Rick Leach
Verified Expert in Product Management
Product Manager
Redwood City, CA, United States
Toptal member since January 5, 2022
Rick has a diverse functional background with startups, turnarounds, and Fortune 100 companies. He has a track record of successful product launches, transformations, and enhancements in healthcare, consumer, and retail environments. Rick's deep experience in all aspects of business operations influences his product management approach and philosophy.
Project Highlights
Expertise
- Early-stage Startups
- Lean Startups
- Pricing
- Product Management
- Product Planning
- Product Roadmaps
- Profit & Loss (P&L)
- Turnaround Management
Work Experience
Digital Product Consultant
Toptal Clients
- Led the development of a new healthcare mobile app for an early-stage company. Developed the product roadmap, product requirements, user stories, and use cases. Led the UX and engineering teams to build the beta product in less than six months.
- Led a target operating model project for a global commercial real estate technology company. Conducted the team in evaluating the as-is operating model and developing the target operating model.
- Provided digital product consultancy for a new email service provider system. Developed the wireframe and concept for the "light" ESP service.
- Consulted on the product strategy for an eCommerce boutique shopping website. Conducted competitive reviews, developed pricing models, and created a mockup of the website.
President
Expresso Consulting
- Developed online ordering for a wine retailer that had to pivot to eCommerce during the early COVID-19 period. Worked with their POS system to configure the online ordering portal system to be user-friendly for search, cart management, and checkout.
- Used WordPress and WooCommerce to add an online ordering system for a local restaurant that enabled them to manage takeout orders when they had to shut down in-house dining due to COVID-19.
- Completed a website conversion for a local nonprofit whose previous website designer could no longer work on the projects. Developed content, improved site speed using different plugins, and improved the UX using industry best practices.
- Assessed technology options for a subscription box startup. Researched leading shopping platforms and eCommerce technologies. Recommended and built the proof-of-concept on WordPress using WooCommerce to deliver cost-effective solutions.
- Concepted and developed a prototype for a niche sport-specific dating app. Built site on WordPress with a customized plugin.
Chair of the Board | Volunteer
The Nashville Food Project
- Volunteered at this Nashville-based nonprofit to help provide healthy meals to those in the area who are food insecure. Joined the board and served as finance chair and board chair.
- Developed a strategic framework to be used to evaluate new program requests.
- Conducted an operational assessment of the organization's meal preparation services.
- Guided the board and organization by installing a new CEO who replaced the founder after the founder's death.
Founder and President
Music City Pickleball, LLC
- Established a nonprofit pickleball club and grew it to 325 members.
- Established pricing for memberships and add-on services.
- Designed and developed a website and Facebook group.
- Managed the court reserve member management system.
SVP Product
Healthcare Bluebook
- Developed product lifecycle process from scratch for this startup tech company. Worked with internal development leaders and data scientists. This included implementing an agile development process.
- Led the development of a new add-on product that needed to be layered onto the core product, including hands-on UX work with designers using user feedback and industry best practices.
- Acted as a product lead, implementing two of the company's largest clients who had highly customized needs for the product. Worked with the development team to reconfigure parts of the product to address their unique business issues.
- Established and managed an internal quality assurance group. Moved from manual testing to automated testing scripts and full regression testing.
SVP Solutions Marketing
Streamline Health
- Implemented new product planning and product management processes for this turnaround business.
- Led due diligence on an acquisition target, which was successfully acquired.
- Repositioned the company and its products in a mature market.
SVP Product Strategy, Marketing, and Operations
A.D.A.M. Inc.
- Led the development of new consumer health information products used by employers, health plans, hospitals, and physician offices to educate their constituents on important health information.
- Implemented, with my technology VP lead, new agile development and testing processes that improved product delivery and quality.
- Developed new pricing models that increased sales.
Consultant
Freelance
- Created a comprehensive product and go-to-market plan for a remote patient monitoring device as part of a business plan to spin off the produce from a consulting company.
- Provided product sales, marketing, and planning for a nonprofit's affiliate sales program that raised money through Amazon's affiliate program.
- Managed a full-service tennis and fitness club to stabilize operations and finances to prepare the company sale.
