rna-quantification.html

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            <h1>RNA Quantification Reagent</h1>
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                <h2 class="section-title">MY ACTIVITIES</h2>
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                        <li>Product manager</li>
                        <li>User research</li>
                        <li>Survey development and analysis (Kano and RSOR)</li>
                        <li>Requirements</li>
                        <li>Test site management</li>
                        <li>Pricing and positioning</li>
                        <li>Sales training</li>
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                <h2 class="section-title">TOOLS</h2>
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                        <li>Spreadsheets for survey analysis</li>
                        <li>Sticky notes and whiteboards for brainstorming</li>
                        <li>DOORS for requirements management</li>
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                    <p>At Applied Biosystems, I managed a product line of real-time PCR reagents used to detect and
                        quantify RNA. One major application of the technology is to quantify viral RNA for research.</p>
                    <p>At the time, many customers were using products in the portfolio I managed for research on
                        viruses, but we did not have a great understanding of the specific needs of this customer base,
                        nor did we have a product that was designed to address challenges of these customers.
                        Competitive pressures posed a concern, so a project was started to develop a reagent* product
                        for this market segment.</p>
                    <p><small>* A reagent is a mix of chemicals and enzymes that are designed to perform a specific
                            reaction when used with a specific type of analytical instrumentation. In this case it finds
                            a specific RNA sequence in a biological sample, converts it into DNA, and then replicates
                            the DNA copy billions of times so that it can be detected with fluorescent dyes.</small></p>
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                <h2 class="section-title">IMPACT</h2>
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                    <p>The TaqMan Fast Virus Master Mix was launched successfully and was designed to specifically
                        address challenges that researchers face while studying RNA viruses—for example, samples with
                        viruses are often harvested from environmental samples such as from plants, or from animal
                        samples such as blood. These types of biological sample tend to have a variety of chemicals that
                        negatively impact the performance of the technology used to detect the virus.</p>
                    <p>The <a
                            href="https://www.thermofisher.com/content/dam/LifeTech/Documents/PDFs/PG1503-PJ9169-CO019901-Update-branding-TaqMan-Fast-Virus-1Step-MasterMix-Americas-FHR.pdf">product
                            positioning [PDF brochure]</a> and sales training focused on the benefit messages that
                        were driven directly by the user research performed during the project.</p>
                    <p>This product has a derivative—called TaqPath 1-Step Multiplex Master Mix—that is part of the
                        SAR-CoV-2 (COVID) detection assay [<a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/139743/download">PDF</a>]
                        created by the US CDC <a
                            href="https://clinician.nejm.org/pcr-assays-sars-cov-2-testing-tests-nejm-jw.NA51583">"gold
                            standard" RT-qPCR test</a>. Part
                        of the initial product requirements included being sure that production of components could be
                        scaled up quickly in manufacturing.</p>
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                <img src="images/tmfv-box-tx.png" alt="TaqMan Fast Virus Master Mix product packaging"
                    class="project-image">
                <p class="image-caption">A photo of the product as it was released. Photo from the <a
                        href="https://www.thermofisher.com/content/dam/LifeTech/Documents/PDFs/PG1503-PJ9169-CO019901-Update-branding-TaqMan-Fast-Virus-1Step-MasterMix-Americas-FHR.pdf">(PDF)
                        product brochure.</a></p>
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                <h2 class="section-title">PROCESS AND ARTIFACTS</h2>
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                    <p>User research interviews and observations were conducted with a variety of researchers studying
                        viruses. The transcripts of the interviews were then analyzed for expressed and implicit needs,
                        and a <a
                            href="https://www.pragmaticinstitute.com/resources/articles/product/prioritizing-software-requirements-with-kano-analysis/">Kano
                            survey</a> was developed to
                        evaluate how the user needs related to product performance.
                    </p>
                    <p>The user research and survey analysis that we used was heavily influenced by <a
                            href="https://books.google.com/books?id=2nDzNk5k7kQC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false">Market-Driven
                            Product Definition</a>. It is very similar to a typical UX process, but it relies more on
                        survey
                        follow-up analysis rather than a qualitative prototype feedback-loop and usability testing. Of
                        course all of the specific methods are compatible with—and can reinforce— each other.</p>
                    <p>Based on the understanding of the user base, requirements for performance and usability were then
                        created. Performance benchmarks against competing products were used to help set threshold
                        values for quantitative requirements. An intensive process of product feature brainstorming was
                        conducted in order to expand the team's typical range of options for designing this type of
                        product. This product incorporated several formulation and format innovations that were novel
                        within our product line, as well as technology innovations in component chemistry and enzymes to
                        meet the performance requirements.</p>
                    <p>Product performance was tested repeatedly with beta-test sites to make sure that the reagent
                        optimized in the lab would work in a "real" environment.</p>
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                <img src="images/tmfv-Kano_model_showing_transition_over_time.png"
                    alt="Kano model showing transition over time" class="project-image">
                <p class="image-caption">A visual description of the Kano-survey results. By Craigwbrown (Own work) [CC
                    BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons.</p>
                <p class="image-caption"><em>Actual results are proprietary, so I provided this image for illustrative
                        purposes.</em></p>
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                <h2 class="section-title">ADDITIONAL INFO</h2>
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                    <p>Applied Biosystems is now a part of Thermo Fisher Scientific.</p>
                    <p>The web page for the product described in this project is found <a
                            href="https://www.thermofisher.com/order/catalog/product/4444434" target="_blank">here</a>.
                    </p>
                    <p>As product manager, I was responsible for the product vision, business plan, and requirements,
                        and for connecting with customer test sites. I also managed the pricing, discounting,
                        positioning and product marketing and sales training.</p>
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