Miles Gietzmann Explains What Pushes Companies to be Opaque or Transparent
"I was born in Africa and began my career in the UK. The fact that I am now living in Milan and working at Bocconi proves that you can't over-plan your career. It shows what happens when you respond flexibly and positively to opportunities and life events". Miles Bernard Gietzmann, Director of the Department of Accounting, was born in Zimbabwe. His paternal family emigrated to German West Africa (Namibia) in the 1880s. His mother left England in the 1950s, following her brother to Zimbabwe. Driven by the desire to understand the mechanisms driving transparency in the business world, Gietzmann graduated in Economics and Accounting at Newcastle University and applied for a PhD at Durham University.
"I didn't have plans to become an academic", he says. "I was very interested in the subject. However, whenever I attended conferences, I especially enjoyed the free discussion and evaluation of ideas. From that moment on, I knew I wanted to stay in an academic environment". Gietzmann began his career at the London School of Economics. He still remembers the excitement of meeting international visiting scholars. Subsequently by developing contacts in London's financial industry, he became more aware of pressing industry issues. Influenced by the work of Professor Ronald Dye at Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, he then focused on corporate disclosure.
"I wanted to understand and investigate the determinants of the 'less than perfect' disclosures of companies. In spite of legally and ethically having an obligation to inform investors in a clear and transparent way, sometimes this did not happen". He then focused on the economic drivers behind mergers and acquisitions. His first Chair was at Bristol University. He then went on to hold a professorial position at Cass Business School before moving to Bocconi in 2014.
"I found an institution with high standards and high goals, an organisation that constantly strives to move forward. My main challenge now is to anticipate the learning needs of students that will be senior executives in twenty, thirty years and develop a programme of research and teaching at Bocconi to match those needs".