Before starting J.L. Sutherland & Associates, Joe worked with private investors to build profitable companies that were acquired, like the fintech startup Prattle (acquired by Liquidnet) and the artificial intelligence startup Peachtree AI (acquired by Search Discovery). He has served in executive roles at Emory, Cisco, and Amazon. From 2011-2013, he worked in a variety of operational leadership and technology roles at The White House. 

Joe is widely published in academic, business, and popular presses. His research exploring the utilization of machine learning and AI in a wide variety of topics is published in top peer-reviewed journals, and his work has been featured on FOX 5 Good Day Atlanta, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Forbes, Georgia Trend, Government Technology, MIT Sloan Management Review, and many other venues. He is the author of Analytics the Right Way: A Business Leader’s Guide to Putting Data to Productive Use (Wiley, 2025). 

Joe founded the Center for AI Learning at Emory University, where he also teaches. He is a Fellow of the Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy at Washington University in St. Louis. He holds a Ph.D., M.Phil., and Master’s from Columbia, and he holds a Bachelor’s from Wash. U. in St. Louis.

Joe resides in Atlanta, Georgia with his wife and family. In his free time, Joe enjoys golf, tennis, and spending time with his family.