Episodes

  • Discussions on Product Development Agility with Konstantin Dolgan
    Dec 12 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome Konstantin Dolgan, Founder and CEO of LA New Product Development Team.
    Tune in to this episode for these key insights from Konstantin Dolgan:

    * Product development agility

    * How to figure out the best marketplace for your target market 

    * How to commercialize a new product 

    * How to keep a product relevant in the marketplace during the declining stage 

    * Thoughts about AI in the product development world

    Learn more about Konstantin Dolgan: 

    *  Follow Konstantin on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dolgank/ 

    * Connect with Konstantin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dolgan/ 

    * Check out LA New Product Development Team website: https://lanpdt.com/ 

    * Learn more about Konstantin on Wikipedia:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konstantin_Dolgan 

    * Follow LA New Product Development Team on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LANPDT
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    About the We Solve Problems Podcast:Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.

    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/

    Connect with James D. Bennett, II

    * Website: http://inovativsolutions.org

    * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-bennett-ii-p-e-21b76790/

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    44 mins
  • Developing Prototypes for Inventions with Onega Ulanova
    Oct 10 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome Onega Ulanova, Co-Founder and Partner at LA New Product Development Company (LA NPDT). LA New Product Development Team is a cross-functional organization of talented engineers, designers, and entrepreneurs. LA NPDT  specializes in turning novel ideas into market-ready products, aiding businesses across various industries. Their services span the entire product development lifecycle, including ideation, prototyping, manufacturing, and marketing. 


    Highlights from James and Onega’s conversation:

     * What a prototype is and when you’ll need it

     * The different types of prototypes that exist

     * How many prototypes does an inventor need to create?

     * The cost range of developing a prototype (Use LA NPDT’s prototype calculator for an estimate of how much your prototype will cost: https://lanpdt.com/prototype-cost-calculator/)

     * How to choose a prototype/product development partner

     * Winning features and characteristics of an effective prototype

     * AI’s role in prototype development


    Learn more about Onega Ulanova:

     * Connect with Onega on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/onega-ulanova/

     * Follow LA New Product Development Team on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/la-new-product-development-team/

     * Watch videos and subscribe to LA New Product Development Team‘s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/LANewProductDevelopmentTeam

     * Visit LA New Product Development Company’s website: https://lanpdt.com/

     * Follow LA New Product Development Company’s on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lanpdt

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    About the We Solve Problems Podcast:

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.

    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/


    Connect with James D. Bennett, II

    Website: http://inovativsolutions.org

    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-bennett-ii-p-e-21b76790/

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    39 mins
  • Security Automation with Sam Boles
    Sep 19 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome guest Sam Boles, CEO of Automated Security.
    Tune in to this episode as Sam Boles talks about:
     * What is security automation?
     * Why people need security and what types we need
     * The pros and cons of Open AI and why Sam sees it as the biggest challenge facing the security industry today
     * The evolving terror of getting hacked
     * Why the need for skilled human workers will remain and grow in the automated security industry despite the increasing use of AI
    Learn more about and connect with Sam Boles:
     * Connect with Sam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-boles-90018726
     * Follow Automated Security on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/automatedsecurityis/
     * Visit the Automated Security website: https://www.automatedsecurityis.com/
     * Follow Automated Security on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/automatedsecurityhtx/
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    About the We Solve Problems Podcast:
    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.
    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325
    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/
    Connect with James D. Bennett, II
    Website: http://inovativsolutions.org
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-bennett-ii-p-e-21b76790/

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    22 mins
  • The Patent Filing Process in India Dr. Prachi Chopra
    Aug 26 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome Dr. Prachi Chopra, Founder and Director of Intellect Bastion LLP. Dr. Chopra is a Registered Patent Agent in India and Technology/Patent Specialist worldwide. She is also President of the Delhi Innovation Council, Professor at Bada Business Pvt. Ltd., and Advisor at Vidhya Sangha Technologies Pvt Ltd.


    Intellect Bastion is a premier Intellectual Property Research, Analytics, and Consultation firm based in Delhi, India. They specialize in various areas, including Patent Filing and Registration, Industrial Design Filing and Registration, Copyright Filing and Registration, and Trademark Filing and Registration.


    Tune in to this episode as Dr. Prachi Chopra talks about:

     * The patent registration process in India — who can apply and how does it differ from other countries

     * The eligibility requirements for filing patents in India

     * How long it may take to get a patent in India and how to expedite the process

     * How India protects design patents

     * How (and if) AI-generated inventions (without human intervention) should be patented


    Learn more about Dr. Prachi Chopra:

     * Connect with Dr. Chopra on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drprachichopra/

     * Follow Intellect Bastion on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/68705413/admin/

     * Watch videos at and subscribe to Dr. Chopra’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwNHQUYmEJ9_wZ0SiPiihbg

     * Visit Dr. Chopra’s business website: https://www.intellectbastion.com/

     * Follow Intellect Bastion on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drprachichopra

     * Follow Intellect Bastion on Twitter: https://twitter.com/IP_Bastion

     * Follow Intellect Bastion on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intellectbastion/

     * Schedule a complimentary 30-minute introductory meeting with Dr. Chopra: https://calendly.com/prachi-chopra/30min?month=2023-08

     * Email Dr. Chopra: prachi.chopra@intellectbastion.com


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    About the We Solve Problems Podcast:

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.


