GMAC CEO Joy Jones' Path to Success: Inside the GMAT Podcast

In our first episode of Season 3, our host, Kailin Burns, had a riveting chat with GMAC’s CEO, Joy Jones. Joy talks us through the decision behind the new GMAT Focus Edition and shares her thoughts on the future of education.

She also talks about her personal education story, from her own experience studying for the GMAT and her career-defining experience at Stanford Graduate School of Business.

 

 

Interview transcript in full

Kailin Burns: Welcome to the show, Joy. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself and let our audience know a fun fact about you?

Joy Jones: Thank you for your kind welcome, Kaylin. I'm really happy to be joining you here on the podcast today. Well, as you've already mentioned, I'm just completing my 7th month as GMAC's CEO, the 4th in the Council's history.

It's absolutely an honor and privilege to be leading our organization as we work to ensure that every person finds the right business program fit for them – and I'm talking at every stage of their professional development.

So, my background is in strategy and products, especially for self-supported, mission-driven organizations, just like GMAC, and I originally joined GMAC almost six years ago as the Chief Product Officer. It's been a really fantastic period of time with so much transformation and growth happening in the industry. Especially as we've all been disrupted by the pandemic and changes in higher education.

The challenge of leading an organization like GMAC is complex and right up my alley, I have to say, because the fun fact about me is that I have a true passion. I mean like a real passion – for puzzles!

Particularly math puzzles like the Sudoku or Kakuro or honestly any games I make up when I see strings of numbers. Anything that involves trying to figure out creative calculation. It started as a fun past time when I was just a kid, and it's still with me to this day.

Kailin Burns: Glad to have you here today. Love your fun fact! Let's jump in. I know that our audience is excited to hear from you. As you mentioned with the pandemic, graduate management education has evolved tremendously over the past years.

What has been the most positive or unexpected change in your opinion?

Joy Jones: There've been so many positive changes, and the evolving expectations of a generational shift in prospective students is stirring a lot of innovation at schools. I think coming out of the last few years, I see some of the biggest changes coming out in the use of technology, both as learning tools and as assets that business leaders need to know and understand to a certain degree as a source of competitive advantage.

More schools are thoughtful about how they factor keeping pace with technology into their teaching and into their learning environments. Data literacy and tech fluency are core skills now right up there with accounting, finance, marketing, strategy, and organizational behavior.

The same thing is beginning to happen with environmental, social, and corporate governance or ESG. Business schools are being quite intentional about how they bring ESG into their curriculum and degree offerings, which is really timely given the importance that up-and-coming students place on seeing it in their educational mix and at the companies they aspire to work for.

It's also related to another interesting trend regarding business education and its intersection with other disciplines. As I'm out visiting with schools, I'm increasingly hearing about new collaborations between the business schools and other departments like social sciences, earth sciences, other life sciences. I feel like a business degree is one of the most versatile and universal for leadership and management in any field. And it's really neat to see these types of joint offerings in these areas that are rich for new solutions.

Kailin Burns: Thanks so much for that perspective, especially in the positive changes that are happening and what you're hearing from school partners.

With that, GMAC recently announced some exciting changes to the GMAT exam. Could you share with us how this redesign came about from your perspective first as a Chief Product Officer and now as CEO?

Joy Jones: So of course, here at GMAC, we also want to be innovators in our discipline. And in the role of Chief Products Officer, I really leapt at the opportunity to keep the flagship product strong.

Since its launch in 1954, if you can believe it, the GMAT has been the gold standard in business testing and has often evolved to ensure it remains a highly relevant indicator of candidate preparedness for graduate business degree programs. We've been working collaboratively with Business School admissions professionals, their faculty, and other partners in our space to determine how to ensure it remains the best assessment for business education around the world.

Our goal is to make sure that today's pipeline of candidates, who are increasingly coming from very diverse academic backgrounds and different professional lived experiences, that they have a testing experience that helps them and the schools they want to enroll in assess the readiness for the academic side of the program.

In our unique position as the Council, we've had the opportunity to engage with the business school community via listening tours, focus groups, school visits and conversations during conferences about our assessment portfolio and especially the GMAT exam.

We also kicked off a robust research program through a third-party firm so that we could objectively understand the needs of schools and candidates and of course evolve the exam as needed. So after speaking with over 65 school professionals representing a wide mix of program types and sizes at schools from around the world and also doing some in-depth concept testing with nearly 5400 candidates globally who themselves represented a really good mix of demographic characteristics, we were able to identify several driving themes to inform our next evolution of the GMAT exam.

