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NPDP

Business Model Basics

Business models are representations of an organization’s work in the present.  We can contrast a business model with the firm’s strategy which illustrates its long-term goals and objectives.  Strategy creates the overarching purpose for a company, explaining why it is in business in the first place.  Part of the strategy encompasses the vision for the organization, indicating where it hopes to be in the future as an industry competitor and participant in the economic environment.  In contrast, business models show how the firm is competing today and how it should position products and services to be competitive in the current environment.

Traditionally, business models have four elements that interact and integrate to create a competitive position for the organization.  These components are:

  1. The customer value proposition,
  2. Pricing and profit formulas,
  3. A growth model, and
  4. Key resources and processes.

Customer Value Proposition

Anyone working in new product development (NPD) knows that most successful development efforts are customer-centric.  Understanding customer needs is a foundational step in any NPD effort.  Furthermore, new product development practitioners must clarify the difference between customer needs and product features – what is the problem that needs to be solved and how can the product address a technical solution to that problem?

The customer value proposition expands customer needs beyond feature design.  Customers will purchase a product only if it solves their problems and only when they see value in the proposed solution.  Benefits must exceed the costs of the product to the customer in order for him or her to make a purchase.  It should be noted that costs are not merely monetary, but also include time, convenience, and social image.  For example, some studies have noted that customers will purchase a more expensive Starbuck’s coffee over a fast food coffee in order to be seen with a cup with the memorable logo.  Thus, part of the customer value proposition of a Starbuck’s coffee results in a social benefit which cannot be measured by any standard financial metrics.

Pricing and Profit Formulas

Of course, the customer value proposition is closely linked to the price for which a company can sell a product.  A customer’s perceived benefits must exceed the actual price paid though many of these benefits are not measurable in monetary terms.  A company, on the other hand, must charge a high enough price to recoup R&D, production, and marketing costs.  Business models will clearly address the pricing and profit formula.

One element to consider in setting prices is a consumer’s reservation price.  The reservation price is the highest price a customer is willing to pay in order to receive the benefits that the product offers.  A company will naturally wish to set the selling price as close to the reservation price as possible in order to maximize profits.  However, if the difference between the benefits that a customer perceives and his/her reservation price is very small, the likelihood of a purchase will decline.

Growth Models

Like the pricing and profit formulas, a business model should describe the growth model for the product or service.  As a business model provides a clear roadmap to discharge the firm’s strategy, the business model must elucidate growth of the product or service over the short- to medium-term.  Most products will evolve through a distinct life cycle from introduction to growth and maturity and eventual decline.  The business model describes how a product will achieve increased sales volume, revenues, and market share in the growth phase.

Growth models may include targeting of new customer segments, increased purchases by existing customers, or international roll-out of a product for different geographical markets.  Through the growth model, an organization will link its long-term strategic objectives with the shorter term sales and marketing plans for the product as an element of the business model.  If a firm has a strategic goal to increase its presence in Asian markets, for example, the growth model for a particular product may be to roll-out the product first in Japan, then in Korea, and finally in China.

Key Resources and Processes

Every business is unique.  Firms with different strategies can compete successfully in the same industry.  The business model defines how each company competes, notably through the application of key resources and processes.

For example, many petrochemical companies are vertically integrated in an oil company with upstream drilling capabilities.  Because of special access to key raw materials, the petrochemical company may institute unique business models that capitalize on the available oil.  Another company may set up its business model for the same product based on acquiring feedstocks in the open market.  Both companies can be successful in delivering product solutions to customers and in meeting their long-term strategic goals, yet each will focus on a different set of key resources, leading to different combinations of the four elements of a business model.

Similarly, key business processes also lead firms to unique and competitive business models.  Today, companies may utilize technology, big data, or customer relation information to gain insights to customer needs and benefits.  Such business processes can generate competitive advantages when executed consistently across the product line.

Why Do You Need a Business Model?

Business models provide a way to implement a longer term strategy through products today.  Companies should constantly study, revise, and update business models in order to address marketplace changes.  Technologies and markets are changing at a rapid pace and competition introduces new product solutions that can make an existing product obsolete overnight.  A business model helps to clarify customer-centric decisions to deliver value to consumers consistent with the firm’s strategic objectives.

To learn more about business models, please join us for a workshop on NPD best practices.  Contact me at info@simple-pdh.com with the subject “Business Model Basics” to download two free papers on business model innovation.  At Simple-PDH, we want to make it simple to study, learn, and earn your professional certifications.

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

A division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

The 19-Cent Banana

I was getting ready to go on a weeklong vacation.  My bags were packed, hotel and airline reservations ready, and I cleaned out the refrigerator.  No fresh fruit, veggies, or milk was left to spoil while I would be gone.  It was completely empty – no yogurt, no orange juice, and no eggs.

