Ellen Di Resta is currently
translating market insight into a breakthrough offering in diabetes care for
Becton Dickinson. There she is
incorporating new methods for new product development through Worldwide
Strategic Marketing, and introducing new theories and methods for incorporating
innovation throughout the organization.
In addition, Ellen
founded Synaptics Group, Inc., where she applies broad industry experience to
teaching and writing venues, with a focus on translating market insight into successful
products, services, and business models.
Previously, Ellen was
managing principal at Design Continuum, a product development and innovation
consultancy. While there, she managed a
variety of domestic and global client relationships for clients such as Procter
& Gamble, LL Bean, Motorola, Groupe Danone, TetraPak, and the Center for
Creative Leadership. Her work has ranged in focus from the definition and
evaluation of innovative products and services for existing markets, to helping
clients to compete in new and emerging markets.
Market results of her work can be seen in the Pampers Cruisers product
line, the first embodiment of the product strategy work she led. This is a $1 billion product line, and catalyzed
the turnaround of the Pampers brand in 2002-2003. Pampers then became P&G’s
first $6 billion brand. Her work was
also the foundation for the recently launched Evolution line of kitchen
disposers for InSinkErator. The product
line is currently leading the category with double digit growth in both unit
sales and revenue per unit.
Ellen began her
career as a project engineer at C. R. Bard, a manufacturer of medical devices,
where she worked on a variety of cardiology products from the R&D phase
through to their manufacturing implementation. Her R&D work involved
extensive research in hospital labs and operating rooms, and led to the
development of new packaging systems to aid in set up and handling of products.
After receiving her first graduate degree, she was an independent consultant, focused
on the integration of technical and design goals. Her clients ranged from medical start-ups to
multinationals such as Gillette, J&J Ethicon, and Hewlett Packard's medical
division (now Philips).
Ellen earned a BS in
Packaging Engineering from Rochester Institute of Technology, an MS in Graphic
Design and Marketing with high honors from the University of North Texas, and
an MBA with high honors from Boston University. She is an adjunct faculty
member at Boston University, and has published the article “The Art of
Translating Market Insight into Business Opportunities for Innovation”, in the
International Journal of Innovation Science, June 2010.