Why Get a PhD in Business?
Kathi Kaiser, PhD ’27 has more than two decades of expertise in qualitative research and user experience (UX) design. In 2001 she founded Centralis, a UX research and design consultancy serving Fortune 100 corporations, government agencies, start-ups and cultural institutions. Serving as the company’s partner and chief operating officer, she leads vision and strategy, talent development, finance, project management and product design and implementation.
Here, she explains why she chose the Bentley Executive PhD in Business.
September 3, 2024, was my first “first day of school” in 27 years. I remember the excitement as I joined Cohort 2 of the Bentley University Executive PhD in Business program. And if all goes according to the best laid plans, I’ll become “Dr. Kaiser” in summer 2027.
Why a PhD? As a UX research consultant, I have the privilege of conducting a wide range of studies for clients in diverse industries. I watch people struggle with all sorts of products. I've identified their common roadblocks and unique needs on their journeys — for everything from home ownership to financial independence to finding the best Medicare plan. Over the years, this work has raised three fundamental questions for me:
1. Given that we know how to make usable products, why do so many products still provide frustrating experiences?
2. Given that organizations have more data than ever about their users, why do they struggle to use that data to deliver the products and services people need?
3. Questions 1 and 2 require more than a six- to eight-week consulting gig to investigate, so how do I begin to answer them?
Question 3 brought me to Bentley’s Executive PhD in Business, which offers a unique opportunity to deep-dive into a problem at the cross-section of experience design and organizational behavior. As I dig into the literature on these questions and conduct scientific, mixed-method research to explore them, I’m planning to have something to share with the community about how we can do what we do better, for the benefit of users everywhere.
The PhD program is part-time and mostly remote, so I can keep working full time on making individual products easier to use while also indulging my curiosity on these larger UX questions. The program’s monthly immersion weekends in the Boston area are a huge bonus, too.
The last time I was a student, classes were in person, notes were taken on paper and conducting research meant long hours in the library. This time, I’m excited to see how a quarter-century's worth of technological advancement will impact how I learn. Going back to school in mid-life is a bit intimidating but also reinvigorating.
Six weeks into the program, as I reflect on what I have learned, digital reading and time management rank high. My daily to-do list has become a multi-month, multi-column spreadsheet with each class, work project and personal event penciled in where it will fit best.
I’ve also realized that Bentley is the place for me. Growing up in New England, I always knew “Bentley College” was a strong regional business school. Fast forward to today, and Bentley University is a leading national institution that brings together rigor and relevance to face today’s business challenges. The faculty and administration in the Executive PhD Program are 100% engaged and committed to their students’ success. I’m humbled to be among such interesting, ambitious students in Cohort 2 — and grateful for those blazing the trail in Cohort 1.