JK Aier

George Mason University Costello College of Business Faculty JK Aier

Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Global Engagement
Additional Roles: Associate Professor, Accounting

Contact Information

Email: jaier@gmu.edu
Phone: (703) 993-4546
Office Location: Enterprise Hall 246
Office Hours: By appointment

Biography

JK Aier is the senior associate dean for academic affairs and global engagement, and an associate professor within the accounting area in the Donald G. Costello College of Business at George Mason University. In his current role, he oversees all academic programs, student support services as well as four centers of excellence. He is also responsible for leading the global engagement efforts for the college. 

Professor Aier’s research primarily focuses on the influence of managerial characteristics and incentives on financial reporting decisions. His work has been published in top tier peer-reviewed accounting journals including the Journal of Accounting Research and Contemporary Accounting Research.

Professor Aier has taught various courses on financial accounting, governance, and corporate reporting in undergraduate and graduate programs. He has also initiated and/or led students on global residencies to various countries including South Africa, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria, and Brazil. He has received or been nominated for a number of research and teaching awards at the college, university and in the profession. 

Professor Aier serves or has served as an editor, associate editor, or invited reviewer for a number of peer reviewed journals. He is currently a member of the Cost Accounting Standards Board, an independent statutorily-established board in the Office of Federal Procurement Policy in the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.  

Professor Aier earned his PhD and master’s degrees in accountancy and information systems from Arizona State University. He is also a certified chartered accountant and cost accountant and has an MBA from International Management Institute. Prior to his doctoral studies, Aier worked for over nine years in the fields of banking and public accounting. 
 

Research Interests

  • Insider Trading
  • Cash Flow Analysis
  • Earnings Quality
  • Corporate Governance

Education

  • PhD - Accounting, Arizona State University
  • MS - Accounting and Information Systems, W.P. Carey School of Business
  • MBA - International Management Institute, Delhi, India
  • BS - Commerce, University of Calcutta, India

Research and Awards

  • Presented the paper titled, “CEO Characteristics and Marketing Decision Making -An Empirical Investigation” at the Marketing Science (INFORMS Journal) in Shangai, China in 2016 (with coauthors Gauthan Vadakkepatt and Amit Joshi).
  • Received a Research Award from George Mason’s School of Business in 2015 and a Teaching Award from George Mason’s School of Business in 2016.
  • Received a Research Award from George Mason School of Business in 2015 and was nominated for a University Service Award from George Mason School of Business in 2016.
  • Published an article titled, “Debtholders' Demand for Conservatism: Evidence from Changes in Directors' Fiduciary Duties” (coauthored with Mikhail Pevzner and Long Chen) in the Journal of Accounting Research in 2014.
  • Received a Teaching Award from George Mason School of Business in 2015 for faculty recognized for outstanding contributions to teaching.
  • Published an article titled, “Debtholders' Demand for Conservatism: Evidence from Changes in Directors' Fiduciary Duties” (coauthored with Long Chen and Mikhail Pevzner) in the Journal of Accounting Research in 2014.
  • Nominated for an OSCAR Mentoring Excellence Award in 2013. The purpose of this award is to recognize and reward outstanding Mason community members who have mentored undergraduate students on research and creative activities and who foster a culture of student scholarship in support of Mason’s Students as Scholars initiative. 
  • Nominated for the George Mason University Teaching Excellence Award in 2013. This award recognized outstanding faculty for their educational contributions to enhancing student learning at the university.
  • Published an article titled, “Insider Trading in Loss Firms” in Advances in Accounting in 2013.
  • Presented the paper titled “Fiduciary Duties of Directors and Accounting Conservatism” (with Long Chen and Mikhail Pevzner) at the 2012 Virginia Accounting Research Conference in Charlottesville, VA in May 2012. 
  • Awarded the Beta Alpha Psi Philip A Blanchard Award for excellence in undergraduate education given in recognition as the Accounting faculty member of the year from George Mason University in 2012.
  • Presented (with Long Chen and Mikhail Pevzner) the paper titled “Fiduciary Duties of Directors and Accounting Conservatism” at the George Mason University Accounting Research Seminar in Fairfax, Virginia in March 2012. 
  • Presented the paper titled “Board Term Limits and Earnings Quality” (with Min Shen and coauthors) at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York in 2011. 
  • Presented the paper titled “Experience vs. Entrenchment: Understanding the Determinants and Effects of Outside Directors' Tenure” at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon. 
  • Published an article titled, “On the Analysis of Firms' Cash Flows” (with coauthors) in Contemporary Accounting Research.

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