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I am a financial economist focusing on behavioral research and seeing the human as the central figure behind every success and failure in business, investments, and compliance. My work explores tools that boost professional success and business returns through behavioral analysis and performance & well-being alignment.
I received my Ph.D. in Finance from the University of Florida and my Ph.D. in Economics from Middle Tennessee State University. I hold professional credentials supporting my expertise in data analytics (AWS Fundamentals, Machine Learning, and Generative AI, SAS Certified Business Analyst, ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity) and human behavior (ICF Certified Executive Coach (ACC track), currently working toward becoming a National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach). I work an Assistant Professor of Finance (Adjunct) at the University of Cincinnati and am part of the team exploring human–AI interaction in real estate, corporate finance, and investments. I also develop firm-tailored, research-backed, data-driven corporate wellness programs designed to improve performance, reduce absenteeism, and increase employee retention — ultimately discovering ways for firms to benefit from building sustainable work–life harmony experience for hired professionals. My research centers on two major areas: corporate wellness, with an emphasis on behavioral influences on performance and work-life harmony and their impact on corporate returns, and cybersecurity-related market anomalies, shadow trading, and data breach risks. I excel in Python, R, SAS, and Stata, and use advanced statistical, econometric, and machine-learning tools to address complex business challenges across multiple domains. My background spans academia and industry, giving me a unique perspective on how theoretical insights can be translated into practical, high-impact solutions. Throughout my career I have focused on bridging the gap between rigorous analytical research and real-world application. An extension of my professional interest in performance and wellness connection, I teach and practice eastern-style yoga and mindfulness. I have been a certified RYT200 yoga teacher with Yoga Alliance since 2017 and hold additional certifications in pranayama, meditation, yoga nidra, pre- and postnatal yoga, and children’s yoga through Yoga Vidya Gurukul, one of India’s leading yoga institutes recognized by AYUSH (Indian Ministry of Yoga and Ayurveda). I also enjoy mountain climbing, biking, and paddle boarding. I have traveled all over the world and have enjoyed working in different cultures and locations. Curriculum Vitae Contact: Clermont College, University of Cincinnati, 4200 Clermont College Dr, Batavia, OH 45103 Personal Webpage E-mail: petrovsa@ucmail.uc.edu SSRN Google Scholar ResearchGate |
Research Interests
Behavioral: Corporate Wellness, Professional Performance & Well-being Alignment (my Big Passion!)
FinTech: Cybersecurity and Capital Markets (very interesting to understand, especially in AI era)
Real Estate Finance (a little side interest explored at the highest professional level)
FinTech: Cybersecurity and Capital Markets (very interesting to understand, especially in AI era)
Real Estate Finance (a little side interest explored at the highest professional level)
EDUCATION
PhD in Finance, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
PhD in Economics, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN
MBA, Strategic Management, Moscow International Higher Business School, Moscow, Russia
MS in Finance, Finance University, Moscow, Russia
BA in Finance and Tax, Finance University, Moscow, Russia
PhD in Economics, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN
MBA, Strategic Management, Moscow International Higher Business School, Moscow, Russia
MS in Finance, Finance University, Moscow, Russia
BA in Finance and Tax, Finance University, Moscow, Russia
CERTIFICATIONS
SAS Certified Business Analyst
Certified AWS Academy Educator
AWS Academy Graduate: Cloud Foundations, Machine Learning Foundations, Generative AI
ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity (CC)
Bloomberg: Market Concepts (BMC), ESG, BQL Spreadsheet Analysis
Certified Executive Coach - ICF accredited (ACC track)
National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (March 2026 exam)
Certified AWS Academy Educator
AWS Academy Graduate: Cloud Foundations, Machine Learning Foundations, Generative AI
ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity (CC)
Bloomberg: Market Concepts (BMC), ESG, BQL Spreadsheet Analysis
Certified Executive Coach - ICF accredited (ACC track)
National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (March 2026 exam)
PROFESSIONAL AND ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE
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Assistant Professor of Finance - Adjunct, University of Cincinnati, October 2025 - present
- Teaching (Finance, Accounting, Big Data and Programming), Research in Finance Junior Editor, JREPE, May 2024 - present - Organizing peer-review process for manuscripts and facilitating the publishing process Assistant Professor of Finance, Center for Business Analytics Oversight Board Member, University of New Hampshire, 2020 - 2025 - Research in Finance, Teaching (Finance, Accounting, Big Data and Programming) - Overseeing Center’s work and guiding consulting services and research activities rendered to clients Graduate Assistant, University of Florida, 2016 - 2020 - Research in Finance and Real Estate, Teaching (International Finance, Fixed Income) Economist, TCRS, Tennessee Department of Treasury, 2015-2016 - Assisted the fixed income (more than $13.5 billion under management) and equity (more than $25 billion under management) portfolio management groups by providing daily forecasts and developing automated AI forecasting and reporting tools using Bloomberg, Python and R. Graduate Assistant, Middle Tennessee State University, 2014 - 2016 - Research in Economics, Teaching (Financial Planning, Business Economics, Macroeconomics) |
