New Product Design and Development, KPR Institute Engineering and Technology, Autonomous Engineering Institution, Coimbatore, India

The two-day program was designed to be highly interactive, moving from problem identification to solution pitching.

Day 1: Problem Discovery & Ideation

• Morning Session: The NPD Process & Customer-Centricity. The facilitator kicked off the workshop by challenging the "build it and they will come" mentality, emphasizing that "the customer doesn't care about how many wires are going through the product; they care about whether the product suits their needs". This session introduced key concepts like human-centered design and the importance of identifying real customer pain points.

• Afternoon Session: Ideation & Concept Development. Participants were divided into cross-functional teams and given a real industry challenge. Using structured brainstorming techniques, teams mapped out problem spaces and generated potential solutions. The day ended with each team selecting a top concept to develop further.

Day 2: Validation, Prototyping & Pitching

• Morning Session: Rapid Prototyping & Assumption Testing. This hands-on session focused on bringing ideas to life. Teams learned to build "lean prototypes"—simple, low-fidelity models to test key assumptions. A case study was presented, such as Zappos' "Wizard of Oz" prototype, to demonstrate the power of testing an idea before full development. The core question posed was, "Should we build this?" rather than "Can we build this?.

• Afternoon Session: Business Modelling & Final Pitch. The final session guided teams in framing their product's viability. Using tools like the Business Model Canvas, participants mapped out their customer segments, value propositions, and revenue streams. The workshop culminated in a final pitch showcase, where each team presented their product concept and marketing plan to the facilitator and a panel of judges, receiving real-time feedback