But, then I realized that with an early morning flight the next day, I just might want to have a little snack before driving to the airport.  At the supermarket,  I picked up one yogurt, one apple, and one – just one – banana.

At the checkout, the clerk scanned the yogurt and put it into a bag.  She typed the code for the apple, weighed it, and put it into the bag.  Then came the banana.  Again, the clerk typed in the appropriate code and weighted my fruit.  Uh-oh!  An alarm went off on the register.  The banana cost only 19 cents.  An override was required for any price less than 20 cents.  The purchase of a single banana resulted in a deviation of business processes and a manual override that slowed the normal flow of activities at the supermarket as well as my hurried shopping trip.

Business Processes

We establish business processes for many different reasons.  For example, quality standards often require the implementation of repeatable business processes to maintain acceptable levels of customer satisfaction.  Other business processes ensure operations and manufacturing are cost efficient, while some other business processes provide checklists so that critical (but infrequent) activities are not overlooked.  Thus, most business processes serve to aid productivity and efficiency of the organization.

On the other hand, some organizations use business processes as a crutch.  They substitute data analysis and decision-making with filling in forms.  These firms tend to suffer a lack of creativity in problem-solving and reduced levels of employee morale.  Staff are discouraged form acting upon information, even to the point of leaving customers with unwieldy functions or clunky products.

New Product Development Processes

In my experience, some companies enforce business policies that fail to add value yet are so afraid of risk that they are paralyzed and cannot improve performance.  I have encountered firms that use a staged and gated new product development (NPD) process in such a way that the system actually reduces innovation and creative problem-solving.  Most common are large corporations that are highly risk averse.  They introduce an artificial sense of security by abusing these business processes.  Decisions are deferred and information that is normally required for late stage development is forced into earlier, screening phases of work.  By pushing more accurate estimates into ideation stages, creativity is hindered and new, exciting innovations are traded for incremental developments.

Effective Business Processes

Effective business processes are utilized by teams to accomplish project work without unduly hindering the team’s activities.  Procedures that aid productivity serve as reminders and checklists to ensure critical activities are not omitted when necessary.  In product development, for instance, a staged and gated process will verify that customer test data has been collected and analyzed before a project moves to the next, more expensive, phase of work.  Likewise, intellectual property protection will be assessed prior to releasing the product for sale in the open market.

A hallmark of effective business processes is that they originate from best practices and the positive outcomes of successfully completed projects.  Note that the alternate approach places roadblocks out of a sense of fear or aversion to risk.  Business processes that add value are those that enable products to be developed quicker and enable teams to work tougher more productively.  Scrum and Agile methods, for example, integrate the voice of customer into an iterative development process that rapidly delivers workable solutions.

Back to the Banana

As I left the supermarket, I had to ask myself what value were they adding by setting a 20 cent floor price on any item?  Was the store trying to protect against fraud or theft?  And don’t people, every day, buy just enough food for one, quick meal, including a single banana?

My conclusion is that a 19 cent banana is not atypical nor an unusual purchase.  I don’t believe the supermarket added any internal value by requiring an override for a purchase of less than 20 cents.  Further, because my “one banana” purchase took longer than expected, the store detracted from their normally excellent customer service.

Effective business processes are designed to institute best practices, ensure project work is not overlooked or omitted, and to add customer value.  Continuous review through lessons learned should improve existing business processes and eliminate those that do not aid in work teams’ efficiency or productivity.  I encourage you to take a look at your business practices to search for – and eliminate – the “19 cent bananas”.

In the meantime, please join us for a workshop on NPD best practices.  Contact me at info@simple-pdh.com with the subject “19 cent bananas” for a special discount code to save 20% on our next face-to-face NPD course.  At Simple-PDH, we want to make it simple to study, learn, and earn your professional certifications.

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

A division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Transitioning from a Technical to Managerial Role

Project, product, and engineering managers have exciting careers in which they make a real difference in their organizations and communities.  Yet, many managers do not initially plan a management career.  Instead, engineering and business majors in college learn technical skills such as fluid flow, thermodynamics, and accounting.  After years of working as a technical expert, individuals may suddenly be promoted to management ranks.  How do you transition from a technical role into a management position?

The LPU Model

The LPU Model (Learn-Practice-Use) describes how an individual can gain new skills.  (For more information on the LPU Model, please see CLOmedia.com, Sept. 2016.)  It is a helpful resource for technical experts transitioning into management roles.  Many of the technical skills that created success as an individual contributor will not serve you in a management position.  In fact, many new skills, as explained below, are necessary for success as a manager.

The LPU model started with learning.  New managers must learn a whole set of new skills to be successful.  Learning can occur on-the-job, through mentoring and coaching, and via formal training.  As with all learning, a new manager needs to access skills and knowledge training when s/he needs it.  Usually a new skill is best learned when a manager has the opportunity to practice the skill.

