While the global gem and jewelry industry has definitely adapted and evolved over my four decades in this wonderful business, the fundamentals remain the same – we are fortunate to help people celebrate the most important moments, milestones and relationships in their lives. – Susan Jacques, GIA President and CEO
With a career spanning over 40 years, Ms. Susan Jacques has been a driving force in shaping the global gem and jewelry industry. From her beginnings in Zimbabwe to her influential roles at Borsheims and Gemological Institute of America (GIA), her leadership embodies integrity, innovation, and a steadfast commitment to fostering trust. She has been GIA’s President and CEO since 2014, and prepares to retire from this role in the end of 2025. As she reflects on her tenure, Ms. Jacques shares insights on the industry’s transformation, the challenges she has tackled, and the legacy of excellence she hopes to leave behind. This insightful interview offers a glimpse into how she continues to propel GIA to the forefront of gemological research，grading and education, and her aspirations for the next generation of leaders to carry the torch forward.
From your observation, how has the global jewelry business evolved during your whole career time?
While the global gem and jewelry industry has definitely adapted and evolved over my four decades in this wonderful business, the fundamentals remain the same – we are fortunate to help people celebrate the most important moments, milestones and relationships in their lives. That is what is so satisfying and rewarding about being in this passionate industry.
To be successful in that purpose, the industry needs passionate people, beautiful designs and well-made jewelry, and – most importantly – the trust of the consumers we serve.
We are much more diverse at every step of the supply chain today which is a great achievement. Our product offerings – influenced by new materials and consumer preferences – have broadened significantly. Technology plays an important part. With computer-assisted design and advanced manufacturing, the genius of designers and the beauty of new materials find incredible creative expression in new and exciting ways.
Technology also affects how we interact with customers. Online shopping allows consumers to shop anytime they wish and to look beyond their local stores to global offerings, and now jewelers can find customers anywhere in the world, and the selection and choices have become infinite. It also allows retailers to have a deeper and more interactive relationship with their valued customers.
Underlying all of this, however, is the fundamental requirement of trust. Even as the industry, economics and global conditions change, trust is the important foundation of what we do every day and is critical to our continued success.
You joined GIA after a highly successful career at Borsheims and after taking other key roles in the jewelry industry. How did your career experience influence your approach to leading GIA and shaping its mission?
I’ve been fortunate to be associated with GIA for my entire career in this wonderful industry. It was at my first job, as a junior typist, then marketing assistant, at Scottish Jewellers in Harare, Zimbabwe, where my boss, Peter Winhall, encouraged me to take the GIA courses. This led me to study in residence at GIA in Santa Monica, California, which ultimately led me to Borsheims, as my classmate Alan Friedman’s family owned the iconic retailer. In retail I used my GIA education every day as I progressed through different positions at Borsheims, sales, appraising, buying and merchandising. I was fortunate to became CEO of this iconic American retailer in 1994, and I joined the GIA Board of Governors in 1996. At every step, I was guided by two important concepts – GIA’s mission to ensure the public trust in gems and jewelry and the lesson I learned from my boss, Warren Buffett, to whom I reported as CEO of Borsheims, about how fundamentally important it is to protect your personal and professional reputation through everything you say and do. It takes years to earn your reputation and minutes to destroy it.
All of these experiences informed how I adapted, moving from being a student, alumnus, client, and Governor at GIA, to leading this wonderful, dynamic and critically important Institute with such an important purpose of trust and consumer confidence.
When you began your role as GIA’s president and CEO in 2014, what were some of the key challenges you aimed to address, and how do you feel they were resolved over the years?
The biggest challenge initially was the length of time it was taking for the Institute to service our clients, as demand was far greater than the resources in our grading laboratories. We addressed this issue with significant hiring and opening new laboratories to be sure we were client-centric in our services. In 2020, it was the global pandemic that impacted the world, followed in 2022 by a dramatic change and significant disruption by several factors simultaneously in the global diamond market. The global downturn in the diamond market is still a real challenge to everyone in the industry, but as with all challenges, there are also great opportunities for us to identify and seize. I am confident that the industry will rebound and remain strong in the future despite the current challenges.
Another change that we have all experienced over the last few years is the integration of laboratory-grown diamonds into the market. These man-made diamonds, which are fundamentally different from natural diamonds due to the vastly different conditions in which they form, their infinite supply, and now the very narrow range of quality replicating the rarest of natural diamonds, have been accepted by many retailers and consumers, particularly in the US market, the largest consuming diamond market in the world. They are not rare treasures of mother nature as natural diamonds are, and consumers are more and more aware of the differences. As production and wholesale costs for man-made diamonds move even lower, they are abundantly available in all sizes and replicating the rarest natural diamonds, mostly through HPHT decolorization of the crystals, a treatment to change their color to colorless. They are certainly a product category that will fill a particular niche in the industry, given their low prices and abundance.
Looking back on your tenure as GIA’s president and CEO, what stands out to you as the most significant milestones? How has GIA expanded its global presence in laboratory service, education and instruments, while staying true to its core mission?
Like any nearly 100-year-old organization, we continue to adapt to the changing world around us. I am extremely proud of our 3,100 dedicated, passionate colleagues around the world who fulfill our mission each day through their dedication to our core values and their hard work to ensure consumer confidence in the industry through their excellent work. We’ve optimized the footprint of our ten laboratories to better serve the needs of our clients in all regions of the world. Our educational courses offered at our seven global campuses and online are constantly revised and updated to meet the expectations of our students and be sure to help launch them into successful careers with the confidence of knowledge and expertise.
