GradFUTURES Business Skills for PhDs in Academia & Beyond Learning Cohort SESSION 8: The Science and Business of Marketing Communication

GradFUTURES in partnership with the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business is delighted to launch the Business Skills for PhDs in Academia & Beyond Learning Cohort. The cohort discussions will be facilitated by Princeton PhD alumnus, Jim Scully *03 (Economics), Managing Director at Accenture Strategy. This is a first-of-its kind academic and alumni partnership designed especially for Princeton graduate students.

From research and writing, to project management and problem-solving, you are acquiring many transferable skills in your PhD program that can be applied in academic roles as well as within a variety of industries and job functions. To succeed in academia and beyond ALL PhDs in every discipline must acquire another set of highly transferable skills often framed as business skills. Typically, most people associate the term “business” with the private sector. However, business skills and models are widely applied in every sector- public, private and non-profit which includes academia. Based on graduate alumni career outcomes, labor market demand, and future of work trends, the business knowledge and skills that will help you embark on and advance within your chosen career field include inclusive leadership, strategy and social responsibility, ethical decision-making, creating and assessing value, communications and storytelling, innovation and change management. With discussions led by Princeton PhD alumnus, Jim Scully *03 (Economics) and including course content and case studies developed by faculty at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, this learning cohort will develop a capstone presentation focused on the ways an organization can address some of the most pressing societal challenges.

Cohort participants will learn:
Fundamental business concepts and approaches
Common terms used in business
Organizational and industry structures
Purpose and ethics, social responsibility, and public trust
Strategy, competitive analysis, and innovation
Inclusive and ethical leadership
Business communications
Applicability of PhD skills in diverse professions
Benefits of interdisciplinary discussions, and holistic thought and perspectives

In this session, we’ll cover the fundamentals of marketing and brand communication. We’ll cover what marketing is, what marketers do, and the concepts and tools they rely on to achieve their goals. Along the way, we’ll cover the processes involved in creating and delivering customer value and satisfaction through communication, pricing, and distribution and development of products and services. And while the lion’s share of this session will be dedicated to the building blocks of marketing, we’ll also branch out to cover an array of modern, specialized subfields. This includes the neuroscience of communication and its applications within marketing, as well as the ways that brands can harness insights from psychology, sociology, and anthropology, to build enduring bonds with consumers. This session will be led, in part, by Matt Johnson, *13 PSYCH, founder of neuromarketing firm Pop Neuro and author of "Branding that Means Business: How to Build Enduring Bonds between Brands, Consumers and Markets" (Public Affairs, 2022).

Pop Neuro: https://www.popneuro.com/

Branding that Means Business:
https://www.amazon.com/Branding-that-Means-Business-Consumers/dp/1541701674

Blindsight: The Mostly Hidden Ways Marketing Reshapes Our Brains:
https://www.amazon.com/Blindsight-Mostly-Hidden-Marketing-Reshapes-ebook/dp/B07ZKZ5DWF/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=1Alj3&content-id=amzn1.sym.91202c6f-1c11-4e3d-b51a-3af958cedd30&pf_rd_p=91202c6f-1c11-4e3d-b51a-3af958cedd30&pf_rd_r=JJKC6K0CWMBB90QYWS85&pd_rd_wg=QVg0P&pd_rd_r=2a6e1ee2-ccc7-4615-92df-7bdcf3135cf1&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk

Matt Johnson
https://gradfutures.princeton.edu/grad-stories/matt-johnson-13-psych-phd
https://www.mattjohnsonisme.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattjohnsonisme/
https://twitter.com/mattjohnsonisme?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/contributors/matt-johnson-phd

Ten unique sessions of the Business Skills for Ph.D.s in Academia & Beyond Learning Cohort will be offered and graduate students are encouraged to attend all sessions. Princeton graduate students who attend all of the sessions, complete all pre-readings, reflection activities, and the final project will be eligible to receive a co-curricular certificate of completion and a Business Skills for PhDs badge on their LinkedIn profile.

Please note that registering for one session will automatically register you for all sessions.

---

GradFUTURES Learning Cohorts

GradFUTURES’ interdisciplinary learning cohorts build community among and between graduate students and reinforce each student’s graduate training while drawing on their content knowledge to inform the cohort’s investigation of the topic. As part of the cohort, students will read and discuss books, articles, and case studies. Learning cohorts typically also include at least one experiential component such as an immersive project, a site visit, conference presentation, or fellowship/internship opportunities. Interdisciplinary discussions, reflection, synthesis, community building, and immersive experiences are integral components of each learning cohort experience.

GradFUTURES | View More Events

Contact the organizers