Practice (“P” in the LPU Model) of management skills can be conducted in low-risk environments.  Many face-to-face courses and workshops allow new managers to role play and engage in other activities to develop their new skills.  While the situations in a training course may be somewhat artificial or may not reflect the industry in which the manager works, the opportunity to practice a skill builds confidence in how to approach a real-life situation.  Consider that major league baseball players spend hours and hours drilling.  While he may not encounter a fly ball to outer right field with the bases loaded in a real game, he has practiced the paly enough to know how to respond if the situation does occur.

Finally, a new manager will use the skills that s/he has learned and practiced.  This is the “real ball game.”  In using our skills consciously, we will evaluate how effectively we’ve deployed the skill and can make adjustments the next time a similar situation arises.  Analyzing whether the skill was used at the right time and in the right way (teaching) leads to continuous improvement.  It is also helpful to have a mentor or coach who can provide feedback on the use of management skills in new situations to frame further learning.

Management Skills

Employing the LPU Model can help a new manage learn, practice, and use new skills. But, what skills does a new manager need?  And how are these skills different than those utilized in technical positions?

Delegate

First, a new manager will need to learn delegation.  This is perhaps the most difficult challenge that faces a technical expert transitioning from an individual contributor position to a management role.  It is likely that you were promoted because of demonstrated expertise in your chosen technical field.  Yet, you are new in a position to motivate and monitor the team’s work, and not to do the work.

There are dozens of acceptable ways to perform engineering design or write software code and deliver a working product.  A new manager must accept that his/her preferred style may not be the same style as the team member doing the work.  New managers must be able to effectively delegate technical work and review the work only for completeness, not style.

Communication

Next, a new manager must learn to communicate and share information with a wide group of stakeholders.  Previously, in a technical role, you simply needed to explain the solution to a problem, indicating risks or quality concerns to your boss.  Someone else ultimately made decisions.  Now, as a project, product, or engineering manager, you are making these higher level decisions and communicating the impact of decisions to others.

Communication for managers goes upward, downward, and sideways.  Decisions and problems must be explained to upper management.  Information regarding project activities, schedule, and cost is shared with customers, clients, and the team doing the work.  Finally, managerial work cuts across functions so a new manager will be communicating with other departmental and project managers on a regular basis.  Learning effective oral and written communication skills will be crucial to succeed as a new manager.

Time Management

Another important skill for project, product, and engineering managers is effective time management.  Technical experts often feel as if they attend too many meeting, taking them away from their important design work.  Yet, the typical schedule of a manager has him/her running from meeting to meeting.  While this is not to say that there are too many meetings in the corporate world today, meeting are used as a primary communication tool in many organizations.

Thus, a manager will need to learn effective time management skills in order to better administer a much busier schedule.  Time blocking is one technique that allows a new manager quiet time to invest in continued learning and strategic thinking.  Note that effective time management also includes balancing personal and professional needs.  A new manager will need to spend time learning the new job, but s/he cannot neglect family, friends, or fitness.  Include time on your calendar for the gym, hobbies, and vacations to recharge your soul.

Becoming a Successful Manager

New project, product, and engineering managers are often identified and promoted based on demonstrated technical expertise.  Yet, many people find the transition from technical expert to supervising manager challenging.  Just as you needed to learn theories and practices in engineering or business school, new managers must also learn new skills.  Following the LPU Model will ease this transition.

Some of the important skills new managers must learn, practice, and use include delegation, communication, and time management.  New leaders should practice these skills in low-risk environments, such as training labs and workshops.  This allows a new manager to refine his/her new skills so that when a real-life situation arises, he/she has the confidence to deploy the right tools at the right time.

If you have questions about existing or upcoming certification or PDH courses with emphasis on project, product, or engineering management, please contact us at info@simple-pdh.com or by phone at 281-280-8717.

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

A division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Marketing and Quality

Welcome (Back) to Simple-PDH

Welcome back to Simple-PDH.  We are celebrating our one year anniversary and a recent upgrade to our web page.  It’s behind the scenes stuff, but you can now access course materials faster than ever.  Our mission is simple – we want to help you gain and maintain your professional credentials in product development, project management, quality and marketing.  Feel free to share your feedback at any time by contacting us by email.

Marketing and Quality

What do marketing and quality have in common?  Among many things – the customer!  Marketing focuses on identifying the customer needs while quality focuses on meeting those needs to the full and complete satisfaction of the customer.

Marketing View of Customers

Marketing often takes a very data-driven view of the customer.  Marketing research will include studies of customer behaviors and attitudes.  Often this information is used to improve product placement but it is also utilized to generate new ideas for product development.  In fact, new products and services cannot be successful without customer feedback.

