Hoje Jo is the Gerald and Bonita A. Wilkinson Professor of Finance at Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business. A distinguished scholar, Jo operates at the intersection of corporate finance, governance, and sustainability, and is widely recognized for pioneering the integration of ethical and social responsibility frameworks into financial research.
Born in Korea, Jo’s academic journey began with a B.A. in Chinese Language and Literature from Seoul National University (1977). He transitioned to finance for his graduate studies, earning an M.B.A. from the State University of New York at Buffalo (1982) and a Ph.D. from the University of Florida (1986).
After beginning his career at the University of New Mexico, Jo joined the Santa Clara University faculty in 1990. He has served in several key leadership roles, including Chair of the Finance Department (2011–2014), and was appointed to his endowed professorship in 2013.
The author of more than 110 peer-reviewed articles, Jo’s work appears in leading journals such as the Journal of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Business Venturing, and Review of Accounting Studies. His research has garnered over 16,400 citations and an h-index of 39 (as of January 2026), reflecting substantial scholarly impact. A central theme of his work is the interplay among corporate finance, corporate social responsibility (CSR), environmental sustainability, and ethical governance. His influential paper “The Economics and Politics of Corporate Social Performance” (co-authored with Baron and Harjoto) received the 2009 Moskowitz Prize for Socially Responsible Investing.
Jo’s contributions have been recognized with numerous awards, including the Iddo Sarnat Memorial Award from the Journal of Banking and Finance (1996), the Best Paper Award at the Financial Management Association/PACAP Joint Conference (2000), the Mae-Kyung Best Paper Award (2008, 2018), and the AJFS Samsung Asset Management Best Paper Award (2021). He is also a recipient of the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award (2018) and Santa Clara University’s President’s Special Recognition Award (2013).
Deeply engaged in the academic community, Jo served as President of the Korea America Finance Association (2008–2009) and on the editorial boards of the Asia-Pacific Journal of Financial Studies, Global Finance Journal, and Review of Accounting and Finance. He has held visiting professorships at Korea University Business School, Seoul National University, and KAIST.
Before entering academia, Jo gained industry experience in South Korea with Ssangyong Corporation and Daewoo Industrial Co. He has also advised and served on the boards of several Silicon Valley technology startups and venture firms.
In addition to his research, Jo teaches across undergraduate, MBA, and specialized finance programs, with courses in financial management, entrepreneurial finance, venture capital and private equity, and international finance.
March 2026