Panel: Product Development: Leveraging Technology

The Executive Summit:
Marketing & Technology-the Next Frontier




PANEL: PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT: LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY TO GET RESULTS

Most new products still fail. But technology can be used to build successful new products or modify existing products more quickly and at a lower cost. This panel will shed light on the technology available right now to drive successful product management tactics.

Moderator:

Michael Cole, Professor of Marketing, New Jersey City University and formerly EVP, Reed Business Information

Panelists:

Sara Frankel, Senior Consultant, Tikatok
Peter Koen, Director of Consortium for Corporate Entrepreneurship, Stevens Institute of Technology
Dan Michael, R&D; Director-Mars Direct, a division of Mars, Inc.
John Sateja, Executive Vice President - Consumers Union (Publisher of Consumer Reports)

Moderator:

Michael Cole, Professor of Marketing at New Jersey City University
Formerly EVP, Reed Business Information

Mike Cole has held senior marketing and development positions in several organizations including Citicorp, Donnelley, Reed Business Information and Columbia University.

At Citicorp, Mike and his team developed the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) process for Citi's massive bankcards operation, and led the launch of the first premier branded bankcard product. He was also SVP of Marketing at Citicorp Retail Services and CEO of Citicorp Distribution Finance. As Donnelley's SVP of Strategic Marketing, Mike led the development of an electronic advertising product (YPTV) which was named new product of the year in the industry. While Executive Vice President of Reed Business Information, Mike established an extensive internet activity which served multiple vertical business markets. At Columbia, he led the development of an Internet based education program for first year teachers that was recognized for its innovation and effectiveness by the Association of Educational Publishers.

Mike holds a BA from St. Peter's College and an MBA from Pace University and has taught marketing at Wagner College, St. Peter's College, and Pace University, where he is also a doctoral candidate. Mike is currently a marketing professor at New Jersey City University. His consulting practice (HT Ventures) is centered on strategic innovation initiatives. Mike is a member of the MIT Enterprise Forum and the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA). His area of research focus is the marketing consequences of consumer collaboration with product development.

Panelists:

Sara Frankel, Senior Consultant, Tikatok

Sara Frankel is a business consultant and entrepreneur. She started her career as a journalist, working as a newspaper feature writer, editor and documentary video producer in San Francisco. Since the mid-'90s, she has held executive positions in a range of Internet and digital media ventures, from large print-based companies such as IDG and Times Mirror to startups (Third Age Media, Vicinity Corp.). In 1998 she founded BestSelf, among the first companies to create Internet-based weight management programs; more recently, she purchased and ran the ecommerce company Rosie Hippo, which sold children's toys made from natural materials. Between startups she has worked as a business consultant, focusing primarily on companies in the health, natural products, food and children's sectors. She has a BA from Harvard, an MA from Cambridge University, and an MBA from Stanford.

Peter Koen, Director of Consortium for Corporate Entrepreneurship, Stevens Institute of Technology

Peter Koen is a tenured Associate Professor in the Wesley J. Howe School of Technology Management. He is currently the director of the Consortium for Corporate Entrepreneurship (CCE), which he founded in 1998, and whose mission is to significantly increase the number, speed and success probability of highly profitable products and services at the "Front End of Innovation" (www.frontendinnovation.com) - which is the discovery portion of the innovation process. Current consortium members include Ethicon (a division of Johnson and Johnson), ExxonMobil and P&G.;

Peter is engaged in research directed at optimizing the Front End of Innovation and determining the most effective practices in the Front End; and The New Concept Development model, developed with 13 other companies, which is being adopted by industry as a theoretical construct for understanding the front end. Peter is also actively working with Cabot, Dow Corning, Ethicon, ExxonMobil, International Flavors and Fragrances, Rohm and Haas, Valvoline and WelchAllyn under a project funded through the National Science Foundation under the auspices of the Industrial Research Institute to determine the most effective practices in the front end utilized by "Best in Class" companies.

In addition, Peter's research focuses on determining approaches and organizational structures (i.e. processes, people, strategies, sponsorship, knowledge management, etc.) that affect how companies manage breakthrough opportunities. Dr. Koen also developed, founded and chaired the United States (2003 - 2009) and European (2007 -2009) Front End of Innovation Conference (www.frontendofinnovation.com) produced by International Institute of Research under the auspices of the Product Development Management Association.

