CAMDEN — David Pedersen, an assistant professor of finance at the Rutgers School of Business–Camden, penned one of the 10 best business research manuscripts in New Jersey in 2013, according to the Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University and the New Jersey Policy Research Organization Foundation.

David Pedersen
David Pedersen

Pedersen, a resident of Havertown, Pa., was honored with the Bright Idea Award for his article, “Skill Differences in Corporate Acquisitions,” published in the Journal of Corporate Finance in 2013. He co-authored the paper with Jeffrey Jaffe, an associate professor of finance at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and Torben Voetmann, a principal at the Brattle Group, a consulting firm in California.

“What’s significant about this award is that it is recognition from both the academic community and the business community, and that means a lot to my research colleagues and me,” Pedersen says. “I’m proud to have been recognized with the Bright Idea Award.”

Pedersen’s research paper uses data on mergers and acquisitions to determine how much a company’s CEO impacts a deal.

“In mergers and acquisitions, it’s important to understand what makes a good deal and what makes a bad deal, and there is a long list of factors to consider,” Pedersen says. “We found that a firm that retains a CEO who was successful in his or her last deal earns, on average, $175 million more on its next acquisition than a firm that retains a CEO who was unsuccessful on a previous deal.”

The paper was identified as one of the 10 best from more than 216 publications. The Bright Idea Award is sponsored by the Stillman School of Business and the NJPRO Foundation, the public policy research affiliate of the New Jersey Business and Industry Association.

Pedersen is the ninth different Rutgers University–Camden faculty member to win the Bright Idea Award since the establishment of the award in 2004. It has been awarded to a Rutgers–Camden faculty member 12 times.

An expert in corporate governance, Pedersen teaches courses in financial management and mergers and acquisitions at the Rutgers School of Business–Camden. He earned his bachelor’s degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and his doctoral degree from Drexel University.