11-19-2024
Lilah Rogoff’s career began in the culinary arts, crafting intricate pastries at the five-star Umstead Hotel restaurant in North Carolina. Her talent and drive propelled her through pastry chef roles at various restaurants and bakeries including an opening sous chef position at a patisserie, where she helped begin and grow the business and managed kitchen staff.
As a pastry chef, Rogoff worked more than 70 hours a week on her feet. “It’s a hard business to be in,” she says. Despite her respect for the industry, the grueling hours and challenges of running a kitchen eventually led her to reimagine her career path.
After moving to California, Rogoff considered opening her own bakery, but high rent and labor costs, narrow profit margins and demands of the industry held her back. The pandemic — and the arrival of her first child — spurred her to explore other career options and graduate programs.
She researched MBA programs, weighing “What field of work is right for me?”
Rogoff realized that some of her favorite aspects of her job weren’t dessert-based but data-driven. Instead of pursuing an MBA, Rogoff chose Purdue University’s online Master’s of Business Analytics (MSBA) program. It offered the analytical focus she wanted, aligned with her budget and career goals, and had name recognition.
The MSBA would let her use “the same kind of analytical creative aspects I enjoyed in running a pastry shop.”
At Purdue, Rogoff honed technical skills like coding in R and SQL, which opened new career possibilities. She also gained insights into organizational change through coursework in change management.
“I was able to connect with everyone. Connections are what allowed me to make changes, improvements, and develop ideas collaboratively — they are the most important part of business.”
Even the best idea can fall flat without effective organizational implementation, Rogoff believes. Through her change management course, she gained the confidence to champion changes she believes in and navigate the implementation of novel but instrumental ideas to drive profitability and growth. One of her key takeaways from the course was the experience of learning through Kotter’s model for effecting change, through which she learned the importance of engaging other organizational members to build on new ideas.
Learning concepts like these in an online graduate program allowed Rogoff to study at her own pace. Pre-recorded lectures allowed her to revisit lessons as needed and better absorb key concepts. This flexibility was especially beneficial as she and her husband now have two children.
“I wanted to be a part of their life and focus on building mine. I can do my work when I choose to and spend time with my children when they’re back from school,” Rogoff says.
Online options liberate career changers like Rogoff. Based in Davis, California, she could still collaborate with classmates and interact with professors. As she approaches graduation in December 2024, she has made use of Purdue's career services, with its job search resources.
Today, Rogoff’s dream has evolved. While she aims to build experience as an analyst, her entrepreneurial spirit has reignited. She envisions a future as a consultant helping restaurants thrive through data analytics.
“A Daniels School degree is the right blend of a rigorous data science program with business elements and affordable tuition. It was perfect for me.”
“I believe there is a lot of room for restaurants to improve themselves through analytics. Up to this point a lot of small business haven’t been able to access analytical tools due to cost. I want to help bridge that gap through consulting,” she shares. “There’s enormous potential in the restaurant industry to use data for sales forecasting, financial planning and solving labor issues. I want to contribute to this data-driven transformation of restaurants.”
The true value of her business analytics degree? Its transferability to any industry. “When you’re pivoting, you’re not wasting a skill set; you’re building on it,” she says.
From curating freshly baked pastries to computing data and algorithms, Lilah Rogoff’s journey from pastry chef to business analyst proves just how impactful the most lucrative career changes can be — especially when done right.
If you would like to receive more information about pursuing a business master’s at the Mitch Daniels School of Business, please fill out the form and a program specialist will be in touch!