Customer feedback comes to the marketing professional in a number of ways.  First, financial data provides insight into perceived value of products and services.  For example, market share informs a firm of the percent of sales it makes relative to its competitors.  New products strive to impact a market share metric to validate that features in the product design meet customer needs.

Other marketing research methods are used to understand customers’ evolving needs as well as trends in social, economic, and political environments.  Tendencies in fashion or technology drive product and service development so that customers will continue to seek out and purchase desired products.  Trend analysis often leads to new product designs and helps project teams understand important attributes for the new product.

Customers and Quality

Customers also serve as the number one focal points in any sustainable quality program.  Companies are generally in business to make money and those revenues are achieved via sales to customers.  Consumers will not accept a low quality product as a solution.  Thus, quality improvements must first identify drivers of customer satisfaction.

Interestingly, many quality tools mirror or overlap those in marketing research.  For example, focus groups and nsurveys are both used to gauge customer satisfaction.  Results of these studies influence marketing campaigns and improved production.  Focus groups utilize collaborative discussions among a group of potential or existing customers.  The in-depth conversation may reveal new customer needs (marketing) as well as reliability concerns (quality).

Moreover, sustainable quality program, such as total quality management (TQM) and Six Sigma, recognize the value of the internal customer.  An internal customer is another party within your firm that receives your work product.  A poorly prepared packing slip is transferred to the accounting department (internal customer) who prepares the invoice.  A wrong invoice eventually triggers a complaint from the ultimate customer (external).  Thus, quality involves a full focus on customers throughout design, production, supply chain, marketing, and sales.

Marketing and Quality for the Customer

Companies need to always focus on the customer first and foremost.  Firms that fail to do so will lose business and flounder against the competition.  Satisfied customers will return to make additional purchases and will share stories of a positive experience with their friends, families, and social networks.  Online social sharing is especially valuable today as many new customers check product and service reviews prior to making a purchase.

Marketing and quality management share many tools and methods to gather data, such as financial analysis and customer interactions in focus groups.  When these functions collectively support identifying customer needs and delivering solutions that satisfy the customer, a business can beat the competition soundly.  Yet, it is an ongoing battle as customer needs continue to evolve over time and as technology and fashion trends drive new needs.

Finally, marketing and quality share one more trait.  We are happy to announce that we will be offering new courses in both marketing research and quality management in 2017.  These workshops are designed for you to learn how to implement a customer-centric view into all of your organization’s activation from development to production to marketing and quality improvement.  We also dedicate several modules of our New Product Development Professional (NPDP) courses to marketing and quality.

If you have questions about existing or upcoming certification or PDH courses, please contact us at info@simple-pdh.com or by phone at 281-280-8717.

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

A division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Value of Certifications

In a recent Harvard Business Review blog post by Jeffrey Selingo (31 May 2016), it was noted that 20% of jobs value(excluding health care) require a license or certification beyond a bachelor’s degree.  So, while a degree will get someone’s resume past the first screening, a hiring company cannot validate an interviewee’s skills on that data alone.

Fortunately, professional certifications are less expensive and quicker to attain than college degrees!  Professional certification verifies a candidate’s skills via three components:  education, experience, and knowledge.

Education

While college degrees are becoming more common today than they were 50 years ago, the number of degree fields has expanded significantly, too.  Degrees include a lot of specialization to address the needs of employers to demonstrate working knowledge and skills.  Employers expect degree holders to need some training in the corporate culture and specific technologies but are often disappointed to have to provide basic skills training as well.

Professional certifications validate a basic education requirement for candidates so an employer doesn’t have to do so.  Engineering managers seek certification through the American Society of Engineering Management.  For example, Professional Engineering Managers (PEM) must have a bachelor’s degree within an engineering discipline.  Earning a degree in the field of engineering management reduces the work experience requirement.  Thus, education establishes a baseline of common skills for credentialing in a profession.

Experience

Especially important to employers is the experience requirement of a professional certificate.  Nothing demonstrates skills better than having practiced the tools of the trade in the past.  For instance, New Product Development Professional (NPDP) certification requires five (5) years of experience working in the field of innovation during the prior eight (8) years for a candidate with a Bachelor’s degree.  Project Management Professionals (PMP®) must submit evidence of 4,500 hours of directing and managing projects to demonstrate experience and commitment to the field of project management.

Work experience gives a professional a sense of what works practically and of gaps with ideal theory.  For example, when I worked in the petrochemical industry, early project gate reviews required substantial engineering design and detailed cost estimating.  Best practices, however, describe a rough order of magnitude (ROM) cost estimate for screening studies.  It had felt like overwork but without specific knowledge of project management best practices, my work experience could not be validated.  PMP certification helps to align corporate expectations with industry standards.

