Kelly Peters

Kelly serves as the Global Behavioral Economics Leader & Partner at Deloitte. She is leveraging the firm's deep industry expertise and innovation capabilities to advance the impact the field has on complex challenges.

Previously, Kelly led the helm as the Founding CEO of BEworks, the world’s first commercial behavioral economics advisory firm, which she cofounded in 2010 with the renowned scholars Dan Ariely and Nina Mazar. She guided the sale of the firm to the international creative services agency kyu, held by Hakuhodo Holdings of Tokyo, Japan, in 2017. She continued to serve as the firm's CEO for six more years following its acquisition.

She first crafted the BE Method in 2009 while at RBC Royal Bank of Canada to build a bridge between cutting-edge science and real-world application. RBC was amongst the world's first companies to leverage behavioral science, from insights through to experimentation (in-field randomized controlled tests). The Method has since been applied to strategy, marketing, and operations challenges at Fortune 500 companies including Unilever, Georgia Pacific, CitiBank, and Manulife. She has provided oversight for over 300 projects in the financial services, health care, retail, and sustainability domains.

Kelly studied philosophy with a particular curiosity in how technology changed behavior. Having seen the beta version of what became the World Wide Web, she started her professional career with dotcom startups in the early 1990s where her experience included serving as the project manager that brought the Financial Post and CHATELAINE magazine online, followed by leading the product development team of iMoney, a fintech startup later acquired by Rogers Media. She spent over a decade driving strategy & innovation teams in the banking sector for BMO Bank of Montreal and then Royal Bank of Canada where, in 2009, she launched the first in-house BE practice which thrives to this day.

She has served as a faculty lecturer at the Rotman School of Business, Cornell, Columbia, and Harvard. She is a frequent international keynote speaker and has delivered three TEDx talks. Her work has been published in peer-reviewed academic journals and has also appeared in numerous media outlets such as New York Times, Globe and Mail, CBC, and Business Insider.

She served as an advisor on the 19 to Zero not-for-profit coalition which supported Canada's public health leaders in COVID-19 strategies including tackling vaccine hesitancy. She also participated in several US roundtables, including presenting to then-incoming Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy.

She serves on the Board of Advisors for the Loyalty Science Lab, a collaborative research initiative at Old Dominion University's Strome College of Business.

She was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022 by the prestigious Consulting Magazine as a trailblazer for her ability to innovate, deliver the highest levels of client service and affect positive change for her peers, her teams, and the industry. Previous awards include recognition for being an Innovation leader in the dotcom sector by MecklerMedia in 1999 and Volunteer of the Year by Flare Magazine for her work as Executive Director of WebGrrls Toronto, then Canada, 1995-1999.

In 2022, she founded Trial Run, a product innovation company dedicated to bringing together the power of behavioral science with block chain technologies in order to help aspirational leaders drive their sustainability goals.

Her current research interests are dedicated to three main areas:

1. existential risks and its impact on how people think about the future

2. ongoing applied and primary research projects

3. transforming the way organizations operationalize innovation through behavioral science

"I see a world where companies take ownership in their ESG initiatives to the point that they treat them like assets that appreciate."