    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/


    Connect with James D. Bennett, II

    Website: http://inovativsolutions.org

    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-bennett-ii-p-e-21b76790/

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    40 mins
  • Leadership and Sales Management with Brett Knopf
    Aug 17 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome guest Brett Knopf, Performance Coach and Business Strategist and Founder of KnopfKnows Solutions, LLC.
    Tune in to this episode as Brett talks about:
    *  The difference between sales leadership and sales management
     * The essential personal development needed to be an effective sales professional
     * Advice on how to build a successful team when starting a business
     * Common problems start-ups face and how to solve them through leadership and sales management
     * What Brett sees to be encouraging and discouraging on the landscape of current business leadership
    Brett Knopf is a Performance Coach and Business Strategist with over two decades of experience in Leadership and Sales Management across multiple verticals. He has delivered nearly 1000 presentations over the course of his career for highly successful organizations such as United Healthcare, Equinox, and Hitachi, to name a few. Brett's mission is to empower leaders and teams to create work environments that focus on collaboration, transparency, self-accountability and personal development in order to recruit, retain and develop elite performers at all levels of the organizations he works with. He recently published his first book, Everyday People Extraordinary Sales Success: Sales Secrets From Those Who Won Financial Freedom and Their Life Back which hit #1 Bestseller in multiple categories on Amazon.
    Learn more about Brett Knopf:
     * Visit his business website: https://knopfknowssolutions.com
     * Connect with Brett on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brettknopf/
     * Follow Brett on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/knopfknows/
     * Familiar with Brett's business? Write a review on Google: https://www.google.com/search?q=KnopfKnows+Solutions%2C+LLC&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS910US910&oq=KnopfKnows+Solutions%2C+LLC&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIICAEQABgWGB7SAQc1NzVqMGo0qAIAsAIA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#lrd=0x463842d05eb3af:0xd089c00588e94481,3,,,,
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    About the We Solve Problems Podcast:
    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.
    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325
    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/
    Connect with James D. Bennett, II
    Website: http://inovativsolutions.org
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-bennett-ii-p-e-21b76790/

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    35 mins
  • The Art of Business Development and Commercialization of New Technologies with Greg Jones
    Aug 4 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome guest Greg Jones, Corporate Finance Strategist, Former Head of Internal Corp Ventures and Business Development, Major Industrial and Airline Engine Mfg. Greg is the P & L Owner/General Manager and President of the New Ventures Group, establishing and commercializing and licensing new technologies into new and complementary businesses.


    Tune in to this episode as Greg talks about: 

    *  Increasing investment in technology entrepreneurship, and challenges in commercialization

    *  How competition fosters innovation, uniqueness, and customer appeal

    *  Corporate investors providing research and sales channels

    *  Trade secrets vs. patents, and how they provide different levels of protection

    *  The importance of commercialization and refinement of value proposition


    Greg Jones is a Corporate Board Trustee for Eversource Energy (NYSE: ES), Member of the Audit Committee and the Finance Committee of the Board of Directors. He is a finance and corporate strategy executive, with over 25 years of assisting public and privately held manufacturing, utilities and healthcare companies grow their businesses through organic, joint ventures and mergers and acquisition activities including capital raising and effective deployment.

    Greg is an expert in finance, consulting and strategy deployment, and capital raising for Fortune 500 service and manufacturing companies including Lehman Brothers, JP Morgan, United Technologies, and Tyco. As an investment banker and corporate finance executive, he has completed financings, raised and underwritten debt capital, and executed M & A transactions in excess of $2 Billion.

    Greg is the Vice President, Strategy and Planning for community health and engagement for Hartford Healthcare, a $4 Billion integrated healthcare system in Connecticut. He is responsible for developing programs and investments addressing the social determinants of health for the system that provides a closer alignment to the markets served. As the Executive Lead for the System's Hartford Region's Equity Solutions Group, Greg is focused on identifying issues related to patient and staff challenges around diversity, equity and inclusion and developing and implementing solutions for the same. He is Co-Chair of Hartford Healthcare's Supplier Diversity Council focused on improving vendor relationships with Black, Indigenous and People of Color Businesses while providing mutual benefit to the System. 

