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Full-time MBA - Sharon Jayakumar '04, India

Sharon Jayakumar '04, India
“Thunderbird’s MBA helped me get a better grounding in global business frameworks. I also further developed global sensibilities and comfort in navigating various cultures through the friendships and networks that are a natural part of the T-bird experience.”


Sharon Jayakumar '04

Sharon Jayakumar ’04 believes that Thunderbird - and the #1 ranked MBA she earned at the school in 2004 - helped her segue into much more than a global business career.

“It provided the academic backing for a complete life experience,” says the 33-year-old native of India who works as the global director of pricing and market access for AstraZeneca. “I have an insatiable curiosity for the world, lots of wanderlust and a conviction to do something that makes a difference.”

And in her current position, Jayakumar says she’s fulfilling those curiosities and meeting those convictions. She also admits that Thunderbird played a key role in helping her get there.

“I had no previous background in healthcare,” explains Jayakumar, who worked as a radio producer and freelance journalist in India, and later as a PR manager for Microsoft in Dubai. “My internship during my MBA at Thunderbird turned into a full-time role with AstraZeneca, and I have had the opportunity to advance within the organization in the almost-five years that I have been here.”

Jayakumar began working on the U.S. side of the business as a brand manager then moved into the global division. “Undoubtedly, all the grounding at Thunderbird became key to my job – particularly in global finance and in understanding regional political nuances that impact business.”

Today, Jayakumar works with healthcare systems and healthcare payers in various parts of the world, determining proper pricing and market access strategies for future products within the neuroscience therapeutic area.

“Emerging markets have become a key area of focus in recent years,” she explains, “in addition to North America, Western Europe and Japan, which have been the traditional geographies within the pharma industry.”

Jayakumar, who manages team members in the U.S. and Europe, says she enjoys the challenges of the job. “Healthcare systems are complex and multifaceted and have a huge cultural component. So you've got all the elements: business, politics and policy, economics and culture, all trying to solve a particular issue.” It’s this complexity and juggling of multiple responsibilities that she loves, a skill she also honed at Thunderbird.

“I was very involved on campus,” says Jayakumar, who was Thunderbird Student Government president, an events chair for the Marketing Club, a teaching assistant in finance, and winner of the school’s prestigious President's Circle Award for academic achievement. “Being involved on campus makes a big difference and widens your perspective.” She says, looking back, she wouldn’t change a thing about her Thunderbird experience and the opportunities it created.