Chris Harris
Associate Professor of Finance and Chair of the Department of Finance
Department: Finance
Email: charris24@elon.edu
Phone number: (336) 278-5909
Brief Biography
Dr. Harris has a passion for finance, specifically in understanding how individuals and companies manage the finite resources they have available to them. He enjoys teaching classes that help students understand how companies make financial decisions, and how individuals can make wise financial decisions to achieve major financial goals. When not thinking about finance, he loves to spend time with family playing and coaching sports, or working on their "farm".
Dr. Harris received a Ph.D. in Finance from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (2013) and a B.S. in Business Administration (Finance) from Middle Tennessee State University. Prior to working at Elon he worked as a hedge fund analyst with Greenwich Alternative Investments.
News & Notes
Education
Ph.D.(Finance) University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2013
B.B.A.(Finance) Middle Tennessee State University, 2007
Employment History
Director of the Center for Financial Literacy 2020 - Present
Chair of the Finance Department 2019 - Present
Associate Professor, Elon University 2019 - present
Assistant Professor, Elon University, 2013 - 2019
Greenwich Alternative Investments, Hedge Fund Analyst 2007- 2009
Courses Taught
FIN 303 - Introduction to Finance
FIN 343 - Principles of Finance
FIN 413 - Advanced Managerial Finance
FIN 416 - Principles of Insurance
FIN 419 - Financial Planning
FIN 445 - Portfolio Management
COR 312 - Teaching and Learning Financial Literacy
COR 459 - Microfinance and Sustainable Agriculture in Peru
MBA 551 - Financial Management
Leadership Positions
Finance Department Chair (2019 - present)
Director of the Center for Financial Literacy (2020 - present)
Elon University Athletics Committee Chair (2017- 2018)
Current Projects
"Corporate Social Responsibility and Trade Credit Policy" with Hunter Holzhauer. Revise and Resubmit
"Securitization, Accounting Treatment and Economic Benefits" with Donna Dudney. Working Paper
"Corporate Social Responsibility and Capital Structure" with Hunter Holzhauer. Working Paper
Publications
"Negative Operating Cash Flows and Investment Inefficiency," with Zhe Li, Managerial Finance, forthcoming
"Intangible Assets and Trade Credit Policy," with Sarah Hartsema, Thibaut Morillon and Zhe Li. Managerial Finance, Vol. 47, No. 9, pp. 1286-1299.
"Cash Flow Risk and Capital Structure Decisions" with Scott Roark. Finance Research Letters, Vol. 29, June 2019, pp. 393-297.
"Cash Flow Volatility and Trade Credit in Asia" with Scott Roark and Zhe Li. International Journal of Managerial Finance, Vol. 15, No. 2, pp. 257-271.
*Winner of the 2020 Emerald Literati Award of Excellence
"Explaining the Decline in Trade Credit Investment" with Scott Roark. Managerial Finance, Vol. 43 Issue: 12, pp. 1375-1391, 2017.
"Securitization, Trade Credit and the Nature of Goods" with Donna Dudney. Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol. 18, ss. 2, pp. 47-71.
“Trade Credit and Financial Flexibility”, The Banking and Finance Review. Volume 7, Issue 1, 2015.
“Financial Flexibility and Capital Structure”, Academy of Accounting and Financial Studies Journal. Volume 19, Issue 2, 2015.
Presentations
2017 Financial Management Association Annual Meeting - “Securitization, Trade Credit and the Nature of Goods” (with Donna Dudney)
2017 Financial Management Association Annual Meeting - “Exploring the Decline in Trade Credit Investment”, (with Scott Roark)
2018 Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting - “Socially Responsible Firms and Trade Credit Policy,” (with Hunter Holzhauer)
Professional Activities
Ad-Hoc Referee: Journal of Business Research, Managerial Finance, Finance Research Letters, Emerging Markets Trade and Finance, Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting and Economics, and Afro-Asian Journal of Finance and Accounting
Financial consultant, River Mill Academy, Graham, NC
Consulting services for The Arbor Day Foundation as a part of a study abroad course to Peru that focuses on sustainable agricultural practices and the creation of a new microfinance program
Discussant, FMA 2011 Annual Meeting
Service Activities
Faculty Search Committee 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2020
Financial literacy instructor with Elon University Odyssey Scholars Program, (2014-Present)
Financial literacy instructor with Elon Academy at Elon University, (2014-2019)
Honors Thesis Adviser (2014 – 2016), (2017 - 2019), (2018 - 2020), 2 (2019 - 2021)
Faculty advisor to the Elon chapter of the Financial Management Association student organization (2015 – 2017)
Elon University Faculty Athletics Committee (2015 – 2018), Committee chair (2017 - 2018)
Elon University Honor Board (2016 – Present)
Love School of Business PRME committee (2016 - 2017)
Center for Research on Global Engagement, member of the Community of Practice (2016 – 2017)
Elon University Sustainability Scholar (2016 – 2017)
Search Committee for Associate Director of Elon University CATL (Fall 2016)
Skills
Awards
Elon University Hultiquist Award, 2014
Love School of Business Dean's Award for Teaching, 2018
Love School of Business Dean's Award for Exemplary Service, 2021