2026 Best 40-Under-40 Business Professors: Emma Jingfei Zhang, Goizueta Business School, Emory University

Emma Jingfei Zhang
Goizueta Business School
Emory University 

“Coming into her Data Science for Business course, I had no prior exposure to R and would have considered myself a complete novice. Within a single semester, she brought me to a level of practical fluency where I was not only comfortable working in R, but actively applying advanced techniques such as neural networks, multinomial regression, and other machine learning methods. What makes this especially notable is how directly her teaching translated into impact outside the classroom. In my IMPACT project, I used the frameworks and tools from her course to analyze a dataset of roughly 14,000 institutional donors across the Atlanta metro area. Leveraging the modeling techniques she taught, I was able to build a structured approach to rank and prioritize donors based on likelihood to contribute, ultimately delivering a highly actionable output for a small nonprofit organization. This was not theoretical work; it was immediately practical and decision-relevant.

Professor Zhang’s teaching style is a key driver of this outcome. She emphasizes learning by doing and introduces students to real tools from day one. We were coding in R in the very first class session. She removes the barrier to entry for a highly technical subject by focusing on application over abstraction, while still maintaining rigor. In parallel, she equips students with resources and frameworks that allow them to continue building independently beyond the classroom. The result is a learning experience that accelerates both confidence and capability. Students leave her course not just understanding concepts, but able to execute, and more importantly, to apply data-driven thinking in real business contexts.” – Ben James

Emma Jingfei Zhang, 38, is Professor of Information Systems and Operations Management and Goizueta Foundation Term Chair at Goizueta Business School, Emory University. Her research develops models, algorithms, and theory for analyzing complex high-dimensional data structures with applications across business, medicine, and public health. Her work has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation as the principal investigator. 

Zhang has published more than thirty peer-reviewed articles in leading journals including Operations Research, Journal of the American Statistical Association, Nature Communications, and Journal of Machine Learning Research. She serves as Associate Editor for Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series B, Journal of the American Statistical Association, and Annals of Applied Statistics. She delivered a keynote address at the International Symposium on Business and Industrial Statistics and has given invited talks at more than 60 universities and research institutes worldwide. 

In 2025, Zhang was elected a Fellow of the American Statistical Association, one of the discipline’s highest honors, and received the Jordan Research Excellence Award at Emory University. She is an Elected Member of the International Statistical Institute. Earlier honors include the Laha Award from the Institute of Mathematical Statistics and the Norton Prize for Outstanding Thesis in Statistics from the University of Illinois. 

In the classroom, Zhang has designed and launched courses in data science, deep learning, and reinforcement learning for MBA, MSBA, MiM, and BBA students. In recognition of her teaching excellence, she received the 2024 MSBA Distinguished Elective Educator Award at Goizueta Business School. Her work and teaching have been featured in Emory Business magazine. 

BACKGROUND 

At current institution since what year? 2023 

Education: PhD in Statistics, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 

List of MBA/graduate business courses you currently teach:  Deep Learning and Reinforcement Learning; Data Science for Business 

TELL US ABOUT LIFE AS A BUSINESS SCHOOL PROFESSOR 

I knew I wanted to be a business school professor when … It was a gradual realization. In graduate school, I knew early on that I wanted to pursue academia because of my passion for research. But it wasn’t until I taught my first MBA class, also my first class as an assistant professor, that everything clicked. What stood out most was seeing them light up when an abstract concept finally started to make sense. That moment made me realize that teaching was just as meaningful to me as research, and this was the right path for me. 

What are you currently researching and what is the most significant discovery you’ve made from it? Right now, I am working on how to use synthetic data generated by large language models (LLMs) to support accurate and cost-efficient business decision-making. Rather than running expensive, time-consuming surveys, companies can use LLMs to generate synthetic customer responses at scale and at very low cost. The challenge is that LLM-generated data isn’t always reliable. The approach I work on combines a small amount of high-quality, human-verified data with LLM-generated data to calibrate and correct for biases, delivering insights accurately, quickly, and cost-efficiently. 

One interesting finding is that more LLM data does not always help, and can even hurt, if not used properly. Without the right statistical methods, adding more LLM-generated data can amplify errors rather than improve decisions.  

If I weren’t a business school professor… I’d love to work with math.  

What do you think makes you stand out as a professor? I focus on making complex ideas in AI and data science intuitive and accessible without losing their rigor. My goal is not just for students to use these tools, but to understand how they work and when they can be trusted.  

Here’s what I wish someone would’ve told me about being a business school professor: that the hardest skill to develop is translation. My research focuses on statistical methods and theory, while my students are training to become future business leaders. Learning to connect those two worlds took real effort and changed how I think about my own research.  

Professor I most admire and why: It is difficult to name one as many have influenced and inspired me in different ways.  

What do you enjoy most about teaching business students? They’re smart, driven and pragmatic. They want to know why something matters and how they can use it. That keeps me on my toes and pushes me to be clear and relevant in the classroom. I’m constantly asking myself, “Why does this matter, and what decision does it help with?” That pressure has made me a better teacher. 

What is most challenging? Keeping up with the field. AI and machine learning are moving faster than any curriculum can. Something I teach now may look different in a year or two.  

When it comes to grading, I think students would describe me as… fair and consistent. 

LIFE OUTSIDE OF THE CLASSROOM 

What are your hobbies? I enjoy taking long walks in parks, hiking, and playing board and card games with friends. I also enjoy traveling, particularly exploring local food cultures. 

How will you spend your summer? I’ll be spending my summer between research, conferences, and time with family.  

Favorite place(s) to vacation:  I tend to enjoy places where I can relax and reset, like along the coast in Italy or southern France. 

Favorite book(s): It’s hard to pick, as it really depends on what I’m drawn to at the time. For a fun read, I enjoy thrillers and mystery novels (e.g., Gillian Flynn).  

What is currently your favorite movie and/or show and what is it about the film or program that you enjoy so much? Friends (the TV show). I watched it a lot with my friends in school, so it’s very nostalgic for me.  

What is your favorite type of music or artist(s) and why? It depends on the mood and setting. I like uplifting classical and pop music when I’m driving or walking, and lo-fi when I’m working.   

THOUGHTS AND REFLECTIONS 

If I had my way, the business school of the future would have much more of this… Quantitative and computational literacy. The leaders who will shape the next decade should understand how AI systems work, not just what they can do.  

In my opinion, companies and organizations today need to do a better job at… building safe and effective human and AI collaborations.  

I’m grateful for… the love and support of my family and friends, and for the mentorship and kindness I have received throughout my career.   

DON’T MISS: THE ENTIRE 2026 ROSTER OF THE WORLD’S BEST 40-UNDER-40 GRADUATE BUSINESS PROFESSORS 

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