July 13, 2023
Name: Jiahui Fang (Jerry)
Hometown: Beijing
Undergraduate school: NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development
Undergraduate major: Education Studies
Previous work/internship experience before the MS program: internships at Henkel, Ruder Finn, Ogilvy
Congratulations on becoming a double violet! You completed your undergraduate study at NYU Steinhardt, why did you choose the MSMRS program?
As an NYU undergraduate, I strongly identified with and benefitted from the university's global philosophy. Stern was undoubtedly the best choice for a business education to continue my studies. Studying in Shanghai provides students with the opportunity to experience and learn about China's business culture from a global perspective, something that no American university can match. The title of my application essay for the MSMRS program was "Becoming a Double Violet." Now, I am proud that I have made it. NYU is a vibrant and inclusive community, and I aspire to continue being a part of it. In a small cohort like MSMRS, I get more opportunities to work and learn from each one in the class.
What was (were) your favorite course(s) and why?
Marketing Management taught by Professor Bruce Buchanan
I still remember the summer in New York when every Tuesday and Thursday night, we came to Stern and chatted with Prof. Buchanan. He is a professor who has been teaching at Stern for over 30 years. Through our conversations, I learned more about the city, advertisement, business, his life wisdom, and so on. I like his hand-drawn charts with his initials B.B. signed. I found every class enjoyable as we had a lot of fun and meaningful discussions where he shared his deep thinking on not only marketing but also the eternal and fundamental rules in business. His class broadened our horizons and prepared us for the rest of the program.
Marketing Analytics taught by Professor Xianjie Sun
In this class, we had the opportunity to experience “Capstone 2.0”. We worked with the brand Aveeno of Johnson & Johnson to analyze their digital marketing data. Over six weeks, we analyzed Aveeno’s digital marketing assets in Industry, Target Audience, Merchandise, and Touchpoints. I led our seven-person group, encouraging my team to establish the storyline for each presentation. Data is important, but our program is not merely a technical program. We need to emphasize the “story” we conclude from all the fragmented data. For the final presentation, we came up with the idea of “Aveeno June Carnival” to put all of our findings into a practical strategy for the 618 shopping festival.
Professor Sun also invited guest speakers to share their various perspectives. These speakers work in different roles within the marketing industry like data scientists, lawyers, professors, marketing, and retail professionals. I especially enjoyed hearing the lawyer from DeHeng Law Offices share about data compliance in marketing and data commercialization. The chief data scientist from Harb Data also gave a speech on the technical side of building the recommendation system. As a marketing student, I value this interdisciplinary exposure.
What are some takeaways from the capstone project experience?
My biggest takeaway was how to manage a long-term project as a group leader. Before this, I had never led a project over such a long period which also involved a new field (supply chain). I led a team of five classmates to research two areas for the corporate client: trade promotion optimization and supply chain planning optimization. We had to build the weekly internal and external meeting flow from the very beginning.
In the early stage, the other challenge was how to establish a cooperation mode to make sure that students learn knowledge while helping the company capture shortcomings and make up for related research. Considering that supply chain optimization and demand forecasting are relatively unfamiliar areas for students, I proposed to establish 1-1 mentorship with the corporate client which I hoped may help students pick up their research faster and deeper. I also encouraged two team members to develop OKRs (objectives and key results), writing down the milestones and key results. It turned out that everyone developed OKRs for their research before the Spring Festival. We successfully delivered our research database and literature review in less than a month.
Do you currently have an internship or did you have an internship during your program study? If yes, how did you find this internship and what knowledge or skills did you learn from this internship?
Yes. I was a marketing intern at an FMCG company for over two months. I learned the way that traditional FMCG works and found that communication skills are the most important skill we should develop.
How do you think the joint set up of the program between Stern and NYU Shanghai impacts the student experience?
I think the MSMRS program is one of its kind, a pioneer in its field based on a global vision.
How has this program shaped your career aspirations?
Before entering this program, I thought I wanted to enter an FMCG company working as a marketing professional there. However, I changed my perspective after a half year of learning from professors, experts, and company visits. In December 2022, ChatGPT launched. And three months later, we had the opportunity to meet the CTO from Microsoft to discuss the future and possibilities brought by AIGC and ChatGPT. I learned from him that traditional FMCG companies may not suit me to learn new things since now everything is based on data.
What are your plans after graduation?
I will join an Internet company working on e-commerce marketing.
What else did you enjoy about being a student in this program? (ie. social, academic, professional examples)
I think being exposed to local companies and the business culture in China really benefited me because my goal was to work in China after graduation. I also find the small cohort size allows us to get to know and learn from each other better. Lastly, I am very grateful for the supportive program staff and faculty.
What is your advice for prospective students who are interested in the program?
- Be engaged. Dare to create. And let’s keep helping the program grow.
- Take advantage of the small cohort. And try to work with different people and learn from them.