Director, Strategy and Business Development, Mouzenids Group, 2010-2012
- Developed and implemented strategy for international and cross-industry expansion of a Greek travel and airline holding (over 1600 employees). Directly managed over 30 employees. Associate/Manager/Director, Ernst&Young, YNS Audit, DelProf, 2005-2011 - Made a clear career path through series of complex client projects and double promotions - Actively participated in over 40 international and forensic audit and consulting projects, based on IFRS, US GAAP, cross-border taxation, and SEC Regulations compliance - Developed and implemented strategy for international expansion of consulting company business Professional and Executive Teaching - Business Analytics using R (seminar series), University of Florida, 2018 - Analytics and Forecasting using R (seminar), Tennessee Department of Treasury, 2016 - International Financial Reporting Standards (DipIFR), Internal Audit and Risk Management (Certified Internal Auditor), Executive Education, HOCK Training, 2009 - 2013 |
Managerial Experience
- Had over 30 people under direct supervision as a head of strategy
- Managed teams up to 12 people and was in charge for project management in consulting and audit
- Managed collaborative work with coauthors
- Managed multiple teams of senior and master students on their group projects solving financial problems with the help of statistical programming, research methods, and AI.
- Managed teams up to 12 people and was in charge for project management in consulting and audit
- Managed collaborative work with coauthors
- Managed multiple teams of senior and master students on their group projects solving financial problems with the help of statistical programming, research methods, and AI.
SEMINARS AND CONFERENCES
- Seminar, April 2025, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, Middle Tennessee State University
Presenter, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2024, West Palm Beach, FL
- Presenter, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2024, Dallas, TX
- Seminar, October 2024, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Syracuse University
- Presenter, Going Greener? Urban Exodus and Green Buildings Market after COVID-19, American Real Estate Society Meeting, 2024, Orlando, FL
- Presenter, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2023, Fajardo, PR
- Seminar, Going Greener? Urban Exodus and Green Buildings Market after COVID-19, UNH ACFI Department Brown Bag Seminar Series, November 2023
- Seminar, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, UNH Paul College Work in Progress Series, November 2023
- Committee, Bretton Woods Accounting and Finance Ski Conference, 2023, Bretton Woods, NH
- Presenter, Are U.S. Public Pension Funds CIOs Overpaid? Understanding the Role of the CIOs Pedigree in the Pension Funds’ Performance, AFFECT Workshop, 2023, New Orleans, LA
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, Entrepreneurship, Finance, and Innovation Symposium, 2022, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Key West, FL
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Key West, FL
- Presenter, Do Firms Prefer Overqualified Employees? The Impact of Financial Crises on Returns to Education, Northeast Business and Economics Association, 2022, Portsmouth, NH
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Atlanta, GA
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Atlanta, GA
- Executive Committee Member, FinTech track, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Washington, D.C
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2021, Denver, CO
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Northeast Business and Economics Association, 2020, Portsmouth, NH
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, 8th Annual OptionMetrics Research Conference, 2019, New York City, Northeast Business and Economics Association 2020
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Orlando, FL
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2019, New Orleans, LA
- Committee/Reviewer/Session Organizer, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2019, New Orleans, LA
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Miami, FL
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Miami, FL - Discussant, American Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Atlanta, GA
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Florida Finance Conference, 2019, Tampa, FL
- Discussant, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2018, San Diego, CA
- Discussant, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2017, Boston, MA
- Committee/Reviewer, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2017, Jacksonville, FL
- Presenter/Discussant, Are U.S. public pension funds CIOs overpaid? Understanding the Role of the CIOs Pedigree in the Pension Funds’ Performance, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2017, Jacksonville, FL
- Discussant/Chair, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2016, Las Vegas, NV
- Presenter, Whom Are You Working For? Regulation, 340b Drug Program, and the Healthcare Firm Performance, Midwest Economics Association, 2016, Evanston, IL
- Discussant, Midwest Economics Association, 2016, Evanston, IL
