Bianca Jackson, a Drexel alumna from the class of 2005, is a digital project manager and entrepreneur. Last year, she started JAX Digital, an educational company based in Washington, D.C. that creates college and career readiness tools and services for students that focus on leadership development and technology. The goal, as the slogan says, is to help “today’s students become tomorrow’s leaders.”
Entrepreneurs are able to focus on the things they’re passionate about and build a career based off of that. For Bianca, a Philadelphia native, her passion for mentorship and leadership were the driving forces behind her business. The guidance her mentors showed her inspired her to be a role model for the next generation. “Students with intellectual curiosity and a willingness to grow inspire me; those individuals with persistence and grit who desire to be tomorrow’s leaders,” she said.
The idea behind JAX Digital first came about when Bianca saw articles about college students who had trouble finding employment post-graduation. She was inspired to create a workshop for undergraduates in her sorority, Chi Upsilon Sigma, to encourage them to be more proactive in their job search. In 2014, she had an opportunity to present the same workshop at the National Conference for College Women Student Leaders held at the University of Maryland.
Since starting JAX, Bianca has created free digital products like the “Top 5 Tools to Get Job Offers Faster and How to Use Them” for college students. She also presented a workshop at Howard University’s Student Leadership Conference on how to smoothly and effectively conduct an officer transition in organizations. And she participated in a panel for the Tuskegee Alumni Association on millennial behavior and recruitment, among other things.
Between trying to prioritize things like providing excellent customer service, watching competition and trends, and running internal operations, being a CEO isn’t easy. Despite these difficulties, the best part of the experience has been the lessons Bianca has learned along the way. “Once you become an entrepreneur, you begin to understand the role of a CEO and the decisions that must be made,” she said.
For aspiring business owners, Bianca has three tips. “Do what you love, the money will follow. Do what you know, just because you love it doesn’t mean you’ll be good at it. Surround yourself with other entrepreneurs; some days you will need some encouragement and motivation,” she said.
Bianca chose to come to Drexel, a decision she says was the best she’s ever made because she liked the Co-Op Program and the school’s ranking for the information systems major. All three of her co-ops were with the school district maintaining information systems. If she could go back, however, she would advise her past self to build better relationships with classmates. “Yes, you are placed in groups to complete assignments but make a real effort to get to know them as people. As you progress in our professional careers, being likable becomes way more important than you know,” she said.
In her free time Bianca, a self professed “nerd”, loves reading tech news, doing Escape the Room activities, and volunteering at Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) events.