Selected Writing

Barr, N. & Peters, K. “Behavioral Science in a Future Far, Far Away." Behavioral Scientist, December 7, 2024. https://behavioralscientist.org/behavioral-science-in-a-future-far-far-away
Peters, K. (2024). Evolving traditional journey maps. In L. Dube (Ed.), Precision Retailing (1st Edition, p. 3-28). University of Toronto Press.
O’Malley, S., Pizarro, D.A., Rodriguez-Sierra, O. E., Camilo Salcedo, J., Malik, W., and Peters, K. (2024). Translating research on ease of payment and driver engagement to reduce bus fare evasion in Santiago. In D. Soman (Ed.), What Works, What Doesn’t (and When): Case Studies in Applied Behavioral Science (1st Edition, p. 169 – 187). University of Toronto Press.
Cooper, A., Lion, R., Rodriguez-Sierra, O. E., Jeffrey, P., Thomson, D., Peters, K., ... & van Herpen, E. (2023). Use-up day and flexible recipes: Reducing household food waste by helping families prepare food they already have. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 194, 106986.
Bughin, J., Cincera, M., Peters, K., Reykowska, D., Żyszkiewicz, M., & Ohme, R. (2023). Make it or break it: On-time vaccination intent at the time of covid-19. Vaccine, 41(12), 2063–2072. doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.02.014
Barr, N., & Peters, K. (March 2022). Behavioral Science in a Future, Far, Far Away. Behavioral Scientist, #2. Retrieved from https://behavioralscientist.org/print-edition-2-brain-meets-world/
Barr, N., Hilscher, M. C., Lê, A., Thomson, D. R., & Peters, K. (2022). To Effectively Apply and Scale Behavioral Insights, Practitioners Must Be Scientific. Mazar, N., & Soman, D. (Eds.), In Behavioral Science in the Wild. Rotman-UTP Publishing.
O'Malley, S., & Peters, K. (2021). Gut Check: Why Organizations That Need to Be Behaviorally Informed Resist It. In Soman, D., & Yeung, C. (Eds.), The Behaviorally Informed Organization (pp. 51-70). Rotman-UTP Publishing. https://www.biorgpartnership.com/biorg-book-series
Peters, K., Thomson, D. R., & Barr, N. (2021). Improving the Effectiveness of Time-Of-Use Pricing to Make Household Electricity Consumption More Sustainable. Behavioral Science and Policy Association, 7(2). 1-15. ISBN 2379-4615 Retrieved from BSP_Journal_Volume7_Issue2.pdf (behavioralpolicy.org)
Sutherland, S., Zhu, M., Salcedo, J., & Peters, K. (2021). A behavioral science approach to enhancing recruitment and residency efforts in the CMPD. BEworks report prepared for the City of Charlotte, NC. Retrieved from: https://www.charlottenc.gov/files/sharedassets/city/v/1/public-safety/documeAnts/safe-charlotte/recommendation_6_final_report_single_pages.pdf
Deleniv, S., Ariely, D., & Peters, K. (March 8, 2021). “Natural Is Better”: How the Appeal To Nature Fallacy Derails Public Health. Behavioral Scientist. Retrieved from behavioralscientist.org/natural-is-better-how-the-naturalistic-fallacy-derails-public-health/ (Recognized as a "Most Read Article of 2021")
Lewis, David & Hilscher, Michelle & Peters, Kelly & Carpentier, Sarah & Malé, Pierre-Jean & Cooper, Angela. (2021). The Value of Behaviorally-Informed Financial Advice Study. 10.13140/RG.2.2.16633.80487.
Lewis, David & Hilscher, Michelle & Barr, Nathaniel & Peters, Kelly. (2021). BEworks Research Institute Credit in the New Normal. 10.13140/RG.2.2.30212.86400.
Barr, N., Stanley, M., Peters, K., Seli, P. (2021). Analytic-thinking predicts hoax beliefs and helping behaviors in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thinking & Reasoning, 27(3), 464--477. DOI: 10.1080/13546783.2020.1813806
Lewis, D., Peters, K., and Ariely, D. (March 31, 2020). 'How investors can stay rational in irrational times.' The Globe and Mail. Retrieved from How investors can stay rational in irrational times - The Globe and Mail
Ariely, D., Barr, N., Hobson, N., & Peters, K. (March 30, 2020). 'No More water cooler conversations': 5 ways managers can adapt to the work-from-home force now, because it'll be here for a while. Business Insider. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/how-managers-have-to-adapt-to-work-from-home-force-2020-3
Hobson, N., Barr, N., & Peters, K. (February 17, 2020). 'Want to make your brand psychologically capturing? Try using the power of ritual. Business Insider. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/make-brand-psychologically-capturing-use-power-of-ritual
Kelly Peters (2020). Imagining the Next Decade of Behavioral Science. Behavioral Scientist. [opinion published with other commentaries from leading behavioural scientists]
Peters, K., Hobson, N., & Barr, N. (2020). 'Want happier, healthier employees? Select and promote them fairly. THRIVE. Retrieved from https://thriveglobal.com/stories/want-happier-healthier-employees-select-and-promote-them-fairly/
Peters, K. (2019, September 23). The Lemonade Ultimatum: Game Theory in a Gift Economy. Behavioral Scientist. https://behavioralscientist.org/the-lemonade-ultimatum-game-theory-in-a-gift-economy/
Peters, K., Hilscher, M., Fidalgo, C., & Kabitsis, P., for the Investment Funds Institute of Canada (February 2019). Behavioral Economics applied to financial disclosure.
Barr, N., & Peters, K. (2018). Resistance Is Futile: Embracing the Era of the Augmented Worker. Behavioral Scientist. Retrieved from https://behavioralscientist.org/resistance-futile-embracing-era-augmented-worker/
Peters, K. (2017, February 2). The Science of Ritual. Medium. https://beworks.medium.com/sometimes-science-works-in-mysterious-ways-6df82c175a31