- Presenter, Are U.S. public pension funds CIOs overpaid? Understanding the Role of the CIOs in the Pension Funds’ Performance, Midwest Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2016, Atlanta, GA
- Discussant/Session Chair, Midwest Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2016, Atlanta, GA
- Presenter/Discussant/Session Chair, S.O.S.: Hiring and Compensation in the Shadow of an Economic Crisis, Southern Economic Association Annual Meeting, 2015, New Orleans, LA
- Presenter, Foreclosure Fears: Is Foreclosures Impact On House Prices Objective?, SAS Analytics, 2015, Las Vegas, NV
- Presenter, Dynamic Reporting Systems in Quantitative Portfolio Management and Financial using SAS and R, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2015, Orlando, FL
- Presenter, Analysis of the Impact of Federal Funds Rate Change on US Treasuries Returns using SAS, South Eastern SAS Users Group Annual Meeting, 2015, Savannah, GA
- Presenter/Discussant What Makes Firms Survive an Economic Crisis? Some Evidence from REITs, Midwest Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2015, Chicago, IL
Presenter, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2024, West Palm Beach, FL
- Presenter, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2024, Dallas, TX
- Seminar, October 2024, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Syracuse University
- Presenter, Going Greener? Urban Exodus and Green Buildings Market after COVID-19, American Real Estate Society Meeting, 2024, Orlando, FL
- Presenter, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2023, Fajardo, PR
- Seminar, Going Greener? Urban Exodus and Green Buildings Market after COVID-19, UNH ACFI Department Brown Bag Seminar Series, November 2023
- Seminar, Contagion: Cybersecurity Market Reaction to Data Breaches, UNH Paul College Work in Progress Series, November 2023
- Committee, Bretton Woods Accounting and Finance Ski Conference, 2023, Bretton Woods, NH
- Presenter, Are U.S. Public Pension Funds CIOs Overpaid? Understanding the Role of the CIOs Pedigree in the Pension Funds’ Performance, AFFECT Workshop, 2023, New Orleans, LA
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, Entrepreneurship, Finance, and Innovation Symposium, 2022, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Key West, FL
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Key West, FL
- Presenter, Do Firms Prefer Overqualified Employees? The Impact of Financial Crises on Returns to Education, Northeast Business and Economics Association, 2022, Portsmouth, NH
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Atlanta, GA
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Atlanta, GA
- Executive Committee Member, FinTech track, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2022, Washington, D.C
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2021, Denver, CO
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Northeast Business and Economics Association, 2020, Portsmouth, NH
- Presenter, Trading Ahead of the Disclosure: Cybersecurity Breaches, 8th Annual OptionMetrics Research Conference, 2019, New York City, Northeast Business and Economics Association 2020
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Orlando, FL
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2019, New Orleans, LA
- Committee/Reviewer/Session Organizer, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2019, New Orleans, LA
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Miami, FL
- Discussant/Committee/Reviewer, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Miami, FL - Discussant, American Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2019, Atlanta, GA
- Presenter, Cybersecurity Breaches: Firm Disclosures and Stock Market Responses, Florida Finance Conference, 2019, Tampa, FL
- Discussant, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2018, San Diego, CA
- Discussant, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2017, Boston, MA
- Committee/Reviewer, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2017, Jacksonville, FL
- Presenter/Discussant, Are U.S. public pension funds CIOs overpaid? Understanding the Role of the CIOs Pedigree in the Pension Funds’ Performance, Eastern Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2017, Jacksonville, FL
- Discussant/Chair, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2016, Las Vegas, NV
- Presenter, Whom Are You Working For? Regulation, 340b Drug Program, and the Healthcare Firm Performance, Midwest Economics Association, 2016, Evanston, IL
- Discussant, Midwest Economics Association, 2016, Evanston, IL
- Presenter, Are U.S. public pension funds CIOs overpaid? Understanding the Role of the CIOs in the Pension Funds’ Performance, Midwest Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2016, Atlanta, GA
- Discussant/Session Chair, Midwest Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2016, Atlanta, GA
- Presenter/Discussant/Session Chair, S.O.S.: Hiring and Compensation in the Shadow of an Economic Crisis, Southern Economic Association Annual Meeting, 2015, New Orleans, LA
- Presenter, Foreclosure Fears: Is Foreclosures Impact On House Prices Objective?, SAS Analytics, 2015, Las Vegas, NV
- Presenter, Dynamic Reporting Systems in Quantitative Portfolio Management and Financial using SAS and R, Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, 2015, Orlando, FL
- Presenter, Analysis of the Impact of Federal Funds Rate Change on US Treasuries Returns using SAS, South Eastern SAS Users Group Annual Meeting, 2015, Savannah, GA
- Presenter/Discussant What Makes Firms Survive an Economic Crisis? Some Evidence from REITs, Midwest Finance Association Annual Meeting, 2015, Chicago, IL