Pavel Savor, Professor of Finance, Christopher L. Keeley Chair in Investment Management
By Andrew Krueger and Thomas Dzielski
Originally from Croatia, Dr. Savor attended Yale University where he earned a BA and MA in Economics. He later went on to attend Harvard University, where he received an AM and PhD in Business Economics. Throughout his professional career in academia, Dr. Savor has worked as a professor in the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and the Fox School of Business at Temple University. During that time, he garnered attention for his papers with many of them being published in journals such as the Journal of Finance, the Journal of Financial Economics, the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, and Management Science. We sat down for a conversation with Dr. Savor to learn more about why he chose economics as a major, his experiences in academia, and to hear about his advice for current finance students.
When Dr. Savor arrived at Yale, he did not know immediately what major to pursue. However, after taking a few economics courses, he felt he had found a major that would lead to a fulfilling career. Although he always thought about getting a PhD, Dr. Savor worked in industry a few years before returning to graduate school. When in graduate school, Dr. Savor realized that he enjoyed academia and made the decision to become a professor.
Having been a high-achieving student at both Yale and Harvard, Dr. Savor has a proven history of successfully satisfying rigorous academic standards; however, during our conversation he was quick to point out that there are more factors than intelligence that contribute to success in school. Savor stated, “It is important to enjoy what you are studying. Your studies can become much easier when you study what you like. School can become difficult when you force yourself into a major or subject in which you have little interest.”
Equipped with an insight of economics, Dr. Savor decided to apply his vast knowledge to industry. He first began working at Cornerstone, which supports or provides economic experts in lawsuits. Specifically, Dr. Savor elaborated on how a company may sue another for monopolization. Cornerstone’s analysts would then compute damages and testify on behalf of their results. Recognizing another opportunity, Dr. Savor sought out a Croatian pharmaceutical company, Pliva, to assist on acquisitions. A company he described as “cash rich,” Dr. Savor explained that Pliva was looking to capitalize on their liquidity. However, his time at Pliva was short-lived, and after a year and a half he traveled back to the United States to finish graduate school.
Throughout our conversation, Dr. Savor emphasized the need to work hard stating, “In finance, much if not all the material students learn they have never encountered before. Accordingly, the time outside of the classroom is paramount if students wish to master the material.” Dr. Savor also recommends that students with an interest in a certain course should utilize their professor’s office hours. Savor noted, “One of the purposes of office hours is for students get the opportunity to interact with their professor one-on-one. This level of professor-student engagement can help students gain a deeper grasp of the material they are leaning in class and what careers in finance might best fit their interests”.
Even with many research and quantitative methods, economics and finance are still prone to the same problems every other major faces: communication errors. Referencing his instructional background, Dr. Savor highlighted that although he does not teach any communication classes, he couldn’t urge students enough about how important it is to have effective communication skills. Savor points out, “Without them, one’s ideas would cease to exist, and those in industry simply couldn’t survive. “It’s certainly a skill I hope our graduates have, or should have.”
Dr. Savor’s recent professional accomplishments include a paper published in August 2018, with co-authors Francesca Brusa and Mungo Wilson, about the Federal Reserve. Savor noted that the paper “focuses on equity investors and their reactions to different central banks,” and maintains that the Federal Reserve is the ONLY central bank that really matters. A statement backed by data, Dr. Savor and his co-authors analyzed investor sentiment in response to central bank data. From there, the paper goes on to describe how macroeconomic data has had a direct correlation to returns over the last 40 years, and that the Federal Reserve is largely responsible for any changes in a portfolio’s value.
Dr. Pavel Savor now serves as the Christopher L. Keeley Chair in Investment Management within the Keeley Center for Financial Services at DePaul. Savor remains passionate about developing new mechanisms to improve class structure and coursework. Though he laughed about the scope of his ability to do so, he briefly mentioned that he is doing what he believes is best for DePaul. Dr. Savor also elaborated on his move to DePaul, saying he felt compelled to come here, and so far he’s enjoyed all that has happened.