Twenty years ago, alumnus Jonny Wesolowski (’08) sat in classrooms at Biola University preparing for a life serving in church ministry. Today, he helps shape global strategy for one of the most recognized brands in the world, but he is still thinking about calling, purpose and what it means to serve.

Wesolowski recently returned to Biola to speak at an EngageX event, hosted by the Crowell School of Business, and led an intensive course for graduate students in the Crowell MBA degree program. During EngageX, Wesolowski reflected on a journey that did not unfold the way he expected.

“Twenty years ago, I was finishing up my first year at Biola. I was a freshman, started out as a Christian education major, and quickly shifted into theology and biblical studies. I wanted to serve. That was a part of my entire life and my entire story,” he said.

He pursued ministry wholeheartedly, eventually stepping into church leadership in his early 20s. But the reality of that role proved more complex than he anticipated.

“By the time I was 25, I was given a senior pastor role at a church, and it still breaks my heart. My wife and I had to step away from that role. We had our marriage challenged, we had struggles, we had identity crisis in that role, and so we had to restart off a path that I’d had almost a decade of life trying to pursue,” he said.

That restart did not come out of nowhere. In the background of his ministry years, Wesolowski had been building experience in retail, something that began almost incidentally during his time at Biola.

“I’d started working at Nordstrom. When I was at Biola, my wife said, ‘Hey, go work at Nordstrom, make some really good money.’ So I started an accidental career when I was a sophomore at Biola, and that became a nine-and-a-half-year journey up and down the West Coast,” he said.

What started as a practical job slowly became a new career direction, ultimately leading him to work at Nike. Nearly a decade later, Wesolowski now serves as the principal global merchandising lead for the Jordan brand, helping shape how Nike products are brought to life across global markets. His work spans major initiatives within the Jordan brand and collaborations across sports and culture.

“Creativity is at the core. At Nike, our creation process takes years of planning from intent to design, marketplace, factory sourcing, all of these work concurrently. It takes two full years for us to deliver millions of units in a way that is meaningful to our consumers,” he said.

But in his view, the work is not ultimately about the product.

“A brand and a company like Jordan is more of a culture than it is a product. It is curating something that is so special that families build their entire holidays around these shoes,” he said.

Even in high-stakes corporate environments, he said the weight of purpose still matters more than performance. Especially in a world being revolutionized by AI, Wesolowski emphasized the importance of exercising creativity and humanity in everything.

“Everything we do and create must tie to loving God and loving others,” he said. “If we are able to pursue this with a heart of service and hope, then we are able to face anything and protect the creativity that so defines us as endowed by our creator.”

Written by Sarah Dougher, strategic communication manager, with the assistance of AI. For more information, email sarah.m.dougher@biola.edu.