Fluency in "Talking" Data is Key in Today's Business Environment

Anna McCarthy has a resume many digital marketers can only dream about. The Weston, Mass.–based executive, who graduated from Isenberg with a Master of Science in Business Analytics in 2020, has more than 15 years’ experience using advertising technology and digital media to help brands build, deliver, and improve marketing campaigns and business performance. She’s worked for niche agencies, built her own consultancy business, and now is vice president, client partner at the marketing and technology giant Epsilon.

She graduated from UMass Amherst in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in communication, and launched her career as a lead acquisition account manager in New York, followed by an email marketing position in Boston. Her first foray into client-side marketing came when she served as internet marketing specialist at Stride Rite Children’s Group, a heritage footwear brand for children. It was at Stride Rite, where she ran the company’s omni-channel email program, that she saw firsthand how targeted marketing drives demand generation and helps deepen customer relationships. She quickly learned that when customers share data with brands, they in return expect that brands will deliver 1-1 dialogues in communication streams, offers, and transactional experiences. This work inspired her.

“I was exposed to the power of data, harnessed to drive sticky customer relationships," McCarthy says. "Since the retail business constantly needs to adapt to changing consumer behaviors, using data is critical to informing the right investment and next best customer journey decision. Through this work, I became fluent in positioning data to bolster our strategic plans.”

Once hooked on the retail vertical, Anna took a broader retail client relations role at eBay Enterprise Marketing Solutions, where she managed a $10 million book of business, and then dove into programmatic personalization and advertising at ChoiceStream, where she built their $30 million account practice and ran national client direct sales.

When ChoiceStream closed its doors in 2017, McCarthy co-founded her own consultancy, Digital Takeout, with long-standing clients including Zappos, Planet Fitness, and Wolverine World Wide. At this stage she was also expecting her second child and decided to take stock of her career thus far. She became interested in getting into a large corporate environment as her family priorities shifted. “I started to look at big company opportunities and realized that to compete in today’s highly competitive industry, I needed to further credentialize my CV and obtain a graduate degree," she says. “When challenged by enterprise brands to solve problems, I needed to be fluent in data conversations to continue to win marketers’ trust and the privilege of partnering on their business.”

McCarthy chose to study at Isenberg following her positive UMass Amherst undergraduate experience. She enrolled in the new Master of Science in Business Analytics at UMass Amherst's Mount Ida campus in Newton, a one-year program that helps professionals enhance their career opportunities by developing data manipulation, visualization, and modeling skills. As well as fitting her professional and academic needs, the flexibility of the program appealed. “Since I live in Weston, I could easily take courses online and in-person and manage my demanding family and business schedule," McCarthy says.

She graduated in 2020 and landed an executive position at Epsilon supporting the PeopleCloud Messaging practice, managing a $30 million profit-and-loss account. After 18 months, she was promoted to vice president, client partner in Epsilon’s retail practice. 

Having the MS in Business Analytics made all the difference, says McCarthy: “From a credential point of view, it certainly doesn’t hurt when you have the graduate degree on your bio, and it has really helped to take the intimidation factor out of working with leading data experts. When working in digital marketing, there’s always a tug-of-war between the marketing and data analytics functions over how to manipulate and use data,” she explains. "This is where the MS in Business Analytics has really helped me: I’m driving datacentric discussions and presenting numbers, which has helped break down any barriers that might exist between marketers and data technologists. Reporting outcomes can present both objective and subjective values—you need to be prepared for both conversations.”

This comfort with data then serves its purpose on the client side. “Data and the ability to understand it is power in business," says McCarthy. "I always enter a client conversation with data-backed objectives and proposals. My job is to maximize the value and use of powerful enrichment technology. When I meet with clients, I propose recommendations rooted in data points, priors, and future models. For example, this is the return you’re seeing, if you invest here, your outcome will be x percent better. You can be sure the client already knows most of this foundationally; my goal is to bring them something new. If you can’t communicate information drawn from data you won’t get heard, and you won’t sell your product, solve a brand’s problems, and help grow their business.”

With an Isenberg MS in Business Analytics degree, students can enhance their career opportunities by developing data manipulation, visualization, and modeling skills, and by learning how to be conversant with data analytics. The degree is offered as a one-year program on campus in Amherst or Newton, or students can complete the program at their own pace through the flexible online learning platform. Learn more here.