Knowledge

npdp_certification_logoFinally, professional certification programs require candidates to pass rigorous exams to demonstrate knowledge of best practices and methodologies.   Unlike college degrees and work experience, which may be somewhat narrow in scope, knowledge for professional certification is both broad and deep for the career field.

Consider PMP certification as an example.  Candidates must understand the broad skills of preparing a business case and initiating a project.  Yet, a candidate must also be able to calculate the lag time in a project schedule based on a specific network diagram.  Candidates must be able to generally describe team-building activities and be able to calculate the risk level of an event based upon its potential severity, impact, and probability of occurrence.

Likewise NPDP candidates must demonstrate the high-level skills in determining a strategic posture for product development, be able to select projects that complement existing product lines, and describe marketing tools for launching a new product or service.  Teams and organizational structures must be described alongside the detailed project evaluations in a staged and gated process.  NPDP candidates validate knowledge with a 200-question exam taken over a 4-hour period.

The tricky part of knowledge for professional certifications is that our work experiences are usually somewhat narrower than the general skills and methodologies that must be demonstrated to pass a credentialing exam.  Most candidates benefit from a certification exam preparation course to help fill in knowledge gaps.  For instance, many NPDP candidates are well-versed in new product development processes and market research, but lack real-world experience in strategic development and portfolio management.  Exam prep courses and workshops can help fill in these knowledge gaps.  Moreover, because certification exams are based on industry best practices, candidates for professional certification gain immediate skills to apply in their current work situation.

Job Skills and Professional Certification

Recall the statistics – 1 in 5 jobs require a professional certification to demonstrate education, experience, and knowledge in a given field.  While an employer will assume a set of basic skills from a college degree, a hiring manager has only limited interpretation of your abilities based on your resume.  A professional credential is a specific validation of skills and knowledge in an industry-defined set of methods and best practices.  Professional certification demonstrates that you are able to hit the ground running and to make an immediate, valuable contribution.

To learn more about professional certifications in PEM, PMP, NPDP, and Scrum Master, please contact me at info@simple-pdh.com.  Register now for a special 2-day workshop that will prepare you to become a New Product Development Professional, demonstrating mastery of innovation skills from strategic planning to product launch (earn 16 PDUs).

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

by Global NP Solutions, LLC

The Value of Learning

While most organizations agree that learning is important for employees, they also struggle to measure the learning-gradeffectiveness of learning programs.  Does a training class better prepare the worker to do his or her job?  Is productivity or quality enhanced when learning modules are completed?  Does the performance of the organization change as a result of training?

Intuitively, the answer is “yes,” yet senior management often requires hard numbers to justify continued or increased investment in learning programs.  One way to validate enhanced performance is to treat knowledge gain as a project.

Project Phases

Projects go through five phases in a traditional framework.  These are:

  • Initiation,
  • Planning,
  • Execution,
  • Monitoring and Controlling, and
  • Closing.

In the initiation phase, a business case is developed for a project and key stakeholders are identified.  For most projects, the planning phase is quite extensive and may last one-third to one-half of the total project lifetime.

Planning includes clearly and succinctly identifying the project scope of work, boundaries and constraints, schedules, costs, risks, and required resources.  Clarity of the quality of project elements is also designed during the planning phase as well as training of team members to accomplish the project work.

Implementation of project plans and execution of the project accounts for about another half of the total project life cycle.  Execution of every project is different, of course; however, many projects encounter unknown circumstances during implementation.  The project manager and key stakeholders must adopt flexible and creative solutions to problems faced during execution in order to deliver project results successfully.  This is a key feature of the risk management plan which is used to evaluate, analyze, and prioritize unexpected trouble spots in a project.

At the same time that a project is being implemented, the scope of work is evaluated for performance as compared to the plan (monitoring and controlling).  The project sponsor and key stakeholders will be monitoring the project status and progress while the project manager will control the performance of project activities.  For instance, if the schedule is falling behind the plan, a project manager can add staff or re-prioritize tasks to speed up the work.

Finally, a project retrospective is conducted during closing.  Here the project team addresses what went right, what went wrong, and what could be improved next time.

Learning as a Project

Treating learning activities as a project can formalize skill development and improve the measurement effectiveness of knowledge building.  Just as we put forth a business case to justify installation of new equipment, learning must have a clear purpose and expected benefits.  These benefits should be documented as part of the learning project’s initiation phase and should be measurable.

projectmanagement-puzzleAs with any project, planning for the learning activity should be detailed and encompass scope, schedule, cost, quality, and risk.  Plans should be specific and include boundaries and constraints for the learning activity.  For example, mid-level managers will attend a communications training course in person but factory employees may receive the same training form a computer-based module.  Certifications in specialized fields should be considered as part of training and learning plans since they are unbiased and measurable demonstrations of successful knowledge and skill building.