One of the key differentiators for GIA is our world-class research. This important work underpins everything that we do in fulfillment of our mission – laboratory services, education and instrument development. In our ten gemological laboratories and seven research centers, we conduct comprehensive, rigorous, independent, and deeply scientific research programs to ensure the strict standards and processes of our grading laboratories are the most consistent and trusted in the industry.
We continue to innovate and bring new technologies into our operations to be more efficient, effective and consistent which builds upon our trusted reputation. GIA was the first to utilize AI on a large scale when we collaborated with the IBM Watson research group in 2017. Using GIA’s unique database of millions of diamonds with GIA reports, we developed cutting-edge technology to support clarity grading by our grading experts.
One of the things I am most proud of during my tenure is bringing GIA and AGS (American Gem Society) back together to collaborate on many different initiatives. We were both founded by Robert and Beatrice Shipley, in 1931 and 1934 and together we are stronger and more effective in our missions to protect consumers and ensure high ethics and integrity in the gem and jewelry industry. In September we will be hosting our first combined education and networking event – Converge – in Carlsbad, CA which will bring together passionate retailers, manufacturers, designers to learn from one another and a great line up of speakers and presenters.
You’ve often spoken about the importance of consumer trust in the gem and jewelry industry. How has GIA played a pivotal role in fostering that trust?
I would have to say that GIA’s most important contribution to consumer trust, and trust in the trade, is the establishment of independent, science-based standards to evaluate and describe the characteristics of diamonds, colored stones and pearls. Whether it is the 4Cs of diamond quality which has become the global standard and language of the industry, the geographic origin of colored stones, or the seven value factors for pearls, when consumers ask for and receive the GIA report, they know that they can trust it, and that it stands for independence, integrity and quality. Through our intense focus on consumer confidence, the trade also benefits as well. A gem with a GIA report carries trust with it, throughout the supply chain, and we look to inspire a world of trust in gems and jewelry and to continue to ensure consumer confidence in the gem and jewelry industry to ensure its success.
The gemological world and jewelry industry has seen rapid technological and ethical shifts in recent years. How has GIA adapted to these changes?
GIA has always been an innovative organization, starting with the Shipleys in the 1930s and through every decade since. We’ve adapted to technological change by innovating and integrating technology into our identification and grading laboratories, our extensive research programs and our education curricula. From the development of the iconic jeweler’s loupe in the 1930s, the important bi-focal microscope,to our advanced instrumentation to detect laboratory-grown and treated diamonds, to using machine learning and artificial intelligence to support the work of expert graders, GIA has always looked to technology to support advancements in our important work and the development of specialized instrumentation to improve our accuracy and consistency.
You’ve been a strong advocate for ethical initiatives in the global gem trade. How do you hope the gem and jewelry industry will continue to evolve in its approach to sustainability and ethics?
Ethics is a key tenet of sustainability and should guide all environmental, social, and governance decisions. Beyond ESG, ethics should be central to all organizational decisions. This isn’t just about doing what’s morally right; ethical practices are crucial for safeguarding and enhancing an organization’s trust and reputation. Being recognized as a trustworthy partner strengthens an organization, makes it more resilient to challenges, and improves its ability to attract and retain talented employees.
Something that I learned many years ago from Warren Buffett when I reported to him at Borsheims. He said – I am paraphrasing here – never do or say anything that you would not want your family, friends or colleagues to read about on the front page of the news – it takes decades to build your reputation and only minutes to lose it. This incredibly valuable lesson has never failed me and is my north star in both my professional and personal life.
Sustainability is a smart business strategy. Millennials and Generation Z will represent about 80% of luxury market purchases by 2030 and are concerned about the environmental and social consequences of their purchasing decisions. Moreover, sustainability regulations are becoming increasingly prevalent outside the United States. By proactively anticipating these regulations, organizations can gain a competitive edge.
As you prepare to retire from the position of GIA, what legacy do you hope to leave behind at GIA, and what message would you like to share with the next generation of gemologists and industry leaders?
I hope that my legacy will be that GIA has grown to even greater heights of success under the leadership of our Executive team and the hard work of our colleagues around the world. We continue to build upon the incredible foundation built by the leaders of GIA who have come before us – Mr. and Mrs. Robert Shipley, Richard T. Liddicoat, Glenn Nord, Bill Boyajian and Donna Baker. Each of them as President and CEO made a significant contribution to growing the Institute and ensuring we always stayed true to our mission of protecting consumers. It is always our hope that we leave an organization better than when we joined – stronger, more resilient, more purposeful and at GIA, more focused than ever on ensuring we fulfill our very important mission of ensuring the trust and confidence in gems and jewelry through innovation, knowledge and research. It has been an incredible honor and privilege to lead this outstanding organization and its remarkable people for the past twelve years.
My message to the next generation of gemologists and industry leaders is to bring your passion each and every day to your work and focus on adapting to the ever-changing world with optimism and positivity that things will be better in the future than they are today. I truly believe that the best days are ahead for the gem and jewelry industry and that we will thrive in the future!
Special Note:
This exclusive interview by Julius Zheng was commissioned and published by China Diamond Year Book (2024), which was printed in English and Chinese in April 2025.
Special thanks to Shanghai Diamond Exchange, the publisher of China Diamond Year Book, for the approval of publishing this interview on Gem Spectrum. Shanghai Diamond Exchange is a WFDB member bourse and the only portal in China to enjoy the favorable tax policy of importing polished diamonds.
The PDF of Diamond Year Book from 2020 to 2024 can be downloaded here:
https://www.cnsde.com/#/yearBook
This article was published and printed on Gem Spectrum print magazine Issue #3 Spring 2025, page 7. Please browse the Flipbook below. Full-screen viewing and downloading are possible.
