Mengnan "Cliff" Zhu
Corporate Finance, Financial Regulation, FinTech, Machine Learning
ABOUT ME
While technology is rapidly reshaping the financial world, the disruptions create opportunities and challenges simultaneously. I find my passion in applying newly developed machine learning techniques to investigate corporate finance-related issues. I concentrate on the financial decision-making of firms and financial intermediaries, and the impacts of public regulation on business. I answer questions in financial economics with an academically oriented, analytical, and reflective perspective.
Prior to my PhD life, I studied business at Shandong Technology and Business University in Yantai, China. After obtaining an MBA from The State University of New York at New Paltz, I worked as a full-time financial analyst in Beijing for five years. During my time with a private equity firm that focused on large-scale infrastructure projects, I gained extensive investment and negotiation experience from both the buy- and sell-side. I was fascinated by the sophisticated decision-making process and specific interpersonal skills on display. In 2015, my family and I moved to Boston, where I continued my finance journey by pursuing an MS in Finance degree at Brandeis University. Two years of systematic study in finance theory and practice trained me into a finance professional and equipped me with excellent analytical ability and a sharp understanding of the industry.
Inspired by Dean Kathryn Graddy and Director of the Ph.D. program, Prof. Blake LeBaron, I successfully transferred to Brandeis International Business School's competitive Ph.D. program in 2017. Since then, I have devoted myself to the academic world. I am grateful to work closely with Prof. Debarshi Nandy, a good friend and a lifetime mentor, who supports me, believes in me, and always provides honest feedback.
With a keen understanding of academic literature and an acute sense of technology trends and business needs, I am prepared and excited to grapple with real-world challenges through a commitment to problem-centered research, a desire for continuous discovering, and a passion for contributing to both the academic and financial world.
Education
2017 - 2022
Brandeis International Business School
Ph.D. in International Economics and Finance
2015 - 2017
Brandeis International Business School
M.S. in Finance
Work Experience (non-Academic)
2016 - 2017 (part-time)
Enterprise projects Ventures Ltd.
Financial Risk Advisor, Department of Asset Financing
2011 - 2015
Jared Times Investment Co.
Senior Financial Analyst, Department of Capital Operation
2008 - 2010
State University of New York at New Paltz
M.B.A.
2004 - 2008
Shandong Technology and Business University
B.S. in Business
University Services
2017
Student representative, Dean Search Committee
Brandeis International Business School
Skills
Certificates:
2011 - now
Project Management Professional (PMP)
2016
Student representative, Board of Directors
Brandeis International Business School
Languages:
Bilingual in Mandarin Chinese and English