Unlike installing a new piece of equipment, execution of learning projects is highly flexible and adaptable.  Changes to curricula can be implemented on the fly while feedback (monitoring and controlling) is often immediate.  Learning activities can be easily analyzed and evaluated during the project implementation to ensure the goals and objectives are met.

Finally, closing of the learning project must be more substantial than in a typical project.  Beyond asking what went right, what went wrong, and what can be improved next time, a learning project must include follow-ups in the field to verify the objectives of the learning event were accomplished (e.g. improved behaviors and performance).  The project manager should assess skills after the training and compare them to an assessment taken before the training.  Moreover, the specific goals dictated in the business case of the learning project should be clearly measurable in performance improvements.

Again, certification are an essential tool for measuring specific learning.  Certifications require objective testing and are validated by experts in the field.  For example, Project Management Professional (PMP®) certification is a rigorous validation of project management skills including education, experience, and knowledge.  The certification exam verifies that candidates demonstrate understanding and practice in the ten knowledge areas and receive a passing score on a very challenging and comprehensive exam designed by experts in the field of project management.  To learn more about PMP certification, please join a free class by emailing “PMP” to info@simple-pdh.com.

The Value of Learning

Senior management will validate the financial return on learning and training as with any other business activity.  Treating learning as a project with clear business objectives, detailed plans, flexible implementation, performance monitoring, and validation at close-out can increase the confidence of senior management to support training activities.  Often, certifications and continuing education to sustain trade certification provides meaningful, industry-wide measurements of the value of learning.

All of the courses at www.Simple-PDH.com offer objective tests and certificates of completion to validate and measure the value of learning.  Check out our newest course, Cost Estimating, for example delivered to any device, any time.  We also offer group discounts for PMP Boot Camps and New Product Development Professional (NPDP) Certification (next class is 12 & 13 October).  We want to make it simple for you to study, learn, and earn!

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

by Global NP Solutions, LLC

When is the Right Time for Learning?

catLearning a new skill or creating a new product from a nascent idea seem like complicated efforts. There have to be a lot of roles and responsibilities identified, we have to spend significant time with books and teachers, and the market must be just right. True, isn’t it? Well, maybe not.

Creating new products and learning new skills share some fundamental basic concepts. Fortunately, these concepts are pretty simple and don’t require lots of time and resources.

Curiosity

First, projects and learning share a foundation of curiosity. We have to be curious to learn how customers are using existing products, what problems they currently face, and which trends influence their decisions. Likewise, we must have a sense of curiosity to understand how we can improve our own skills, productivity, and efficiency. Learning starts with curiosity and wondering how to do a task better.

They say “curiosity killed the cat,” yet if you’ve ever watched a favorite pet approach something new, you understand curiosity for learning. Years ago, my kitten was curious about a big, stuffed bear I had set out as a Christmas decoration. He studied the bear from a distance. He didn’t get too close to the bear because he was unsure if the stuffed animal was friend or foe. Eventually, he lowered his body to look as small as possible and again studied the fuzzy, stuffed bear. Suddenly, he dashed out from behind a chair, whacked the bear solidly with his right paw, and ran back to safety behind the chair.

Of course, curiosity didn’t kill my cat and he finally made peace with the stuffed Christmas bear. He had to study and experiment to learn the bear was non-threatening. He also had to act on curiosity in the first place.

Timing

In both new product development and learning, timing is everything. New products can become superstars in a market if the timing is perfect or launch as an over-priced dud if the timing is wrong. Consider the recent rage for Pokemon Go, a huge hit because the timing was right. Yet, interest in golf as a sport today is waning. Society and trends favor some product trends while leaving others to wither.

Similarly, learning new skills must occur when we need the new skill. Our need for developing a skill may be driven by our curiosity of how something works or how to improve a product or service. When we show the curiosity to improve our productivity or efficiency, we need to have learning tools available at the right time.

We may learn from a trusted leader or mentor showing us how to conduct a new activity or task. We may also need to pursue learning a new skill through other means if we don’t have access to a skilled expert. Or, we may learn (like my kitten did) through study and experimentation.

Today, online learning is a convenient and affordable way to satisfy our curiosity about a subject. Online courses deliver quick instruction, including the fundamentals, to help someone get up to speed at the right time. We are also blessed with learning through a variety of devices and methods so we can not only learn a new skill at the right time but also at the right place.

Experimentation

The last element of commonality between a new product launch and learning a new skill is experimentation. experimentRemember my cat? He tested to see if the bear was friend or foe by whacking it with his paw. When the bear did not cry out, respond in kind, or even move, my cat conducted further experiments. He again ran to the bear and whacked it. After a few trials, he realized he didn’t need to retreat behind the chair. He stood a few feet away and observed the bear. After a few more (hilarious) whacks with his paw, my cat laid down a few feet in front of the now innocuous bear and took a nap. Though, he still did not trust his safety completely, he napped with one eye open, affixed to the stuffed Christmas bear in case of a future threat.