VP Sales and Marketing | Partner
HealthTime, LLC
- Developed customer on-boarding system to ensure new customers were quickly and efficiently brought into the program.
- Created reports and analytics to track the progress of customers in the program.
- Developed marketing programs to reach both prospective customers and physician influencers.
President and CEO | Co-founder
HospitalCare Online
- Prepared pitch decks for this remote patient monitoring startup and presented them to venture capital firms and angel investors.
- Conducted pricing and market analysis to determine the best markets to sell into.
- Wound down the company upon the death of the founder and medical director.
Vice President Marketing and General Manager
McKesson
- Managed the migration of legacy call center software to a flexible platform that could be deployed locally or via hosted service.
- Developed a product roadmap after the acquisition of a competitor to provide the vision to merge two client bases that had separate systems.
- Conducted a product and operation analysis that identified business practices that could be redefined to reduce costs for a patient-facing call center. After a six-month process, we reduced costs enough that the group became profitable.
Consultant
Total Health Management
- Conducted operations review of medical call center and provided recommendations for process improvements.
- Reviewed the company's marketing approach and suggested ways to optimize its message.
- Reviewed the company's pricing model and proposed changes to increase average revenue per customer.
Vice President | General Manager
Consumer Health, 1-800-DOCTORS
- Reconfigured the product and pricing for the company's largest customer in Chicago that reduced their per-unit price, directed more volume to their organization, and increased annual revenue from them.
- Conducted a consumer marketing audit and changed the marketing program to reduce the cost per lead while retaining the same number of qualified leads.
- Conducted market analysis for an underperforming business unit, recommended winding down their operations, and sold the business to a competitor.
Vice President Product, Marketing, and Operations
Access Health
- Led the product definition, pricing, development, and market rollout of company's second product.
- Built a new pricing model for the company's core product and worked with legacy clients to migrate to the latest pricing, and secured longer-term agreements.
- Developed the majority of the content for the company's IPO prospectus that supported a successful public offering in 1992.
- Managed client success and retention and achieved a 93% retention rate over five years.
- Developed a syndicated marketing package that clients could use to promote their programs locally, ensuring consistent messages in all markets.
Project History
Physician Price and Quality App
Led the successful launch of a consumer-facing application (mobile app and browser) designed to help users learn about a physician's pricing and quality compared to their peers.
Led and impacted virtually every aspect of this greenfield development project. Worked with designers on UI and UX, developed product definition and pricing, conducted competitive research, oversaw the development and product testing, conducted user testing, and sought input from current clients.
eCommerce Platform for Subscription Box Service
Evaluated technology platforms to build an eCommerce site for a nonprofit subscription box service and built the prototype.
A startup company needed assistance in determining the best technology approach for a subscription box service they were developing. I evaluated and compared several options, from developing the technology from scratch, using a shared eCommerce platform such as Cratejoy, or building one using WordPress and WooCommerce. Ultimately I recommended the WordPress and WooCommerce approach and built the prototype.
Product Spin-off Business Analysis
Developed a business plan for a small custom programming consulting firm who wanted to spin off a product they developed into a stand-alone company.
Conducted a market assessment, developed a staffing model and assessment of current staff, evaluated competitors in the space, created a P&L, mapped product features for development or enhancement, and researched FDA approval requirements for a consumer health monitoring device.
Lifecycle Management for Duplicate Software Applications
Developed a lifecycle management plan for three products that ended up in the same company as a result of an acquisition.
As a result of a roll-up of two competing companies, two legacy software applications and one that was still in development were competing for resources and customers in a division of a Fortune 100 company. I conducted client, market, and technical feasibility assessments and financial analyses to develop lifecycle management plans for each. These plans included planned obsolescence of one in the short term, minimal development and support of another, and continued growth for the application currently being built.
