Lance Nail Named to Chair in UAB School of Business

University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Assistant Professor of Finance Lance Nail, Ph.D., has been named chairman of the Department of Finance, Economics and Quantitative Methods in the School of Business effective Aug. 15. Nail succeeds Associate Professor Rick Burns, Ph.D., who is returning to a full-time faculty position. Burns has been chairman of the department since 1999.

June 20, 2003

BIRMINGHAM, AL — University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Assistant Professor of Finance Lance Nail, Ph.D., has been named chairman of the Department of Finance, Economics and Quantitative Methods in the School of Business effective Aug. 15. Nail succeeds Associate Professor Rick Burns, Ph.D., who is returning to a full-time faculty position. Burns has been chairman of the department since 1999.

Nail is a native of Cullman. He earned his bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Alabama in 1989. In 1996, he earned his Ph.D. in finance from the University of Georgia, where he also was a research fellow and instructor. Prior to his academic career, he was a senior consultant for Ernst & Young LLP National Consulting. He joined the faculty at UAB in 1996.

“I look forward to closely working with Dean Holmes, the students, administration, faculty members and the professional community to continue to advance the quality of our programs,” Nail said. “I am extremely honored to serve my colleagues and UAB in my capacity as chair.”

Robert Holmes, Ph.D., dean of the UAB School of Business, said Nail’s “outstanding research background, strong commitment to quality teaching and history of service to his students and colleagues” made him exceptionally qualified for the chairmanship. In 1999, the Nail/Edwards Scholarship at the UAB School of Business was established in honor of his teaching excellence, and in 2001 he received the UAB President’s Excellence in Teaching Award. He received the UAB School of Business Excellence in Teaching Award in 1998 and 1999.

Nail is coordinator of the MBA finance concentration, a position he has held for the past year. He has been faculty advisor to the Finance Club and Beta Gamma Sigma honor society for the past six years. His widely published research interests include corporate control and governance, corporate finance, agency theory and insider trading.

“We are very fortunate to have Dr. Lance Nail as our new chairman of the department of finance, economics and quantitative methods,” Holmes said. “I am delighted that he has agreed to accept this important leadership position.”

Nail’s research findings have been published in numerous peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Financial Economics, Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Research in International Business and Finance and Journal of Banking and Finance.

Nail has been guest editor of the peer-reviewed journals Research in International Business and Finance and International Review of Financial Analysis. He also is a reviewer for the journals Financial Review, International Review of Financial Analysis, Journal of Banking and Finance and Journal of Business Research.

He also has presented at several professional conferences, including 13 papers at the annual Financial Management Association conference — the largest national financial academic conference — over the past seven years. He earned the 2001 Outstanding Paper Award in Derivatives from the Southern Finance Association for a paper he co-authored titled “Speculation or Insider Trading? Informed Trading in Options Markets Preceding Tender Offer Announcements.”

He is a member of a number of professional organizations, including the board of directors of the Alabama Society of Financial Analysts. He also is a member of the American Finance Association, Association for Investment Management and Research, Eastern Finance Association, Financial Management Association and Southern Finance Association.