Cats might make laughable subjects of viral YouTube videos, but we can understand experimentation as a learning tool. Certainly, in new product development, we must experiment and test features and functions within a variety of potential customers. Trial of a minimally viable product can validate customer need and inform the new product development team of required design enhancements.

Learning, too, is informed by experimentation. We might try a specific task with our existing skill sets. If it doesn’t work, we will adjust and adapt our approach. Exercises, case studies, and formal tests all validate learning of a specific topic. Professional certifications, like New Product Development Professional (NPDP) and Project Management Professional (PMP®), allow for experimentation by applying industry-wide theory and best practices to your specific situation.

Learning at the Right Time

Learning, like the commercialization of a new product, requires the proper timing. Timing of the learning event is preceded by curiosity to improve and to gain knowledge. Learning tools deliver the skills at the right time so that the new information can be applied on-the-job to enhance productivity and efficiency. And, learning requires experimentation to address specific problems with the tools and techniques assembled from practice and education.

If you’d like to learn more about new product development or NPDP Certification, please take a free class or join us for an in-depth, 2-day best practices workshop. We also offer on-demand learning that is quick, convenient, and affordable and is especially geared toward busy professionals that need to earn professional development hours (PDHs) to maintain their existing certifications. It’s simple to study, learn, and earn!

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

by Global NP Solutions, LLC

Leadership in Learning

learningI am huge believer in the strength of lifelong learning.  Learning allows us to connect with the new ideas born into the world on a daily basis and learning allows us to stretch our imaginations beyond any known boundary.  Without lifelong learning, our brains and bodies stagnate.  We will rot away in the muck of sameness and predictability.

Organizations need learning as much as do individuals.  There are new theories to test that may (or may not) improve productivity and efficiency.  Learning new ways to execute projects can save resources and motivate the workforce, for example.  Like individual learning, organizational learning must be a continuous passion.  However, organizational learning must be exemplified by leaders.

Leadership

Leaders are very different than managers.  Most of us are familiar with the old adage that “managers manage things and leaders lead people.”  Yes, that’s true.  Yet leadership is more than directing the people on a team.  Leadership involves inspiring others to achieve greatness.  It involves helping your team members to stretch beyond their capabilities to create bigger and better solutions to age-old problems.  Leadership demonstrates a vision and the pathway to reach faraway goals.

Leaders don’t just dream about a different future.  They also put in place mechanisms and tools to build that exact future.  A leader doesn’t have the technical solutions in his or her back pocket but he or she can encourage and motivate the team to find designs and to develop solutions that create a better world for all of us.  Leaders inspire, motivate, and encourage even when the chips are down.

Leading by Example

Leaders are just managers if they don’t have natural followers.  Often, leaders can be compared to managers by their actions.  A manager dictates work by command and control.  She will tell her team members what to do and check to see if it gets done.

Leaders, on the other hand, will stand beside the team member to learn the task and to identify a solution.  He is not afraid to get his hands dirty seeking a better way.  Leading by example is a fundamental characteristic of successful and inspiring leaders.

Leading by example includes lifelong learning.  Leaders that read and share new information, concepts, and theories demonstrate that learning is important.  Team members will follow that example and also read to share new information, concepts, and theories that they encounter.  Shared experiences are a key to successful team growth as the team members collectively find new solutions to project problems or technical challenges.

Learning Together

Leaders also demonstrate a commitment to lifelong learning through continued professional development.  InLeadership today’s busy world, many careers demand that workers hit the ground running when they are hired for a new job.  Professional certifications like Project Management Professional (PMP®), New Product Development Professional (NPDP), Scrum Master (SCM™), and Professional Engineering Manager (PEM) also demonstrate a commitment to lifelong learning.  Professional certification demonstrates education, experience, and subject matter knowledge exemplifying technical and market leadership.  Many jobs today require applicants to hold such professional credentials to validate their skills and capabilities as well as to demonstrate the candidate’s leadership competencies.

Teams can learn together to expand their skills in these fields.  PMP exam prep training and Scrum Master training are great classes for teams to take together to learn a common vocabulary and approach to problem-solving.  Simple-PDH.com offers a company discount for PMP Boot Camps, next scheduled for 26-30 September 2016 in Houston, Texas.  You’ll earn 35 professional development hours (PDH) in this course as well as be prepared to pass the PMP exam on the first try!

NPDP training is also well suited for innovation teams.  The course presents a common framework and best practices for teams engaged in radical innovation and applied R&D.  Our next NPDP face-to-face class is scheduled for 12 & 13 October 2016 in Houston, Texas.  You’ll earn 16 PDHs during this intense learning workshop.

