Dr. Aziza Jones’ journey to becoming a marketing professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison is one defined by curiosity, perseverance, and a deep passion for teaching. Though she originally imagined herself teaching at the grade school level, her path took a different turn when she discovered the world of business and marketing during her undergraduate studies at UW–Madison. After a brief stint in sales, Aziza realized that her true calling lay in education—but from a research and university perspective. Dr. Jones has found fulfillment in blending her love for research, teaching, and service. In this interview, Dr. Jones shares her career journey, the lessons she’s learned along the way, and her advice for aspiring marketers who want to find their place in the industry.
Tell us about your career path in marketing and how you ended up at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a professor?
I always knew I wanted to teach. I had only considered teaching at the grade school level, but I was worried the career would feel limiting. So instead, I pursued a career in business while I was in undergrad at UW Madison. I majored in management and entrepreneurship. I took a sales internship during my junior year and found a sales job quickly after. While I performed well, I was miserable. It just wasn’t fun, and I hated having to find my own clients. I remembered that teaching always felt like the right career for me, and it finally dawned on me that maybe teaching at the university level would allow me to follow my passion in a more sustainable way. So, I reached out to a few of my undergrad professors, and they encouraged me to get a PhD in marketing so that I could approach teaching marketing from a research perspective. I started familiarizing myself with marketing publications and fell in love with the process. I went to grad school, published my first few publications, and came back to UW to teach at my home institution. I’ve never been happier!
Looking back on your past jobs, what has been your biggest career lesson and how have you changed because of that?
My biggest career lesson has been to stay focused on what you love and don’t look back. I don’t regret any of the steps that I took to get here, and regret doesn’t get anyone very far anyway. While I’m happy where I am, I know that nothing lasts forever and keep my eyes open for opportunities that may complement the most exciting things I’m already doing.
You have dedicated many years to post college education through being a PhD Candidate at Rutgers Business School, how has this improved you as a professional in marketing, and what has been the most rewarding part of this process?
Since my interest has been doing marketing research, my time at Rutgers allowed me to develop those skills. I started doing research on how individual perceptions in equitable ideas impact behavior. I found it interesting how people are so diverse in their perception of economic fairness in the world. Some feel that it’s very possible through hard work to improve their role within their job and receive salary perks for doing so. Others feel that sometimes effort doesn’t really matter at work because uncontrollable forces can get in your way. Since these perspectives involve influencing perspectives of how individuals make money, I thought it would be interesting to see if these beliefs also predict how individuals spend money. The most rewarding part is that studying this idea is really palatable to people. It’s really consistent to some of the societal struggles we see in the world today regarding equity and fairness, but through an individual lens instead of a political one.
Can you discuss some of the daily responsibilities you have had while working at UW-Madison?
My job can be broken into two three big buckets: research, teaching, and service. My primary responsibilities involve conducting novel research, submitting my findings in research articles to prominent journals, and responding to the revision outlines so that the work is ultimately published. This takes up the vast majority of my job.
I take breaks from my research to teach in the classroom. I’ve taught Brand Management since I joined UW in 2021, and I really enjoy teaching this topic. I love how this course involves all the classic things that I need to focus on a day-to-day basis. Developing genuinely useful elements of quality and being mindful of how signals across your decisions impact these impressions. Teaching this course keeps these ideas and concepts salient in my mind so that I can build them into my life as a daily practice.
My final responsibility is to engage in service that benefits my research and teaching fields. For research, I serve on the Board of the Association of Consumer Research. This is the world’s leading consumer research-oriented association, and we host an annual conference as well as occasional webinars on consumer research to support our community. Last month I hosted a webinar with the Secretary of State from Vermont where we discussed how their nonpartisan roles are aimed at holding data regarding voting behavior and how their insights can be useful to better understanding behavior.
What part of your job do you enjoy the most, that makes you look forward to going to work every day?
I’m a learner and educator at heart. My favorite parts of my day are when I get to do a deep dive into different topics and use the insight to teach others. This can be useful when I’m preparing for a lecture for my students or preparing a new study design investigating a marketing topic with one of my research teams.
As someone who attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, what do you value most about having the opportunity to teach UW students marketing?
One of the things I value most is learning from my students. Quite often, I’ll share a marketing concept, and my students will offer examples that add nuance to the topic. I learn something, the rest of the class learns something, and my future students learn something (as many of these examples are incorporated into future lectures!).
Based on your past experiences, what skills have you learned that you think are necessary for individuals working in marketing?
Learning to be an effective communicator is a must. I used to hate public speaking, but then I took a communication class while in undergrad and realized I really enjoy it. I learned that if you can engage people through your words, they will never forget you. Marketing is largely about relationship building, and the more an upcoming marketer learns to effectively communicate while building a relationship with others, the more they will find themselves to be truly unstoppable.
What advice would you give someone who wants to enter the marketing industry but isn’t sure how or where they fit in?
Think big. Marketing is a lot more than the options you see before you. Take a marketing job that you find interesting, but don’t feel like you must stay there forever. Get your foot in the door, learn from those around you, and keep your eyes open for anything you can learn from every opportunity.
Knowing what you know now, what tips would you give your younger self coming out of college about looking for a job?
I’d tell my younger self to focus on developing relationships. You’ll be surprised how these connections (even with your professors!) come back to support your career. Talk to everyone you know about their career and why they enjoy it. Dream big!
