Doctoral programs that actually connect to real jobs

I found this article about embedding PhD students in corporate labs and it really resonates with me. In my experience, the biggest barrier for women going back to school is worrying whether the degree will actually lead somewhere, and this model solves that problem by putting you in the industry from day one. You get the credibility of the doctorate while building real connections and proving your value to employers at the same time. If you're thinking about a doctoral program but worried about whether it's worth the time and money, this is the kind of setup that makes it make sense. Has anyone here gone through a program like this?