Rate My Professor Liandong Zhang

Professor Liandong Zhang is the Dean of the School of Accountancy at Singapore Management University and the Lee Kong Chian Professor of Accounting. He joined SMU in 2017 and has held successive leadership positions, serving as Associate Dean (Research) from 2017 to 2023 and Deputy Dean from 2023 to 2025 before his appointment as Dean effective 1 July 2025. Prior to SMU, Professor Zhang was Professor of Accountancy at City University of Hong Kong from 2016 to 2017, having progressed through assistant and associate professor roles there since 2010, and served as Assistant Professor of Accountancy at Concordia University’s John Molson School of Business from 2007 to 2010.

Professor Zhang holds a Ph.D. in Accounting from Nanyang Technological University (2008) and a B.A. in Accounting from Tsinghua University (1999). His research specializes in financial reporting and disclosure, corporate governance, and taxation. He has published extensively in leading journals including the Journal of Accounting Research, Journal of Accounting and Economics, Review of Accounting Studies, The Accounting Review, and Journal of Financial Economics. Notable publications include “Do Commercial Ties Influence ESG Ratings? Evidence from Moody’s and S&P” (Journal of Accounting Research, 2024), “Trade Secrets Law and Corporate Disclosure: Causal Evidence on the Proprietary Cost Hypothesis” (Journal of Accounting Research, 2018), and “Corporate Tax Avoidance and Stock Price Crash Risk: Firm-level Analysis” (Journal of Financial Economics, 2011). His work has received significant citations and recognition, including an Honourable Mention for the 2024 Moskowitz Prize, the SMU Outstanding Graduate Supervisor Award in 2024, multiple SOA Most Outstanding Researcher Awards, and the Lee Kong Chian Professorship. Professor Zhang serves as Editor of Corporate Governance: An International Review and as Associate Editor for the Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting and Economics and International Review of Finance. He is a frequent speaker at academic and policy forums worldwide.