Certifications
Artificial Intelligence Fundamentals
IBM SkillsBuild
Skills
Tools
Zoom, Asana, Slack, Jira, Figma
Industry Expertise
Healthcare, Health & Wellness, Nonprofits, Food, Venture Capital
Paradigms
Agile, B2C, B2B2C, Key Performance Metrics, Scrum, Business to Business to Consumer (B2B2C), Data Product Management, User Testing, Agile Product Management, Requirements Analysis, Rapid Prototyping, Agile Project Management, HIPAA Compliance
Platforms
ProductPlan, WooCommerce
Other
New Products, Implementation, Product Planning, Customer Success, Early-stage Startups, Client Management, Turnaround Management, Profit & Loss (P&L), Patient Services, Business, Pricing Strategy, General Management, Customer Support, Turnaround, Client Relations, Startups, Healthcare Product Manager, Product Management, Operations Management, Product Launch, Entrepreneurship, Budgeting, Small Business, Management, Launch Strategy, Account Management, Customer Service, Telehealth, Marketing, Consumer Behavior, Finance, Web, Strategy, Customer Analysis, Customer Analytics, Product Roadmaps, Corporate Planning, Lean Startups, Business Operations, Software, App Development, Tech Sales, Competitive Strategy, Planning, Pricing, Operations, Consulting, P&L Management, Software Implementation, Competition Research, B2C Marketing, Client Reporting, Web UI, App UX, User Needs, SaaS, B2B, Web App Development, Analysis, Product Lifecycle Management (PLM), Backlog Management, Feature Backlog Prioritization, Feature Roadmaps, Minimum Viable Product (MVP), Growth, Project Planning, Requirements, Functional Requirements, Product Ownership, User Stories, Product Strategy, Business to Consumer (B2C), SWOT Analysis, User Feedback, Product Operations, Process Improvement, Healthcare IT, Business Transformation, Business Consulting, Business Strategy, Apps, New Product Development, Startup Consulting, Web Applications, Web & Mobile Applications, Websites, Mobile Apps, B2B Product Management, Ideation, Roadmaps, User Interface (UI), User Requirements, Mobile Design, Web Design, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Business Planning, Pricing Models, Software as a Service (SaaS), Product Consultant, Business to Business (B2B), Requirements & Specifications, Contract, Project Management, Business Analysis, Distributed Team Management, Feature Prioritization, Competitive Intelligence, Leadership, Project Timelines, Team Management, Team Leadership, SaaS Product Management, Product Owner, Product Marketing, Product Development, Stakeholder Engagement, Stakeholder Management, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Client Presentations, Clients, Startup Growth Strategy Development, Mobile, Telemedicine, Healthcare Services, Reporting, Progress Reporting, Mobile App Development, Use Cases, Mobile Applications, Market Research, Competitive Analysis, Customer Experience, Transformational Leadership, End-to-end Implementation (E2E), Feature Planning, Wireframe to Product, Development, Website Conversion, Web Development, Digital Product Management, Health IT, iOS, Cross-functional Collaboration, Technical Product Management, User Experience Design, Innovation, Project Reporting, Proof of Concept (POC), Cross-functional Team Leadership, Project Management & Work Tracking Tools, MVP Design, Healthtech, WordPress, Domain Name System (DNS), Web Hosting, Online Payments, QA Testing, User Roles, Focus Groups, Sales, Web Content, Startup Funding, Google Meet, UX Testing, eCommerce, APIs, Technology Solutions, Lean, Prototyping, Web Technologies, Research, Financial Modeling, Electronic Health Records (EHR), Management Consulting, Organizational Development, Lean Product Manager, Lean Product Management, Subscriptions, User Experience (UX), Wireframing, Lean Product Development, UX Design, User Research, Product Design, Administration, Hardware, Business Process Analysis, Agile Leadership, Agile Product Delivery, Product Vision, UI Design, Sprints, Product Delivery, Analytics, Backlog Grooming, Business Process Optimization, Data Analysis, Card Payments, Order Processing, eCommerce Fulfillment, Mobile UI, Mobile UX, Mockups, Smartsheet, Product Positioning, Discovery, Organizational Design, Pitch Decks, Business Models, Monetization, Market Research & Analysis, Web Analytics, A/B Testing, Digital Design, Dating Apps, Email Marketing, Growth Marketing, Software Consulting, Sprint Planning, Digital Health, Android, Board of Directors, Design, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Pitch Presentations, User Workflows, Restaurants & Dining, Website Redesign, Mobile Payments, Advisory, Program Development, Membership Sites, Online Dating, Electronic Medical Records (EMR), Algorithms, Medical Devices
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