New Product Development, a blend of Product and Project Management

Event Description

New Product Development (NPD) meets the definition of a project.  I have been involved in NPD since 2012, and it has been demonstrated that project management, along with a documented NPD process, can shorten time to market and improve project quality - i.e., meeting customer requirements.  This presentation will provide an overview of the Product Management philosophy, and provide examples of how project management and product management can make the NPD process more effective.

About Our Speaker

Ken started his career as an Electrical Engineer working on power plant design.  During his various roles over the next couple of years, the importance of leadership, versus managing, became apparent.  This led him to get his Masters degree in Engineering Management. Fifteen years into his career, he became involved in large construction projects and made the transition from an Engineering Manager to a Project Manager.  For the last 20+ years, Ken's passion has been project management and leadership.  In 2017, Mr Riches founded Project Management Considerations, LLC.

He has been involved in the development of multiple project management offices and new product development processes.  Ken joined PMI in 2001, became a charter member of PMI Michiana in 2004, and earned his PMP certification in 2010.  He have served as a volunteer in PMI Michiana (VP Membership, President, VP administration) and also served as the PMI Region 2 Mentor from 2016-2018.

As a blood cancer survivor, I have a strong drive to provide emotional and financial support to other people on their cancer journey.  He founded a non-profit, Forever Optimistic - Cancer U Suck in 2019 and have partnered with local cancer service organizations to provide this support.