We're really excited that we redesigned it to be efficient, more flexible and more insightful. From a CEO perspective, I'd say GMAT Focus is a really important part of our GMAT portfolio of products and services to schools and candidates. That's along with our Business Fundamentals, our GMAT Tour events, student search services, and media insights. Again, we're really excited and I encourage all of your listeners to return to the podcast in the coming months to learn more.

We're really looking forward to GMAT Focus’ success in the market when it's available later this year.

Kailin Burns: That's great to hear, Joy. So many exciting things happened and you mentioned in the beginning the strength of the GMAT being around since 1954 and the fact that it provides academic readiness for our candidates that are considering it.

What advice do you have for those that are trying to decide between taking the two versions of the GMAT at this time?

Joy Jones: Sure, well I’d say my main advice to those who are already prepping for the GMAT and plan to enroll soon is to feel confident really in proceeding with the current version of the exam. I mean, take advantage of the available study planners, free prep material so you're set up to do your best.

And keep in mind that GMAT Focus is largely curated from the current GMAT exam, so any prep or testing you do now to be familiar with the item types will still be relevant going forward, even if you plan to retest. And if you're planning on testing in the fourth quarter of this year when GMAT Focus is available, then be on the lookout over the summer for new prep availability. It's coming in early June.

And there will also be a shorter study planner for the shorter exam and plenty of prep materials available to you. And finally, I'd say to make it even easier for test takers, there is a brief period where both tests will be available, so the choice is really yours. You can try them both and take advantage of the new ability to select which score report you send to schools.

Kailin Burns: Great. So that choice really lies with the candidate, which is so great to put them in control of this process. And of course for those of you that are listening, do be sure to check out mba.com for the prep section where you can access all of our GMAT prep resources to help you in this journey.

So Joy, I understand that you received your MBA from Stanford Business School. Could you tell us about your journey and the role that the GMAT played?

Joy Jones: Sure, Kaylin. So I got my MBA at Stanford. It was quite a while ago and in many ways I would say it was kind of a life defining experience for me. I'd opted not to go to Stanford as an undergrad. Instead, I got my Bachelor's in Mathematics and Applied Science at UCLA. Go Bruins!

I also completed a specialization or what others may know as a Minor in Business Administration, which led me to a field marketing internship with Procter and Gamble, which was really cool. They flew us out to Cincinnati for a training event, and I saw this other group of interns who were using things that were foreign to me. I'm talking Excel and PowerPoint, and I was busy cutting out pictures from sales sheets to create presentations. So I'm not ashamed to admit now I was jealous. So I learned that those were MBA interns and that's when I decided I wanted to go get my MBA.

There weren't a lot of other graduate business degree options then, and this was, you know, before the internet. So I really didn't know much about Business School, but I knew I was still interested in Stanford, so I applied to their business school, and I was really fortunate to get in.

I would say that I believe, in addition to doing really well in my major and having a story to tell about some of my experience with student organizations and collegiate sports, that doing well on the GMAT exam itself persuaded the admissions team to let me in, even though I didn't yet have full-time work experience.

The fun story about me taking the GMAT is I took it on my birthday right after getting my free breakfast at the local IHOP pancake shop and I'm sure doing well on the exam certainly bolstered my confidence that I was prepared and could do well at the GSB (Stanford Graduate School of Business).

That's awesome. Well, you know, goes hand in hand. We always tell our candidates to have a good breakfast before they take the GMAT, and you're living proof of that! What a great story.

What lessons learned or experienced during your time at Stanford really stood out to you even years later?

Joy Jones: Ah, they were good memories, and I went to Stanford with a pretty narrow understanding of what an MBA could do for me professionally. But while there, my eyes were quickly open to just an amazing array of career paths I'd never even thought of or heard. It was amazing to learn just how versatile an MBA is.

So, I had an opportunity to explore different types of courses and different programs. And so I would encourage someone, even if they think they know what they want to do going in that they take the opportunity to really explore the course offering and use that as a launchpad and taking that first leap to get out of your comfort zone is really going to set you up for success.

I know for me, taking that leap put me on a path to be comfortable taking, you know, subsequent career leaps throughout my professional lifetime and to gain experience working across the number of industries and in a number of countries, which ultimately I'd say helped land me here as CEO of GMAC.

