Jeff Jenkins

I am a Professor of Information Systems at the Marriott School of Business, Brigham Young University. My research focuses on using human-computer input devices (e.g., the computer mouse, touchscreen, keyboard) to better understand users’ cognitive and emotional states. I have applied my expertise to a variety of settings to improve fraud detection, risk assessments, behavioral information security, system usability, and online learning. The university has patented my research and I have published extensively in leading business and technology journals.

I teach classes in tech entrepreneurship, cybersecurity, and other information systems courses. I believe that teaching should not only help students develop relevant and useful skills, but also inspire students to seek and achieve great things beyond the formal university instruction. I love teaching in the classroom and also developing improved methods to teach and inspire students in online learning scenarios.

I graduated with a Ph.D. in Management with a major in Management Information Systems and a minor in Computational Linguistics from the University of Arizona. My advisor was Dr. Joe Valacich. Joe co-founded NeuroID, Inc. with me and is a continued mentor, advisor, and friend. I earned a master’s degree in Information Systems Management and a bachelor’s degree in Information Systems from Brigham Young University, and an associate degree in Information Systems from Brigham Young University-Idaho.

I have created, led, and contributed to high-impact innovation initiatives and highly productive teams. Three points from my leadership philosophy include:

1)Innovation. Some of my favorite challenges to solve are ones that seemingly have no obvious solution. I find that when a solution is not obvious, we often need to look at it from a different angle. One of my greatest strengths is simplifying complex problems. I follow the mantra that “something is always better than nothing”. In other words, quickly prototyping and iterating on innovations is better than waiting for the complete perfect solution to start realizing value. Move towards an enterprise-level product while benefiting from short-term gains along the way. Being trained as a researcher and scientist, when new challenges come up, I prefer to investigate innovative ways to try to solve them, rather than prematurely giving up.

2) Team. Creating a healthy team culture is critical for a team to achieve great things. I believe each team member should enjoy their work environment, have ownership of meaningful tasks, and feel encouraged to innovate and improve the output of the team. I choose empowerment over micro-management and believe that a person will always accomplish greater things when self-driven. One of the greatest joys of being a tech leader is seeing others on the team produce better outcomes than the leader could ever deliver alone.

3) Stability. The tech leader should strive to bring stability and consistency to the tech organization. Establishing stability has three parts.

First, the tech leader should ensure technological stability. While downtime and system errors are unavoidable, the tech leader should assemble a team that can produce a stable and robust system that allows the rest of the organization to operate with confidence in the tech product.

Second, leaders should bring psychological stability to the team. Every company has ups and downs, which can be very emotional. When something goes wrong, it’s the leader’s responsibility to make sure the team doesn’t get emotionally down. Rather, the tech leader helps the team focus on the concrete steps for improvements while maintaining a level of confidence and optimism that the team will succeed. Key to this objective is helping teams understand that problems are not unexpected and blazing “fires”, but rather that problems are expected and often exciting challenges to be solved.

Third, leaders should put into place stable and predictable processes. This is accomplished through routines, proper prioritization of work, predictable schedules, and protection against “false fires” - things that come up that may seem like emergencies that really aren’t.

My wife and I have five children. We love spending time outdoors, traveling, eating good food, and doing spur-of-the-moment adventures. We want to make the world a better place by striving to show love and kindness to all. We are active in our church—The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints—and are thankful for the opportunity it affords us to become better people.

Our family loves the outdoors. I grew up on a small dairy farm in Idaho with the best parents and grandparents (who lived next door) imaginable. I spent a lot of time outdoors on the farm. I would work on the farm mornings before school and then again after school. While working on the farm from age eight to eighteen, I saw the sun rise and set almost every day for over a decade. I regularly saw the milky way stretch across the entire night sky. I would frequently experience the awe of walking in the fields watching the blue sky meet the ripening crops without an interruption of screen or sound. On occasion, I would even see the northern lights dance across the sky when changing the irrigation waters at night. Because of these experiences, spending time in the outdoors is much more than a recreational activity for me, it’s a deeply profound and grounding experience. Some of my most influential and impactful life learnings have been received while spending time in the outdoors.

We love to travel. The world is a beautiful place and traveling brings understanding and wisdom. Although the sites and sounds of different places is awesome, my favorite part of traveling is the people and the culture. Interestingly, the thing that makes traveling so beautiful is often the thing that divides some nations apart – our differences. I can’t help but wish for more peace, respect, and admiration of each other’s differences in our world. I think we can all learn a lot from a childhood favorite song:

"It's a world of laughter, A world of tears. It's a world of hopes, and a world of fears. There's so much that we share, that it's time we're aware, it's a small world after all."

"There is just one moon, And one golden sun. And a smile means Friendship to everyone. Though the mountains divide, and the oceans are wide, it's a small world after all." (It's a Small World by the Sherman Brothers)

Our family strives to be devout Christians and are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I’ve studied many world religions and admire the good that each one brings. In my life, I have found great strength, peace, and direction by studying the life of Jesus Christ and following his teachings. I find this strength, peace, and direction when I study the Bible and the Book of Mormon, which is another testament of Jesus Christ translated from ancient records by a modern-day prophet, Joseph Smith (read more here). In addition to studying the words of ancient prophets and historians in scripture, I study the words of living prophets, whom I believe are called of God, testify of Christ, and help me live a better life. I am aware of arguments for and against religion and my beliefs, and I do not have answers for all arguments; however, I have overwhelming personal experience that show me there is a loving God who has guided me in my life. Another one of my favorite childhood songs summarizes what my religion does for me:

"I'm trying to be like Jesus; I’m following in his ways. I’m trying to love as he did, in all that I do and say. At times I am tempted to make a wrong choice, But I try to listen as the still small voice whispers, Love one another as Jesus loves you. Try to show kindness in all that you do. Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought, For these are the things Jesus taught." (I'm Trying to Be like Jesus by Janice Kapp Perry).

Reach out. I'm always happy to talk.