Paper Weight: Impactful Faculty Research Drives Increase in Leeds’ Rankings

As research productivity soars worldwide, Leeds professors continue to enjoy outsized influence in advancing business knowledge.​

When it comes to impact, a university’s research successes don’t always get the same attention as metrics like academic strength of a student body or alumni successes. 

But faculty research—which creates new knowledge and helps shape the direction and priorities of the business world—is just as important as how well those professors prepare students for success. 

And contributions from faculty at the Leeds School of Business continue to earn impressive recognition.

The University of Texas at Dallas’ listing of top research schools ranked Leeds No. 38 among all North American business schools, with 124 total articles published by faculty between 2018 and 2022. Leeds is the only Colorado business school to be included on the North American list; it was ranked 39 last year. 

‘Incredibly rewarding’

“It’s incredibly rewarding to be recognized by UT Dallas for the outstanding accomplishments of our faculty,” said Yonca Ertimur, acting dean of the Leeds School and Tandean Rustandy esteemed professor. 

Ertimur is heavily invested in research success at Leeds. She is a highly respected figure—especially in accounting—and holds editorial appointments at two top journals, which allows her to influence other research streams and offer useful coaching to Leeds faculty. 

“We have this incredible mix of productive younger faculty, who bring such interesting perspective on the future needs of industry, and seasoned senior faculty who guide them through the often arduous process of getting published,” she said. 

Among some of Leeds’ more interesting recent research insights: 

• Sarah Zechman and Andrea Pawliczek shone a light on SPACs—a relatively obscure investment product—and the role reputation and disclosure play as they grow in popularity.
• Shaun Davies researched the opacity of target-date funds—specifically, the billions of dollars in fees they charge consumers—and developed a replicating fund that outperformed TDFs when accounting for fees.
• Research from Stefanie Johnson was honored for insights that helped NASA identify and reduce gender bias among research scientists vying for resources as part of the Hubble Space Telescope program.
• Scott Shriver examined the future of digital privacy as targeted marketing strategies shift. With cookies going by the wayside, companies are getting more sophisticated in how they track consumers. 
• Sabrina Volpone published a study on compassion for new mothers at work and the role culture plays in helping women find balance as they return from maternity leave.

Tony Tong, senior associate dean for faculty and research at Leeds, noted the school’s prolific research output relative to its size. The top of the rankings are dominated by much larger business schools with many more research-active faculty. 

“Our faculty’s accomplishments are not just about quantity,” Tong said. “They are also about quality. Our professors are truly creating new knowledge and putting forth thought leadership that has real consequence for the business community—and that equips our students with new skills that will help them stand out throughout their careers.”

The UT Dallas list is considered the most influential ranking of business school research, and is compiled by the university’s Naveen Jindal School of Management. The top 50 schools appear below; check out the full list and methodology here.

Why Leeds  Faculty and research  Full UTD rankings