Johnny Kelley (pictured) fell in love with math at a young age. From there, it was inevitable he would go on to study the subject at Fordham University in the Bronx—the first step towards the career in data analytics he launched after studying an MBA years later.   

After graduating from Fordham in 2013, he moved into a career in marketing analytics for the next five years, working for a few different agencies and developing an understanding of data. During this time, he developed a craving to learn about business and analytics from a higher education standpoint. 

Johnny enrolled on the University of San Francisco School of Management (USF SOM) MBA program in 2018. He was able to tailor his MBA program to cater his specific goals and ambitions.  

“A lot of things drew me to the program, particularly the business analytics concentration,” Johnny says. “I wanted to not only develop my technical skills, but advance my career through developing my managerial skills.” 

Johnny graduates in May 2020 with his future career already cemented in place. He’s been working as a technical customer success manager at analytics and software platform Mode since January, thanks to both the MBA and the advice he received through USF’s Career Accelerator Program (CAP).

Launching a career in data analytics 

Johnny spent the summer between his first and second year at USF SOM as a customer success intern for Integral Ad Science. He admits he struggled to secure his internship, landing the position late on in May 2019.  

However, through CAP he was supported by the USF faculty and given tips and templates that made the process more manageable alongside study. It gave him a clearer idea of how to present himself in interviews, as well as how to frame his resume.  

Spending his summer as a customer success intern at Integral Ad Science gave him the opportunity to apply what he had learned so far, giving him much needed experience that aided his application process when looking for a full-time job.  

Now working as a technical customer success manager for Mode as his time at USF SOM hits the home straight, Johnny says his day to day work tasks include running beta program models, managing customer satisfaction, and updating product features.  

“Being a technical customer success manager, I find a lot of what I do now is connected to what I’ve learned on the MBA program,” he says. From business analytics, to predictive modeling, and data mining, Johnny is implementing what he’s been learning from the MBA at his job in real-time.  

“I love data,” he says. “I always say that, if you want to harness the power of data, and you want to develop your business intelligence, then the analytics space is the right way to go.” 

Johnny was able to stagger class schedules across the two years so he was able to balance his work with Mode with his studies. His workload was heavier in first year to free up his second year, giving him time to consider his next steps after the MBA.  

He was able to shift some of his modules online for the last few months of his MBA, too, and admits he feels fortunate to have landed full-time work prior to graduating from the MBA, before the full impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic hit the workforce. 

How the University of San Francisco faculty helped Johnny’s career 

When visiting the USF SOM campus before deciding to enroll, Johnny describes his first meeting with the professor of business analytics, Vijay Mehrotra, as convincing him the business school was the best place for him.  

“Vijay laid out the entire groundwork for the plans he had for the analytics program and the tracks they were creating––he got me really jazzed up about it,” Johnny explains. “All of his classes were instrumental in teaching me how to think about data from standpoints I’d never considered before.”  

He enjoyed Vijay’s classes so much he has spent his second year as a teaching assistant in the business analytics classes for the first-year cohort. When working on coding, Johnny admits he spent over 30 hours working on his final project out of sheer enjoyment––having such a passion for his profession has made his work and schoolwork a pleasure rather than overwhelming.  

He says his interest was cultivated and encouraged by his professors––something for which he’s grateful.  

“A lot of the professors at USF have been a great support,” he says. “Vijay in particular. He has been guiding me down this path before I even decided I wanted to go to USF. I would recommend anyone thinking about enrolling at the business school sitting down and having a conversation with Vijay.” 

Reflecting back on his time at USF SOM, Johnny concludes his approach in business has fundamentally changed.  

“I used to be strictly focused on the day to day, but I’ve learned the value of thinking ahead: What are my goals for the next few months? What’s my business strategy? I’m now able to think about more aspects of my workplace and how my decisions can affect others. Before the MBA I was a cog in the wheel, and now I feel like the wheel.”