Shushu Liao

Dr. Shushu Liao serves as an Assistant Professor of Finance at Kühne Logistics University (KLU) in Hamburg, Germany since September 2021. Prior to her current position, she held academic appointments as a Research Fellow in Finance at the Auckland Center for Financial Research, Auckland University of Technology (2020-2021), and as a Fixed-term Lecturer at Lancaster University (2019-2020).

Dr. Liao earned her academic credentials from prestigious institutions: a PhD in Finance from Lancaster University (2014-2019), an M.Sc in Finance from Imperial College London (2012-2013), and a B.A. in Financial Management from Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China (2008-2012).

Her research program spans a comprehensive range of topics in corporate finance and governance, with particular focus on what determines optimal corporate strategies. Dr. Liao employs both empirical and structural modeling approaches to investigate the intricate relationships between financing and investment decisions, corporate risk management, financial stability, labor finance, product market competition, managerial styles, and executive compensation. A distinctive aspect of her work examines how CEO characteristics—such as marital status, personality traits, and early-life experiences—influence corporate decision-making and financial outcomes.

Analysis of her publication record reveals a clear trajectory examining how external shocks (financial crises, pandemics, geopolitical events) interact with corporate characteristics to shape financial outcomes. Her recent work has increasingly focused on CEO characteristics and their impact on corporate behavior, as well as the role of diversity in corporate governance and performance. The methodological approach spans from traditional empirical finance techniques to structural modeling, demonstrating both breadth and depth in her scholarly contributions.

Dr. Liao has been recognized as an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) in the UK, highlighting her commitment to pedagogical excellence. Her scholarly contributions have appeared in top-tier finance and management journals including the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Journal of Banking & Finance, British Journal of Management, and European Financial Management.

In her teaching capacity, Dr. Liao has instructed courses on Bloomberg financial analysis, Stata for time series analysis, and Quantitative Methods for Finance and Investments. At Auckland University of Technology, she supervised master's thesis projects. Her research has been presented at numerous international conferences including the European Financial Management Association, British Accounting and Finance Association meetings, and specialized finance colloquia across Europe, New Zealand, and Asia.