Carol Jacoby earned her PhD in mathematics in 1980 at UCI. She then went into a 30-year mathematical sleep. Actually, she was working as a mission analyst at Hughes Electronics. When she awoke, she published several mathematics research papers and wrote a book, Classifications of Abelian Groups, with Peter Loth of Sacred Heart University. She began this podcast when she saw the disconnect between what mathematicians actually do and what people think they do (e.g., Peter’s neighbor figured he must work with really big numbers).
At the same time, she enjoyed doing analysis and was impressed with how Excel can answer complex questions with simple spreadsheets. From that came the 2008 book, Simple Spreadsheets for Hard Decisions, and, currently, a series of classes in Excel for Decision Makers, presented online and on-demand on Udemy. The first, Getting Answers from Data using Excel for Mac or Windows, is available now. She teaches similar techniques as a Micheal Management Instructor.
She is currently a volunteer with SCORE, helping people start small businesses. She uses her background in mission analysis to help them visualize their financial future and make trade-offs to get the most “bang for the buck.” She also applied that background to the problem of productivity. The result is the book The Joy of Doing.