Jumping from the business world to academe

A psychologist?s midcareer switch from corporate research to academe benefits her and her new employer.

In the 1980s, psychologist Pamela Scott-Johnson, PhD, was immersed in her fast-paced research on the technology of taste at Kraft Foods. One month she probed the link between coffee and gastric upset; the next she explored ways to make fat-free cakes and candy tasty.

But after several years, she sought a new challenge. In 1993, as she approached her mid-30s, Johnson took on a tenure-track position in the psychology department at her undergraduate alma mater, Spelman College in Atlanta.

'When I went into corporate work I was at a point in my life when I enjoyed the hustle of travel, the meetings, the staying up all night in the lab,' says Johnson. 'But I reached a place where I wanted more serendipity in my research, the chance to make mistakes.'

Moving from the corporate world to academe might seem a drastic change for someone at midcareer. But Johnson says the switch benefits her and her new employer. Spelman benefits from her corporate background. (She equips her students with the 'corporate competencies' of time management, self-motivation and strategic planning and links them with contacts in the food business.)

And Johnson benefits from the chance to pursue new research interests in eating disorders among African-American girls and the subtleties of distinguishing one smell from another?research that she says 'benefits humanity as a whole rather than a particular product.'

Applying her corporate background in academe, she has a sharp eye for research effectiveness and the bottom line.

'The corporate world taught me about setting goals and cutting to the chase,' says Johnson. 'I?m always asking, ?Do we have the money, the time and the people to get the job done??'

Corporate research is also team-oriented, which Johnson says equipped her for the growing move toward interdisciplinary, collaborative research in academe. 'I know not to get hung up on the personalities, to concentrate on the task,' she says.

But there are some aspects of academic research that she?s still adjusting to?writing grants to fund her research, for example, and spending months gathering data and analyzing results. Lengthy studies are unheard of in business, where 'your timeline is yesterday. Academia and corporations each have their unique frustrations,' says Johnson. 'In academia you have little money and lots of time. In corporations you have lots of money and little time.'

But she hasn?t ruled out a return to her former work. Johnson maintains close ties with her corporate colleagues, keeping the lines open for future forays into the science of sugar substitutes and imposter fats.

?Bridget Murray