Selected Interviews

[1] Ho, E. (2025, December 19). Resilience, not retirement: Rethinking the future of financial behaviour. CFA Society Toronto The Analyst, Winter 2025, 20-21. https://www.cfatoronto.ca/insights-and-updates/the-analyst/Fall2025/article/Winter2025/resilience-not-retirement

[2] Palla, K. (2025, September 15). Consumer scams: The right way to train your staff. Outseer. https://www.outseer.com/blog/consumer-scams-the-right-way-to-train-your-staff

[3] Peters, K. (2025, March 26). Understanding the modern mindset for DC plan member engagement: Existential risk and its impact on the long term savings behaviours of GenZ [Conference session]. 2025 DC Plan Summit, Montreal, QC, Canada. Benefits Canada. https://www.benefitscanada.com/events/conference-coverage/2025-dc-plan-summit-understanding-the-modern-mindset-for-dc-plan-member-engagement/

[4] Financial Pipeline. (2025, April). Tariff impact: Strategies for financial stability. Financial Pipeline. https://www.financialpipeline.com

[5] Sylvestre-Williams, R. (2025, April 24). Tax cuts won't make life more affordable. The Walrus. https://thewalrus.ca/tax-cuts-election/

[6] Keehn, K. (Host). (2020, August 11). Will payment deferrals hurt Canadians in the long run? [Audio podcast episode]. In Talk Money with Me. https://kelleykeehn.com/blog/will-payment-deferrals-hurt-canadians-in-the-long-run/

[7] Galloway, M. (Host). (2021, June 16). Incentives to get vaccinated? [Radio broadcast]. In The Current. CBC Radio. https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent

[8] Holzwarth, A., & Salzer, S. (Hosts). (2021, June 16). How can we change behavior in practice? What role does AI have to play in behavioral design? Real-world behavioral economics with Kelly Peters [Audio podcast episode]. In The Behavioral Design Podcast. https://www.behavioraldesign.academy/podcast

[9] Chapman, T. (Host). (2021, April 16). Behaviour matters to Dan Ariely and Kelly Peters [Audio podcast episode]. In Chatter That Matters. https://chatterpodcast.com

[10] BEAR - Behavioral Economics in Action at Rotman. (2021, February 2). Kelly Peters on the behaviorally informed organization. Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. https://www.rotman.utoronto.ca/bear

[11] BlockHack Global 2020. (2020, October 9). Designing better technologies with B.E.: How behavioural economic insights can help you understand and overcome the most common pitfalls facing adoption today [Conference presentation]. https://blockhack.global

[12] JUST Capital. (2020, August). Behavioral science experts Dan Ariely and Kelly Peters explain how business leaders can support employees' mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. JUST Capital. https://justcapital.com

[13] Andrews, T. (Host). (2020). Kelly Peters, think like a scientist to make better business decisions [Audio podcast episode]. In Leading into the Unknown. https://leadingintotheunknown.com

[14] BBC News. (2019, August 19). Business daily: Get in line! Why queues are good [Radio broadcast]. BBC. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3csz4dn

[15] Tawawala, M. (Host). (2019, October 7). Kelly Peters - Tackling complex problems in education with behavioural science [Audio podcast episode]. In #Future of Learning. https://futureoflearning.org

[16] Paikin, S. (Host). (2019, January 10). 10 questions on a new economic language [Television broadcast]. In The Agenda. TVO Today. https://www.tvo.org/theagenda

[17] CBC News. (2017, November 23). Spending spree. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news

[18] Carrick, R. (2014, January 3). Are you ready for the next downturn? The Globe and Mail. https://www.theglobeandmail.com

Select Key Notes & Panels

Entrepreneurs' Organization Chicago, Chicago, IL (members only), Decisions under uncertainty – You wanna bet? [Masterclass]. The masterclass was part of an EO Poker Night event where Kelly Peters discussed how behavior, external stimuli, experience, intuition, and facts shape risk-taking and decision-making under uncertainty. (2025, November 12). https://eochicago.org/event/eo-poker-night-w-ypo-decisions-under-uncertainty-you-wanna-bet/
GAABS Gather '25 (Global Association of Applied Behavioural Scientists); Member's Choice presenter. June 5, 2025
Client Advisory Council (members only event), Gen Z's existential dread. Why we need to understand the modern mindset for engagement strategies April 2025
Benefits Canada (members only event), Gen Z's existential dread. Why we need to understand the modern mindset for engagement strategies March 2025
European House, Ambrosetti (members only event), Behavioral Economics: Applying the science of human behaviour to drive organizational performance, March 14, 2022
Manulife Canada IWD Women Investors Day (private event) March 09, 2022
BEworks Summit 2021 (Toronto): Science of Behavioral Change to Unlock Stakeholder Value
InsurTech (Bogota): BE Applied to Insurance Value Chain (audience size 200 insurance executives and insurtech entrepreneurs) Website
World Business Forums: Kelly has delivered keynotes at five World Business Forums: Sydney, Madrid, Mexico City, Bogota and Milan (audience size per event 3,000-5,000) Website
Canadian Employee Benefits Conference (Las Vegas): Using Behavioral Economics to Nudge Plan Members to a Better Retirement (audience size 2,500) Website