And I'd also just add one other note, which I think is important especially for people who are very focused on what they want to achieve, is an important lesson that I got out of the GSB, and that's the GSB has a tradition of stressing having a lot of fun while working hard. So whether that's participating in clubs, mentoring at a local elementary school or playing volleyball in the challenge for charity, we really enjoyed ourselves. And I find even now I try to bring that spirit of enjoying what I do and doing what I enjoy to life every day.

Kailin Burns: Great tips for anyone considering, whether it's their MBA or any sort of degree or if they're trying to figure out what their path in life is going to be, make sure that you're doing something that you enjoy and have passion in.

If you could do it again, would you make the same decision about pursuing graduate management education right after college and staying close to home?

Joy Jones: That's really interesting. I have to say I still feel going immediately into my MBA at Stanford was the right decision for me at the time. It was nice to be close to home and an easy choice since it was a great school. And it was also good because I really wanted to work abroad and I thus went into a career that kept me on the road. So it was good to have that home based near family and friends.

That said, you know, if you asked me eight to 10 years into my career after leaving the GSB, I would have said don't be in too much of a rush to finish school. Because after some years in the workforce, the depth of experience you bring in might enhance what you take away from your MBA program now.

Nowadays I'd have to say the beauty is that there are so many options that you don't have to think of it as a finite decision. Instead, I would really encourage people to take advantage of all the offerings that are available to you. You can choose a pre-experienced masters right out of undergrad, add a certification in your early work years, go get an MBA at the right stage for you, whether that's mid-career or as an executive. And of course, you can leverage short courses and programs to keep your skills fresh at any time.

You really have this wonderful opportunity to create a lifelong learning system for yourself that's tailored to your own needs.

Kailin Burns: Love the concept of lifelong learning, right? And the opportunity now that there's so many different things out there to fit everyone's perspective or personality as

For those of our audience who are thinking about pursuing graduate business education, what advice do you have for them?

Joy Jones: I would say think about the story of you several years out, including you know, this arc from where you are now, how you got here, and what you imagine accomplishing professionally and personally over that horizon.

So if it involves responsible leadership, inspiring people management, global mobility, solving important business challenges, or something like the entrepreneurial application of technology and business, and not the least of with just personal growth and development, then I would say don't think twice about pursuing graduate business education. This will become your true-life story in a way that's unique to you and your aspiration. And admissions officers right out of the gate will be interested in hearing about your authentic story.

I'd also advise that you research your option and understand the investment you're about to make in your future. I appreciate that it's real time and real money. I felt that way when I was making this decision, and I know many can't afford to make that decision lightly. I found in the end that it was well worth it, and so I still believe it's well worth it. And schools are often willing to work with you to make it a viable option for candidates they feel are a good fit for their programs.

So again, go for it. There's certainly a lot of choices and a number of available resources through organizations like GMAC and its affiliate that can help you make sure you're prepared for the best experience possible.

Finally, I'd encourage people who are thinking about graduate business School to find a place where they can build meaningful connection. Go visit the campus. Talk to a lot of people. Talk to alums. Really get informed.

The connections and relationships I think are one of the really special things about the business school experience. And I personally, I still access the Stanford alumni network and really appreciate the relationships with fellow alums and we have a bond whether they were in my class or even with more recent grads. I tap into that network and I feel like this experience continues to give to me throughout my career.

Kailin Burns: Great advice and great take away and I hope that it resonates with our listeners today.

So one final question, what brings you joy, pun intended, as the CEO of GMAC?

Joy Jones: Well I would have to say taking on this role as CEO and having the opportunity to do really interesting work for an organization with a mission that greatly resonates with my own journey truly is a pleasure.

I fortunately work with really terrific people here at GMAC and at schools who inspire me every day. It's been rewarding for me and helping people achieve their own idea of personal and professional success is a real joy.

Kailin Burns: Well Joy, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us. I learned something, I know that our listeners learned something. We are all looking forward to the exciting changes that are coming at GMAC and of course with the release of the GMAC Focus Edition.

So, thanks again for taking the time and we look forward to hearing from you in the future.

Joy Jones: Thank you, Kaylin!

Next episode: Your Guide to GMAT Focus PREP in Under 10 Minutes. Catch it at insidethegmat.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

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