Publication
Mitigate Risk With This Simple Product Innovation Strategy
https://www.toptal.com/product-managers/product-management/product-innovation-strategy
Raj is available for hire
Hire RajRaj Manghani
Verified Expert in Product Management
Product Manager
Location
Walnut Creek, CA, United States
Toptal Member Since
August 31, 2022
Raj is a product technology executive with a track record of building and launching financial technology products that address customer pain points and translate solutions into sizable businesses. Raj's areas of expertise include de-risking product innovation and driving go-to-market strategy; engineering turnarounds and M&A; building and leading cross-functional teams in complex global settings; and breadth and depth of understanding of use cases for capital markets and investment management.
Project Highlights
Marketing and Branding Strategy for Investment Software Firm
Created a new branding strategy for an established investment software firm.
College Planning Product
Acted as the product owner for an MVP for a college planning tool. Managed a development team of four and delivered an MVP in 10 weeks exceeding expectations.
Expertise
Work Experience
Managing Partner | Product Management Consultant
2022 - PRESENT
TopSeeds LLC
- Served as a product owner to build an MVP for a SaaS-based college planning tool released in record time.
- Developed a new process and protocol to manage cybersecurity, leading to a vital certification to clinch a large deal.
- Helped investors successfully conduct due diligence on emerging technologies in the fintech space by providing insights into use cases, competitive landscape, revenue models, customer decision-making, and growth drivers.
Global Head of Product Management, Trading, and Risk Technology
2018 - 2021
Calypso Technology (now part of NASDAQ)
- Achieved a 40% increase in user adoption for a financial software product line by offering an iterative approach to understanding customer problems. Designed new product ideas by testing the ideas in the market and creating a product roadmap.
- Released a new product offering based on supervised machine learning technology that further strengthened the company's core by conceptualizing the idea, validating product-market fit, and launching the product in the market.
- Created, communicated, and executed the company's 1st integrated technology and product roadmap, which enabled double-digit revenue growth between 2019 and 2021.
- Led a team of senior product managers across global regions, using a mentorship approach to improve engagement scores substantially.
Managing Director
2009 - 2017
MSCI
- Led a market expansion strategy for a mature product line that led to 50% growth in annual recurring sales by aligning technical solutions to client needs.
- Launched a new product that achieved $50 million in annual recurring revenues within three years by designing, developing, and establishing the product to address under-served customer needs for workflow automation and data processing.
- Transitioned the firm's largest customers from enterprise software to a SaaS platform by working and iterating with engineers, designers, and professional services on feature development and go-to-market activities.
- Established new distribution channels and created a GTM plan for a heterogeneous market.
Vice President, Product Management
2008 - 2009
Moody's Analytics (RMS)
- Came into the organization when the company was restructuring its product management and product marketing groups. I took the lead in forming and developing a new team focused on a high-potential vertical customer segment.
- Provided leadership in forming this new team, critical in creating momentum, not just in driving new sales for the customer segment, but also in increasing the morale of his team members while they were going through this transition.
- Created and implemented a strategy to identify unaddressed market segments, repositioned products, and developed innovative channel strategies to reach those clients.
- Recognized for creating a vision for the new team that motivated team members, senior colleagues, and customers.
Director of Product Management | Investment Risk Software
2001 - 2008
MSCI
- Defined and executed a product roadmap to transition a large-scale enterprise software risk product used by large institutional investors from an on-premises platform to a native cloud-based platform.
- Led a cross-functional team of the company's senior-most researchers and engineers to accelerate feature development for the risk software product line.
- Defined key performance indicators and supported a successful due diligence process for acquiring a key competitor.
Project History
Marketing and Branding Strategy for Investment Software Firm
Created a new branding strategy for an established investment software firm.
An investment software firm founded in 1995 needed a new marketing strategy to differentiate itself from the competition and revitalize its brand in the marketplace. I led the branding effort, which included customer segmentation, and conducted customer interviews to identify a differentiated value proposition. I crafted product positioning and designed a new website for the firm, incorporating the new branding into the overall product and business strategy.
College Planning Product
Acted as the product owner for an MVP for a college planning tool. Managed a development team of four and delivered an MVP in 10 weeks exceeding expectations.
An edtech startup wanted to leverage technology and proven financial planning techniques to make the pursuit of higher education as affordable as possible by significantly reducing, if not eliminating, debt that students need to service upon graduation without compromising on their career and personal aspirations upon graduation.
The startup is building an application that helps students and families. It provides an open and ethical college search process focused on creating, prioritizing, and methodically analyzing a list of target schools aligned with a family's ability and willingness to pay, accounting for admissibility, affinity, and other non-financial metrics.
(Project URL available upon request).
The startup is building an application that helps students and families. It provides an open and ethical college search process focused on creating, prioritizing, and methodically analyzing a list of target schools aligned with a family's ability and willingness to pay, accounting for admissibility, affinity, and other non-financial metrics.
(Project URL available upon request).
Product Consultant for a Fitness Startup
Served as the lead product management consultant for a fitness and wellness startup, providing guidance on GTM strategy, product buildout, and hiring the development team
Advised the founder on best practices related to hiring an engineering/design team, conducting a recruiting process, and defining product strategy. Conducted candidate interviews, provided recommendations for hiring specific candidates, and defined a framework for developing a GTM strategy.
Other Experience
Education
1999 - 2001
Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Strategy and Finance
Walter A. Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley - Berkeley, CA
1988 - 1992
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science
Southern Methodist University - Dallas, Texas
Certifications
JANUARY 2022 - PRESENT
Applied Data Scientist
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
JULY 2021 - PRESENT
Certified Innovation Strategist
Section 4
JANUARY 2018 - PRESENT
Accredited Investment Fiduciary
Broadridge
SEPTEMBER 2007 - PRESENT
Financial Risk Manager
Global Association of Risk Professionals
SEPTEMBER 2004 - PRESENT
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
CFA Institute
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