Michael “KP” Kidd-Phillips

UC Berkeley, Haas School of Business

“I am the ultimate in-betweener who loves to bring everyone together for a good time.”

Hometown: Lawrenceville, NJ

Fun Fact About Yourself: I did gymnastics for 9 years and now solely get invited to weddings to do back flips.

Undergraduate School and Major: Williams College: Economics & Sociology Majors.

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: The Walt Disney Company: Sr. Analyst, Revenue Management & Analytics

Berkeley Haas is founded on four Defining Leadership Principles: Question the Status Quo, Confidence Without Attitude, Students Always, and Beyond Yourself. Which principle resonates most with you and why? Question the Status Quo. I always tell people I am like Tina Fey from Mean Girls—a pusher. In my eyes, life is about pushing yourself and others to think outside the box, question assumptions, and develop new ideas. It can be challenging to strike a balance between being a motivator and a critic, as you must ensure you’re not just playing devil’s advocate. When I question the status quo, I aim to do so with finesse and brinkmanship. It is important to me that before I try to change something, I fully understand it, and then convince the opposing party that there is a middle ground. I hope to improve my ability to question the status quo at Haas.

What excites you about earning your MBA in the Bay Area? My favorite aspect of the Bay Area is its proximity to scenic nature and trail runs. As an avid runner, I can’t wait to do the Panoramic Hill run. Additionally, there’s nothing like being around Patagonia-wearing, flip-flop-clad techies who have endless startup pitches and are passionate about pushing humanity forward.

What was the key part of Berkeley Haas’ MBA curriculum or programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? I attended a small liberal arts college for my undergraduate studies, and I loved creating deep connections with students, faculty, and professors. I wanted a similar experience for my MBA. After meeting incoming students and faculty at Days at Haas, I knew I would get this experience again at Haas given its smaller size. Nothing against larger schools, but sometimes big classrooms add a layer of performance anxiety that doesn’t allow students to open up. At Haas, I can’t wait to have tough conversations centered on identity, business, and politics.

What course, club, or activity excites you the most at Berkeley Haas? I am most excited about the Haas Improv Club. I only did improv once in Los Angeles, but that one session helped me become a better communicator and boosted my confidence. I believe that the power of play helps us create organic relationships with one another by letting the best parts of our personalities shine through.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: At The Walt Disney Company, I analyzed admissions revenue for the Disneyland Resort to develop long-term strategic growth. One of my passion projects involved researching the relationship between the U.S. economy and Disneyland revenue. This project was particularly meaningful to me because, as a young gymnast, my coach repeatedly promised a new state-of-the-art gym that never materialized. At the time, I thought he was just getting my hopes up, but in college I realized it was due to the 2008 financial crisis. Learning about the recession in intermediate macroeconomics was eye-opening because it made me realize the issue had nothing to do with my coach and everything to do with the broader economic downturn. Since then, I have been passionate about the relationship between the U.S. economy and business activity.

Many Americans do not realize that 70% of GDP is consumer spending, so people swiping their cards is what keeps America afloat. Therefore, I believe anyone working in a consumer-centric industry like Disney should be mindful of economic trends since they impact business results. The first part of my project involved running a regression between consumer expenditure and the Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI) versus Disneyland revenue to convince stakeholders at Disneyland that monitoring economic KPIs was worthwhile. Once I got buy-in, I created a data management pipeline between the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, which stores economic data, and internal Disney systems. I accomplished this using R and stored procedures in Microsoft SQL Server. Once the data was stored, I used Tableau to create visuals for stakeholders to compare economic KPIs against Disneyland KPIs in real time, offering more insights into Disneyland revenue trends. Ultimately, the insights resulted in an annual revenue increase of $1 million in 2024. I love working on projects like this because they are a perfect blend of hard and soft skills.

At this point, what do you hope to do after graduation? After graduation, I plan on being a private equity and corporate strategy consultant.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Berkeley Haas’ MBA program? My one piece of advice is to have close friends and family read over your essays. Berkeley Haas values applicants who are their authentic selves, and the people who know you best are your loved ones. When you send them your essays, ask, “Does this sound like me?” If the answer is no, I know it can be stressful, but try to rewrite some sections so your personality comes through. When the admissions officer called me to inform me of my acceptance, they referenced personal parts of my essays that they enjoyed reading, which I would not have included if my friends had not nudged me to do so.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE BERKELEY HAAS MBA CLASS OF 2026