    Greg is the P & L Owner/General Manager and President of the New Ventures Group, establishing and commercializing and licensing new technologies into new and complementary businesses. He is responsible for development of new business lines and introducing the company brand to new markets. Greg authored Pratt & Whitney’s Effective Acquisition Integration Manual.


    Learn more about Greg Jones: 

    Visit his business website: https://legacyfoundationhartford.org/Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregmjones-ct/ 


    About the We Solve Problems Podcast 

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.


    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325 

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/ 


    Connect with James D. Bennett, II

    Website: http://inovativsolutions.org 

    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-bennett-ii-p-e-21b76790/

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    29 mins
  • How Disruptive Innovation Can Solve Big Problems and Create Real Change with Christy Garcia
    Jul 28 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome guest Christy Garcia,  Director of Entrepreneur Innovation Center and Adjunct Professor at Framingham State University. 


    Tune in to this episode as Christy talks about: 

    • The difference between disruptive innovation and disruptive technology

    • The three types of innovation: disruptive, sustaining, efficiency.

    • Identifying unsolved problems and non-consumers as opportunities for disruption

    • Traditional markets like mining being disrupted when new solutions come along

    • Disruption as relative; incumbents like Uber and Amazon are already established

    • Why emerging markets like Brazil are ripe for disruption


    Christy Garcia is a business executive with more than 20 years of experience, including 15 years dedicated to Innovation Management. She is the Director of the Entrepreneur Innovation Center at the Framingham State University, where she oversees the development of many entrepreneurship programs for Metro West Boston local entrepreneurs and students. Previously, she was the founder of the Catalyze Innovations Initiative, where she spearheaded the launch of several Innovation Bootcamp programs, including a BIPOC entrepreneurship program, training and mentoring more than 100 entrepreneurs in applying disruptive innovation to achieve business prosperity, social-economic growth and inclusion.

    Garcia is also the founder of ABGI Brasil, one of South America's most recognized innovation consulting firms. From 2007 to 2018, she supported the growth and expansion of more than 200 companies in Brazil and around the world, providing services such as innovation and ESG projects fundraising, legal structuring, business set-up, project management, and innovation labs structuring, officials said.

    She earned her MBA from Fundacao Getulio Vargas in Brazil and has a graduate certificate from Babson College. In 2020 she attended a Fellowship Program at the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation.


    Learn more about Christy Garcia: 

    Visit her business website: https://www.abgi-group.com/

    Connect with Christy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christimaragarcia/

    Framingham State University Entrepreneur Innovation Center LinkedIn Company Page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/innovate-fsu


    About the We Solve Problems Podcast 

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.


    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325 


    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/

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    31 mins
  • Leverage Opportunities and Navigate the Changing Economic Landscape with Karl Maier
    Jul 20 2023

    In this episode of We Solve Problems with James D. Bennett, II, we welcome guest Karl Maier. Karl Maier is the author of Surfing Economic Chaos. He speaks to companies and groups about seizing opportunities offered by the economic chaos in the economy.

    He has over 25 years of experience starting, managing, and advising lower middle-market companies.  

    Karl facilitates CEO peer advisory roundtable groups.

    Tune in to this episode as Karl talks about: 

    • Leveraging strategic planning for business growth

    • Labor market challenges with aging and shrinking populations, and the effect on management 

    • Changing capital environments and supply chain disruptions that impact pricing and sourcing

    • The impact of AI on professional services, administration, and manufacturing.

    • Aging populations and changing trade patterns disrupting the global economy.

    • Consultants or peers providing insight for adapting to changes

    Karl Maier founded Abunden to help business owners expand their opportunities, expand their capacity, and expand their profits.

    In his various roles over the past three decades, he has been part of the leadership team in five established companies that have at least doubled sales in two years. Karl has worked in a wide range of roles including systems and processes, sales and business development, finance and accounting, as well as mergers and acquisitions.

    Leveraging his experiences, Karl's book, Surfing Economic Chaos, guides companies to find new opportunities and capitalize on these opportunities.

    Learn more about Karl Maier:  

    Visit his business website: https://www.abunden.com/Connect with Karl on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karlkmaierFollow Karl on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@abunden6068Follow Karl on Twitter: https://twitter.com/kkmaier 

    Buy the book “Surfing Economic Chaos: How American Businesses Can Prosper Despite Globalization's Collapse”:  https://www.amazon.com/Surfing-Economic-Chaos-Businesses-Globalizations/dp/1948382555/ 


    About the We Solve Problems Podcast 

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems podcast for educational insights that motivate manufacturers to innovate. Learn about financial incentives to mitigate the risk to better their products.


    Subscribe to We Solve Problems on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-solve-problems/id1694157325 

    Subscribe to the We Solve Problems Video Series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wesolveproblems/ 


    Connect with James D. Bennett, II

    Website: http://inovativsolutions.org 
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-bennett-ii-p-e-21b76790/

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    23 mins