Entrepreneur
Case 1A
Turner Test Prep Co.
Introduction
In the Spring of 2003, Jessica Turner felt that she had come to a crossroads with her business. As the founder and CEO of Turner Test Prep, a California company specializing in preparing people for the Certified Public accountant (CPA) exam, she felt that she was not achieving market share and growing in the right direction. After three years of providing prep classed to both students and professionals, Turner had about 10 percent of the market and was facing fierce competition from her primary rival, National Testing Services. Uncertain with which growth direction to take, Jessica contemplated several options.
Background
Jessica Turner started Turner Test Prep in the summer of 1997 after graduating from Case Western Reserve University's Weatherhead School of Management with a master's degree in accounting. She passed the CPA exam and began applying to Big Six accounting firms. Frustrated after receiving several rejections, Jessica began to consider other employment options.
USGS Satellite photo of the San Francisco Bay Area...
The same location during the summer months. Becaus...
thumb|right|230px|Comparison photo; June 2004 A se...Her undergraduate degree was in business, and after graduation, Jessica worked for several years in the business office of a small test prep company based in San Francisco. The company prepared students who wanted to take primarily the SAT, GRE, GMAT, MCAT, and LSAT. Although her job was to manage the company's business affairs, she also began teaching math to students several nights a week. Jessica received training from the company in teaching basic testing skills, and she applied those skills toward teaching the math portion of the exams. She received positive feedback from her students as a conscientious and innovative teacher.
Jessica felt that her experience as a teacher for the test prep company helped her when she began studying for the CPA exam. She knew how to study efficiently, how to organize her notes, and how to...