Dr. Koen has published numerous articles on the front end. He has over 19 years of industrial experience including new product development responsibility at both large and small companies. Peter Koen's academic background includes a BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering from New York University in 1965 and 1967, respectively. In addition he holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Drexel obtained in 1975 and a professional engineering license.

Dan Michael, Director of R&D;, Engineering and Quality - MARS Direct, Inc., a Division of MARS, Inc.

Dan Michael is currently having fun driving Innovation and Quality for MARS Direct, which includes both the MY M&M;'s® and MY DOVE® businesses. He was one of the charter members of the MARS Direct team in 2006, when they were set up autonomously from the main business to drive significant growth in a fast paced DTC/B2B business focused on personalization. Dan leads a product, packaging, engineering, technology and quality team whose sole focus is to delight consumers and improve operational efficiency.

Over his 22 years spent at MARS, Incorporated, Dan has led R&D; efforts on various new Brand and category initiatives - Cocoa Via®, VO2 MAX®, Cookies&®, Dove Cookies® and Ice Cream. He has also led many new product launches associated with the SNICKERS®, MILKY WAY®, 3 MUSKETEERS®, COMBOS® and KUDOS®. Brands.

Dan was graduated from Cook College, Rutgers University with a B.S. in Food Science in 1984. He ran a small painting business throughout college - an experience that instilled in him a quality and entrepreneurial mindset, one that serves him well in his current role.

Dan is happily married to Katie and has three great children; daughters Sean and Leigh (age 19 and starting college) and an eight year-old son, Nolen. They live and play in beautiful Sussex County, New Jersey, where they are regularly visited by deer, turkeys, coyotes and bear. He loves to fish and hunt when he can pry himself away from family and his "passion for personalization".

John Sateja, Executive Vice President - Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports

John Sateja is the Executive Vice President for Consumers Union (CU), the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports. He joined CU in the spring of 2000, bringing with him a strong background and expertise in Internet business, technology, marketing, and content development.

Mr. Sateja oversees publishing, editorial, laboratory testing and consumer research for all Consumer Reports information products including: Consumer Reports magazine, ConsumerReports.org, Consumer Reports on Health, Consumer Reports Money Adviser, Consumer Reports Special Publications, Consumer Reports Auto Price Services, ShopSmart magazine, ShopSmart Mobile, as well as all new product development.

Under Mr. Sateja's leadership, ConsumerReports.org, reached a record-setting subscription milestone and it is considered the largest publication-based subscription site on the web with more than 3.2 million paid subscriptions. Consumer Reports magazine now has over 4.5 million paid subscriptions, ranked number six among consumer publications. Total subscriptions for all information products exceeds 8.5 million. In addition, the performance of the entire product portfolio has achieved record-setting financial performance. In February, 2007 he was featured on the cover of Publishing Executive magazine - "The Power of Trust" and in October, 2007 on the cover of Folio magazine — "Behind the wall — Consumer Reports manages massive growth in its sub-based businesses."

Prior to joining CU, Mr. Sateja was Senior Vice President, New Media at Reed Business Information, the B-to-B publishing division of Reed Elsevier. There he was responsible for managing the development of Manufacturing.Net, a leading industrial information portal, and other electronic media initiatives across the company. In April 1999, Mr. Sateja was selected by Folio magazine as one of its "Folio 40 Entrepreneurial Leaders."

Prior to joining Reed Business Information, Mr. Sateja was Founder and President of Media Technologies Group, Inc., a marketing services and web development company. He also served as Vice President of Business Development at R.H. Donnelley (a Dun & Bradstreet company), Vice President of Marketing at Western Union and McGraw-Hill, and has held senior marketing positions at AT&T.;

Mr. Sateja graduated with Honors from Rutgers University and received his MBA from the University of Massachusetts. Mr. Sateja has been a guest lecturer at several Universities and has been the key note speaker and featured presenter at many industry events. He currently is an adjunct professor in the MBA program at Fordham University.