James Naughton
James Naughton

ACCOUNTING INFORMATION & MANAGEMENT
Assistant Professor of Accounting Information & Management

Print Overview

Jim Naughton is an Assistant Professor in the Accounting Information and Management department. His research focuses on the properties and economic impact of accounting information and accounting standards. Jim and his co-authors have examined how footnote transparency affects earnings management, why firms choose to invest in socially responsible activities, how public pension accounting has affected policy choices, how risk measurement is affected by accounting standards, and how a firm’s disclosure is affected by expected litigation costs.

Jim currently teaches Accounting For Decision Making, the core financial accounting class.

Jim received his doctorate in business administration from Harvard Business School; his JD from Harvard Law School; and his BS from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Prior to graduate school, Jim was an actuary at Hewitt Associates, an employee benefits consulting firm, where he worked on the design and administration of employee benefits plans and executive compensation agreements.


Areas of Expertise
Corporate Governance
Financial Accounting
Management Compensation
Pension Funds
Print Vita
Education
D.B.A., 2011, Accounting and Management, Harvard Business School, Harvard University
J.D, 2010, Harvard Law School, Harvard University, Cum Laude
B.S.M., 1996, Economics & Technology, Management, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Academic Positions
Donald P. Jacobs Scholar/Assistant Professor, Accounting Information and Management, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2011-present
Teaching Assistant, Finance, Harvard Business School, Harvard, 2006-2010
Teaching Fellow, Finance, Harvard Business School, Harvard, 2006-2009
Teaching Fellow, Finance, Harvard Business School, Harvard, 2006-2007

 
Print Research
Research Interests
Pensions, Disclosure, Earnings Management, Financial Regulation

Working Papers
Naughton , James and Craig Chapman. Accounting Rules and the Valuation of Pension Risk.
Naughton , James. The Impact of Footnote Transparency on Managerial Discretion: Evidence from FAS 132 Pension Disclosure.
Naughton , James. The Effect of Pension Obligations on Corporate Bankruptcy.

 
Print Teaching
Teaching Interests
Financial Accounting, Financial Statement Analysis, Corporate Governance, Financial Regulation, Legal Issues in Corporate Finance and Accounting
Full-Time / Part-Time MBA
Accounting For Decision Making (ACCT-430-0)

This course counts toward the following majors: Accounting.

This course acquaints students with the process used to construct and understand the financial reports of organizations. The objective is to understand the decisions that must be made in the financial reporting process and to develop the ability to evaluate and use accounting data. Emphasis is placed on understanding the breadth of accounting measurement practices and on being able to make the adjustments necessary for careful analysis. The course highlights the linkages between accounting information and management planning, and decision making and control.