an Electrical Engineer, with specialization in Systems Engineering from Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro in 1975. My first job was at BNDES, the Brazilian National Bank for Economic and Social Development. A question that fascinated me then was how teams of economists, accountants, financial analysts and others should be trained, organized and deployed in order to make recommendations on the myriad development projects that were submitted to the bank. This led me to study part-time towards a Masters degree in Production Engineering from COPPE-UFRJ (1978) and later towards an MBA (1981) and a PhD (1989), both from Cornell University.
Between the MBA and the doctoral program I was senior financial analyst at the controller’s departments of both Esso Brasileira de Petróleo and Souza Cruz (a subsidiary of BAT, plc). At both of these companies I learned much about computer-based financial planning and issues related to the conversion and consolidation of financial statements across borders and diverse GAAP/currency combinations.
During two separate periods, 1996 to 2000 and 2012 to 2013, I had the wonderful opportunity to serve as chief financial officer and then chief executive officer of Companhia Fluminense de Refrigerantes, an independent Coca-Cola bottler about half way between Rio and São Paulo. While at CiaFlu I participated in an attempt to merge with another bottler, and more recently was engaged in the process of selling the Company to the largest Coca-Cola bottler in the world, Coca-Cola FEMSA.
I enjoy doing research, struggling with a puzzle, gathering and exploring data, and looking for the elusive pattern that might confirm a theory or suggest a new paradigm. My main research interest is valuation, in particular the effect of bankruptcy risk on stock returns. The opportunity to participate in the process of discovery is also what attracts me to teaching. Not just once or twice—in a rare “eureka” moment—but every Fall, Winter and Spring. Every time the classroom door opens, the lights are switched on, and the dialog begins.
CV
During two separate periods, 1996 to 2000 and 2012 to 2013, I had the wonderful opportunity to serve as chief financial officer and then chief executive officer of Companhia Fluminense de Refrigerantes, an independent Coca-Cola bottler about half way between Rio and São Paulo. While at CiaFlu I participated in an attempt to merge with another bottler, and more recently was engaged in the process of selling the Company to the largest Coca-Cola bottler in the world, Coca-Cola FEMSA.
I enjoy doing research, struggling with a puzzle, gathering and exploring data, and looking for the elusive pattern that might confirm a theory or suggest a new paradigm. My main research interest is valuation, in particular the effect of bankruptcy risk on stock returns. The opportunity to participate in the process of discovery is also what attracts me to teaching. Not just once or twice—in a rare “eureka” moment—but every Fall, Winter and Spring. Every time the classroom door opens, the lights are switched on, and the dialog begins.
CV
