As a college student, Zena Stephens Joy (MBA ’17) picked up a job at Costco that would change the trajectory of her career.
Seeing how well the company cared for its employees—and the significant role human resources played in that—ignited a spark within the sociology major that led her to pursue an HR-focused MBA. After doing some additional research on master’s programs, the decision to come to Wisconsin was easy.
“You want the best,” says Zena. “I had mentors around me at the time, and they all confirmed that Wisconsin would be it.”
Today, Zena leads a seven-person HR team at cybersecurity firm Fortra. She’s risen quickly in her HR career, working in talent acquisition and compensation roles before growing into total rewards, which she describes as “the stuff that makes you want to take a job and makes you want to stay.”
That means she’s working to expand access to wellness services, coaching, and other employee-centered perks beyond just salary and benefits. “It’s a space that makes such incredible impact on people’s day-to-day lives,” says Zena. “It also helps us, as a company, to stay competitive.”
Zena notes that her WSB education comes in handy frequently, especially when collaborating with cross-functional teams whose individual members all bring unique needs and priorities to the table. “My job is to find resolutions that make everyone happy in some capacity, and I learned how to do that at Wisconsin,” she says.