At the center of where

"GIS is the answer to all the questions that start with where."

When Siri Amnuaychai ’25 joined the Master of Business Administration: Location Analytics program at University of Redlands, she didn’t anticipate geospatial data to become a focal point in her path forward. A marketing graduate from Bangkok’s Assumption University, Siri wanted to strengthen her analytical knowledge, but discovering the power of geographic information science (GIS) challenged her way of seeing the world.

“I’ve always been interested in data analytics but never thought of it in terms of places on a map,” she said. “When running a business, you have to answer all types of questions, including the possibility of expansion. GIS is the answer to all the questions that start with where.”

That idea came to life during a class project while working with Big J’s So Cal BBQ, a local business hoping to grow its catering services. Siri and her classmates used ArcGIS Online to map clusters of medium-to-large companies across the Inland Empire, Orange County, and Los Angeles County. By running a hot-spot analysis, the team identified areas where corporate outreach would be most effective.

“For someone new to GIS, seeing that map come together was impressive,” she said. “It was a real example of how data visualization can guide business decisions.”

Beyond the classroom, Siri serves as a graduate assistant with the Center for Spatial Business (CSB), reporting to Professor Avijit Sarkar, who is the academic director for the Institute for Geospatial Impact (IGI). The experience has contributed to much of her growth, including connecting her coursework with applied research, supporting faculty on projects, helping edit sections of a forthcoming textbook on the global digital divide, and assisting with Center-hosted speaker events.

“As my mentor, Dr. Sarkar has pushed me outside of my comfort zone in good ways,” she said. “From attending the Esri User Conference to meeting industry speakers, Dr. Sarkar has guided me towards valuable experiences.”

As she prepares to complete her coursework in December, Siri looks forward to combining her marketing background with her new spatial perspective.

“My goal for being in the MBA Location Analytics program was to understand the foundation of GIS and apply that skill set to marketing, business, or supply chain,” she said. “I can say that is exactly what I got from the program at U of R, and I have a good idea of how to apply GIS to business.”   

Learn how Redlands is at the center of GIS. 

Don’t miss Geography Awareness Week (GeoWeek), November 17 – 20, 2025, on the Redlands campus.