Interview with Beta Ealy, creative director and Columbia EMBA student [Show Summary]

Think that if you aren’t a consultant, IT professional, or finance manager that you don’t have a shot in an EMBA program? Think again. Our guest this week is a creative director with little background in quant who conquered the GMAT and is now thriving in the Columbia EMBA program. Listen in as she shares her views on the program, and how to excel in the application process and in the program itself.

From Disney to Columbia Business School [Show Notes]

Today’s guest is Beta Ealy. Beta earned her Bachelors in Fine Arts from Cal State Long Beach in 2004 and worked as an art director prior to becoming manager of Creative and Product Development at Disney where she worked from 2004 – 2011. She then worked in similar areas for Mattel, and Discovery Communications where she was a Sr. Manager and Director respectively. Since April 2018, she has served as the Brand Creative Director for the City of Manhattan Beach and in January became a Columbia EMBA student.

Can you tell us about your background? Where did you grew up? What do you like to do for fun? [2:12]

I grew up near Moscow in Russia. Pretty much everyone in my family is a scientist. My dad got a job at UCLA in the 90s and we moved to Santa Monica. That was how I became a designer rather than a scientist - if we had stayed I definitely would have moved in that direction. Here I saw the opportunity to do something different. I went to Santa Monica High School, which has a great design program, and I worked on real projects with real companies, and that is how I ended up where I am today. In terms of fun, I love to travel, and often spontaneously go on road trips with my husband and dogs, but also love to travel internationally.

You started out in college studying art and design, when and how did the business bug bite you? [3:47]

After being a creative for a while I saw the industry shifting and the way design/creative was being utilized was very different. I felt a tectonic shift which was very exciting because suddenly product differentiation and design was considered important. Creative leaders all of the sudden had a seat at the table. However, I realized when invited to board meetings I didn’t have the vocabulary to speak to some of these people, and I couldn’t deliver the strategic functions expected of me.

When you were researching programs and applying, what appealed to you about the CBS EMBA program? [5:16]

I was so excited to find it because of what I was saying a bit earlier. I am coming from a unique background with the idea of creating a bridge between being a creative person and business leader. They teach an entrepreneurial mindset at Columbia which is leadership-based and focused on identifying opportunities and growing industries. Because I was wanting to do something unique and unorthodox that is why it was a good fit. Being located in NYC, with my interest in media, entertainment, and retail, was an added bonus, adding that to my existing LA network.

How did you do the research necessary considering you were on the west coast? [6:49]

It’s a well-known program, obviously, so that part was easy. Because I have worked with such big companies with a presence in both LA and New York, I already knew a bit about New York in general.