878: What It’s Like to Be VP of Research & Insights With Jonathan Tesser, NYC & Company [Main T4C Episode]

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Email | TuneIn | RSS

Jonathan Tesser is the Vice President of Research and Insights at NYC & Company*, New York’s official tourist agency. His day job is to collect consumer data on domestic and international tourists to NYC so his company and member organizations can better market to them. But John’s passion lies in his alter ego as the “Career Whisperer” to young professionals. As a person who’s had 10 jobs in nine different companies over the years, Jonathan has a lot of insight on how to get a job, and not just any job, but a job in the career you want. Jonathan is also a Linkedin content creator with just under 150,000 followers, so give him a follow if you want advice on how to get hired. John graduated in 2001 from Tufts University with a B.A. in psychology and music. 

*After our interview Jonathan joined the Cashmere Agency as Director, Cultural Sciences.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE:

• What type of consumer data do companies like NYC & Company collect on tourists? (3:31 and 4:24)
• Why you’ll be more successful if you recognize the importance of both data and creativity in the field of marketing research and analytics (11:30)
• Why you should familiarize yourself with data processing languages (SQL and Python) and data visualization programs (Tableau and Power BI) to have a better chance of getting a marketing job (13:22)
• Why you don’t need to know exactly what you want to do with your degree (15:35)
• Why the career advice your parents give you is sometimes flawed, and how to get in touch with what you truly want in your professional life (17:36)
• Why maintaining strong relationships with friends, professors, and old bosses will get you more jobs than just applying to positions online (23:59)
• Why Jonathan’s experience of getting laid off three times proves you shouldn’t identify yourself solely with your job (27:32)