Risk Management Symposium (Mexico City): Behavioral Science and Risk Management (audience size 600 senior business leaders)
BankersCom Management Conference (Zurich): Trust in the
Digital Age (audience size 200 senior bankers and regulators)
C2 (Montreal): Fireside Chat Featuring Dan Ariely and Kelly Peters
OSC Dialogue 2016: The Game has Changed; "Fintech: What It Means for Investors and Emerging Businesses"

Select Global talks

TEDxUtrecht: Nudging Ourselves to be Reasonable About Risk - Video

TEDxBlackRockCity: Looking at Transformation Through an Empirical Lens - Video
Nudgestock: Corporate Sedition: Challenging the Status Quo - Video
BEHAVE: The Application of Behavioral Economics to Solve the Toughest Marketing Challenges - Website
Think like a Scientist to make Better Business Decisions
Kelly Peters featured in SYPartners’ "Leading into the Unknown" podcast, November 2018

Research Featured in the Media

Benefits Canada, Michael McKiernan, November 18, 2022: A look at the landscape for automatic features in Canadian pension plans
CBC, The Current with Matt Galloway, June 16, 2021: Providing incentives to get vaccinated
Maclean's, Stephen Maher, May 21, 2021: The vaccine resistance problem in Canada, and how to confront it
Wisconsin Public Radio, March 18, 2021: How The False Idea That Natural Is Better Contributes To Vaccine Hesitancy
Wealth Professional, March 18, 2021: Equipping advisors to be better financial coaches
El Financiero TV: "¿Cómo funciona la economía conductual?," June 24, 2019
10 questions on the new economic language of BE featured on "the Agenda with Steve Paikin," January 13, 2019 Video
The Psychology of Waiting in Line Kelly Peters featured on the BBC, August 22, 2019 Video
Investment Executive, IE Staff, March 6, 2019: IFIC and BEworks publish report on effective disclosure.

Spending Spree Kelly Peters featured on CBC News, May 4, 2018 - Video
Financial Post: The best question to ask your team is 'How do you know?'
Advisor's Edge: Why advisors should stop talking and start coaching
TVO's The Agenda with Steve Paikin: 10 Questions on New Economic Language

MarketingDirecto (Spanish): The power of behavioral science is its ability to predict irrationality
Ninja Marketing (Italian): A conversation about behavioral economics with Kelly Peters
El Confidencial (Spanish): If you introduce psychology into your company’s strategy, you can be much more effective
Retina (Spanish): Colombia dismantles topics about the role of people in innovation
Caracol (Spanish): We all have the potential to have scientific thinking

Profiles

B.E.GOOD! Podcast, August 17, 2020: Kelly Peters: The Power of Data, Evidence & Scientific Thinking
Questioning Behaviour with Merle van den Akker, July 7, 2020: Closing the Gap with Kelly Peters
Money on the Mind, Merle van den Akker; March 30, 2020: Interview with Kelly Peters
Dalhousie University Alumni Spotlight, December 3, 2013: Merging science and business: Kelly Peters
:InDecision, with Elina Halonen; November 11, 2013: In the Wild: Kelly Peters

Product Innovation (incomplete list)

Collaborated with Environics on design of a house-hold level communications targeting engine for public health goals of vaccine uptake. "VaccineInsights" engine is sold by Envionics and is available here: VaccineInsights | Health Data | Environics Analytics | Environics Analytics

Patents

Abstract: A method for pricing data recovery for a sequence of time periods based on an estimate of the amount of data that will be recovered. For the first period, the price is the backup capacity times a price rate times an assumed recovery rate, which is a pre-determined number. For subsequent periods, the price is the backup capacity times the price rate times the actual amount of data recovered in the prior time period. The method also includes a data backup and recovery method using the data recovery pricing method, which provides tracker software to measure the amount of data recovered.

Patents Assigned to ASIGRA INC. - Justia Patents Search

Scientific Publications