Leadership in Learning

Leaders exemplify the behaviors they want their teams to demonstrate.  Lifelong learning is foundational to long-term organizational success.  Great leaders not only encourage and share learning with their teams, they also practice lifelong learning through professional development.  For more information on gaining and maintaining professional certifications, please contact us at info@simple-pdh.com or by phone at +1-281-280-8717.

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

Simple-PDH.com

by Global NP Solutions, LLC

Maintaining Certification

Professional certifications like NPDP (New Product Development Professional), PMP® (Project Management Professional), and PEM (Professional Engineering Manager), demonstrate experience, knowledge, and specific skills. The most rigorous certifications require continued learning to validate knowledge of best practices and emerging industry trends. Many accrediting bodies require a number of professional development hours (PDH) each period and may require particular categories of learning.

PDH Requirements

NPDP

npdp_certification_logoNew Product Development Professionals (NPDP) demonstrate mastery of skills in the field of innovation. As of first quarter 2016, the NPDP exam covers six key topic areas: strategy, portfolio management, NPD (new product development) processes, market research, teams and organizational structure, and innovation tools and metrics. You can learn more about the initial NPDP certification at www.globalnpsolutions.com/workshops/.

PDMA (Product Development and Management Association), the certifying body for NPDP, requires 60 PDH every three (3) years. For many of us, as busy product development professionals, this is challenging. Conferences are expensive and take us away from important day-to-day work. Email and meetings continue even when we are away from the office.

Simple-PDH offers an easy way to maintain your NPDP certification through online courses. Online PDH courses include appropriate documentation such as course reading notes, white papers, and tip sheets. Course materials are available with video and audio to make learning easy. Each course comes with a practice test and a final exam. Upon achieving a passing score on the final exam (typically 70%), you can download your completion certificate, clearly indicating the number of earned PDHs.

PMP

pmp_logoProject Management Professionals (PMP) demonstrate mastery of knowledge, skills, and practices in the field of project management. Currently, the fifth edition of the PMBOK® Guide (Project Management Body of Knowledge) covers five process groups and ten knowledge areas. Core knowledge areas include:

  • Scope,
  • Time,
  • Cost, and
  • Quality.

Supporting knowledge areas include:

  • Human Resources management,
  • Communication,
  • Risk management,
  • Procurement, and
  • Stakeholder management.

In addition, the knowledge area of project integration management pulls together project management plans and activities from all of the core and supporting functional areas.  Learn more about initial PMI certification at http://www.globalnpsolutions.com/workshops/pmp-certification-training/.

As the certifying body for PMPs, the PMI (Project Management Institute) requires 60 continued professional development hours (PDH) every three (3) years. Of these, at least eight (8) hours must be dedicated to each of the Talent Triangle™ arenas:

  • Business and Strategic Management,
  • Technical Project Management, and
  • Leadership.

At Simple-PDH, courses are clearly identified by the Talent Triangle for easy tracking of your continued education. Course completion certificates also plainly state the number of hours in each subject matter area. (Note that some course will have overlapping content and earned PDHs can count toward multiple categories on the Talent Triangle.)

PEM

asem-logoProfessional Engineering Managers (PEM) demonstrate experience and knowledge covering an Introduction to Engineering Management and ten (10) additional domains. Core domain knowledge includes:

  • Leadership and Organizational Management,
  • Strategic Planning,
  • Financial Resource Management, and
  • Project Management.

Supporting domains include:

  • Operations and Supply Chain Management;
  • Marketing and Sales Management for Engineering Organizations;
  • Management of Technology, Research, and Development;
  • Systems Engineering, and
  • Legal Issues in Engineering Management.

Underpinning all of the subject matter domains is the Professional Codes of Conduct and Ethics domain.

PEMS are required by ASEM (American Society of Engineering Managers) to maintain 45 PDHs over each three (3) year period. Simple-PDH offers course materials online to further your knowledge of engineering management and to help you become a better leader in your organization.

Upon completion of any course on the PEM PDH program, you can download and print your certificate, providing documentation for the PEM tracking form. Most courses are designed for a 1-hour continuing education credit (CEU); however many courses offer two or more PDHs.

Maintaining Your Credentials

It’s not easy to study for and pass a professional certification exam. Maintaining the pride in your accomplishment in your industrial field of study is demonstrated through continuing education. At Simple-PDH, we make it easy and affordable for you to earn your PDHs. Study course materials. Learn the newest best practices in management. Earn your professional development hours (PDH) and continuing education units (CEU). It’s all online, at your own pace. It’s simple.

For more information, please contact us at info@simple-pdh.com or by phone at 281-280-8717.

 

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

© Simple-PDH.com

A division of Global NP Solutions, LLC