As a 17-year-old high school graduate, Jonathan (Jon) Razack was faced with the universal life decision of what to do next. He had a goal of joining the military; however, his parents encouraged him to take a different direction. Below, he tells the compelling story of how he was able to make both paths work for his future, eventually landing at Texas McCombs.
Jon Razack, MBA 2021
The American Dream
Jon was born in Fort Worth to immigrant parents who came to Texas hoping to find new opportunities. Eventually they became naturalized U.S. citizens and started a business where Jon worked as a teenager. Upon graduating high school, he was at a crossroads: should he follow the route of heading to a traditional college, as his parents always wanted, or follow his dream to go into military service?
I learned the meaning of a strong work ethic from my parents who bootstrapped capital to start their own business. I gained a big appreciation for how much work it takes to own your own business. My parents are my heroes, and while I always wanted to be in the U.S. Army, college was really important to them, especially as immigrants.
Jon eventually chose to attend college at the Virginia Military Institute, where he studied economics and business. He didn’t give up on his military dream, but instead put it on hold just a little while, deciding to prepare himself for business success with a degree before enlisting in the military. After graduation he became an infantry officer, fulfilling his dream and starting a new chapter of his life in the U.S. Army.
Military Life
In 2011 Jon became a Ranger qualified Infantry Officer, leading specialized teams of Paratroopers, from groups of less than 10 up to 200.
Jon Razack’s team during his time in the military.
After spending five years in this role, Jon retooled his skill set and spent his last two years in the Army as a Battalion Senior Intelligence Officer at Fort Lewis, Washington. From there he began to look at industry options outside of the military where his problem-solving and leadership skills would transfer. This eventually led to his career transition back in Dallas.
Transition was surprisingly easier and harder in some respects. I was away from home for 12 years doing a lot of traveling, so I was ready to come back home.
As soon as he got out of the military, he was recruited for the Leadership Development Program at CoreLogic, where he worked in Product Management and did internal consulting for company process optimization. Eventually, he was leading his own sales team.
I liked sales because it was similar to the leadership skills I used in the infantry for over five years. I had the right mentorship, and it made my industry transition so much easier.
To Jon, one of the biggest reasons why he enjoyed his time at CoreLogic was because of the mentorship. He says his mentors took time to help him apply his military skills towards both the training program and his current job as Director of Operations for CoreLogic’s mortgage business. After two years of working there, however, Jon knew that his transition still needed an extra push.
I’ve always known that I’d be needing an MBA to bridge the seven year gap I didn’t spend in an industry. I had developed leadership and problem solving skills from my time in the Army, but I needed to learn how to apply that conceptually in the business world and accelerate my learning curve.
Jon’s MBA Journey
When Jon was researching different business schools, he was looking for several key things: a prestigious reputation, collaboration, and a flexible program.
When I was looking into getting my MBA, I was hooked on the Working Professional program. It has the same professors and classes that you’re getting with the full-time program, so it was a no-brainer for me.
So, Why McCombs?
To me, it was the types of personalities McCombs attracts, starting with the school motto of, “What starts here changes the world.” McCombs draws a special kind of individual. A big selling point for McCombs, specifically the part-time program, was that it was in person and the program is very collaborative, so you build that camaraderie like I had in the military.
Once he was in the program, Jon says his classmates played a key role in his MBA journey. He says his classmates are, “some of the most interesting people he’s ever met.” Even outside the curriculum, Jon says he’s learned so much from them.
He recalled how one night he was interested in learning how to pitch a stock, but this was unrelated to any of the classes he was currently in. He couldn’t figure it out, but he thought of one of his classmates who was really good at this and gave him a call.
I called one of my classmates and I just asked, “Hey can you help me with this?” Then, we had a great conversation for almost two hours where he walked me through stock analysis and best practices.
Everyone in the McCombs MBA program is really friendly and will go out of their way to help you. When I was looking for an MBA program, that was really attractive to me, because the other programs didn’t really encourage that. It has that welcoming Austin vibe that other programs just couldn’t offer.
Starting in the middle of March, COVID-19 greatly impacted the way educators and students engage with the curriculum. Learning online has its challenges, but Jon says he’s been impressed by how quickly McCombs administration has pivoted.
Since we’ve had to learn online, we’ve never missed a class on weekends. McCombs made an entire curriculum on the fly, and smoothly pivoted to a complete online setting. It’s a brand new world, but we’re learning to overcome.
The Texas McCombs Military Community
If you’re thinking of leaving the military, Jon recommends using your personal networks for resources and help, especially if you’re transitioning to an industry or pursuing higher education.
No one’s successful on their own, so don’t be afraid to reach out to people for help. Due to my life experiences, I now have my veteran, Texas McCombs alumni and the Texas McCombs veteran networks. Even job opportunities aside, you can learn so much from them because they encompass so many perspectives and life experiences.
McCombs values and celebrates the diversity that the veteran perspective brings to our school. If you’re a prospective veteran student considering Texas McCombs, check out the military community in our MBA programs and Austin as a whole.
Visit Texas McCombs MBA to find out more about all our programs, events and community, or take a peek into student life on Instagram.
Hook ’em!
