With more than 16 years of experience at CBRE, a real estate company, and the second half of his career on the horizon, Joe Johnson knew it was time to return to college.
“I’ve been very fortunate working with the group I do at CBRE and being able to promote incrementally along the way,” he said. “I’ve been exposed to a lot of great leaders.
“As I get ready to retire in the future, I want the flexibility to be able to look for not just progressive roles within CBRE but also for ones I found more fulfilling or interesting. It was an unnecessary barrier that I didn’t have my bachelor’s degree.”
So, Johnson enrolled in Boise State University’s online Bachelor of Business Administration in Management program in May 2025. He lives in his hometown of Milton, Florida, and is on track to graduate in 2027.
“I happened to have a Boise State recruiter reach out to me through LinkedIn when I started looking into going back to school for a business degree,” he said. “With every step of the process, I enjoyed the interactions.
“The program is intuitive, friendly, engaging and accommodating to a work schedule for professionals. I’ve always mixed in a few online classes, but this is the first time I’ve done a fully online program. It made the most sense for me.”
The flexible, fully online format is key for Johnson, as he continues to work full-time from the East Coast while earning a degree.
“It’s working out well for me,” he said. “Online education is absolutely what you make of it. The flexibility is nice. We have team meetings and interactions.”
Rolling with the punches
After graduating from high school, where he was a multi-sport athlete, Johnson enrolled in college with 40 credits already under his belt.
“I went to a faith-based institution that wasn’t accredited,” he said. “That’s where I did my studies and went through an ordination program.
“I took a hard left in my early 20s. My wife and I had been married for four or five years. I realized the thing I originally decided to pursue wasn’t a lifelong commitment I could make.”
Johnson began his new career as a lead quality maintenance technician for Sears Roebuck in 2004.
“Part of it was necessity, part of it was I grew up with a fair amount of technical acumen,” he said. “We always remodeled and built on our own. I answered an ad. It grew organically that way.
“It married the interpersonal and organizational leadership I had learned over the years with that technical aspect, and I carved out a path. I have all of the respect in the world for CBRE because they are a true meritocracy.”
Johnson graduated with an associate degree from Pensacola State College in 2008. Now, he is thriving in his return to higher education.
“I am enjoying the project management-based courses,” he said. “I do a lot of that in my career. It was good to build out the theoretical side of it. I’ve had a lot of the practical, learning on the go and through mentorship. It was good to put the theory behind it.”
Although he has a massive amount of experience in his field, Johnson is applying what he’s learning in the online Bachelor of Business Administration in Management curriculum to his role.
“All of it has been very intuitive because I’ve worked in it every day, building that lexicon and the underlying concepts,” he said. “It’s been fantastic.”
Return on investment
Johnson, who has two adult sons, isn’t the only person in his family to embrace a return to higher education to earn a degree.
“I am the oldest of four,” he said. “All of us have finished either graduate or post-graduate degrees in our adulthood. Part of it is blazing a trail for our family and setting a path for our kids. They are excited for me.”
Earning a bachelor’s degree is already paying dividends for Johnson. After enrolling at Boise State, he earned a promotion from director to senior director of engineering in November 2025.
“Since I’ve been in the program, I’ve been able to hit some of my three- and five-year goals,” he said. “I’ll probably want to do one more promotion in terms of title within CBRE and maybe move around in my accounts, which are almost all Fortune 250.
“Right now, I am in healthcare. I’ve done financial services and tech. I’d like to try something on the industrial side to round out my experience. Down the road, I’ll want to establish my own consultative business.”
An avid golfer in his free time, Johnson appreciates the attention to detail, the expert faculty and the engaged community at Boise State.
“I have got great value out of the program,” he said. “The instructors, the advisors and the leader of the COBE [College of Business and Economics] program have all been fantastic.”
Johnson believes the biggest keys to success as an online student are self-discipline and work ethic.
“I consider it much like work from home,” he said. “In post-COVID, everybody wanted to be remote. It’s not a ubiquitous skill. If you’re not self-motivated or don’t know how to manage your own time, you are going to be challenged by blurring the lines between being at home and being at work.
“I haven’t found a more friendly, supportive or intuitive program than Boise State’s, but you need to invest the time to develop your own skills.”
Learn more about the business administration program
Earning an online Bachelor of Business Administration in Management from Boise State University can open doors to new opportunities and a brighter future — and we’re here to support you every step of the way. Whether you’re exploring if an online degree is right for you or need help transferring credits, connecting with a student success coach is the perfect first step.
Ready to learn more? Attend one of our online information sessions or contact a student success coach today.