Faculty & Leadership Blog / Faculty in the News

Babson Professor Richard Bliss Receives Walter H. Carpenter Prize

Long-time Babson professor of finance, Richard Bliss, has received the Walter H. Carpenter Prize for Exceptional Contributions to Babson College. The Carpenter Prize is the most prestigious honor awarded to a Babson employee.

Established in 1981, the Carpenter Prize is awarded annually to the individual who best personifies the personal and professional attributes of Walter Carpenter. Recipients demonstrate a commitment to high personal and professional standards, at least ten year of outstanding service to Babson College, and compassion and concern for both students and colleagues.

As Bliss approaches 20 years of service to Babson, this is a fitting tribute. He is admired and respected by students and colleagues alike – a friend and mentor to many members of our community. His nominators described Bliss as, “an outstanding, innovative and caring teacher” who “demonstrates absolute commitment to quality in everything he does,” “answers the call to help others,” “shows true leadership,” and is “unwaveringly committed to Babson College.”

Richard Bliss

Bliss is a Professor of Finance at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts. He has been involved in corporate and entrepreneurial finance since 1987, with industry experience that includes time at Touche Ross & Company in New York as a consultant, and senior financial positions at Van Camp Seafood Company and Safety One, Inc., a specialty chemicals start-up. He teaches at the undergraduate, MBA, and executive levels, specializing in the areas of Corporate Financial Strategy, Sustainability, Risk Management, and Entrepreneurial Finance.

Most recently, Bliss is a member of the Babson team helping to develop and deliver the curriculum for the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program, a US$500 million initiative designed to create jobs and spur economic activity through greater access to business education, mentors, networks and financial capital.

With publications in the areas of corporate finance, entrepreneurship, and banking, Bliss has an active research agenda. His current research considers the impact of gender teamwork on mutual fund manager investment decisions. His work has been published in the Journal of Financial Economics, Derivatives Quarterly, and The Journal of Small Business Management, among others. He has also written numerous book chapters and case studies in the areas of corporate financial strategy, risk management, entrepreneurial finance, and emerging markets. His book, Entrepreneurial Finance: Strategy, Valuation & Deal Structure, co-authored with Janet Kiholm-Smith and Richard L. Smith, was published in April 2011 by the Stanford University Press.

Bliss holds a Ph.D. in Finance and M.A. in Economics from Indiana University. He has also received his M.B.A. in Finance/Real Estate from Indiana University and graduated with honors from Rutgers University, earning a B.S. degree in Engineering and a B.A. degree in Economics.