WHY

Reconceived {_}

“We have an existing {X} & we want to imagine a {future X} that better serve our vision & resonate with our customers”.

{X} can take many forms: e.g. brand, design, product & experience. In the last two decades, I’ve led projects to tackle challenges with different flavors (some elaborated here).

What I’ve come to realize is a simple truth. Design is change. Insight is change. Innovation is change. Strategy is change. Persuasion is change. Transformation is change.

Whether the outcome is a design, innovation or strategy, the essence of the practice starts by understanding, distilling & expressing the change we want to bring to the world.

    • Transform functional objects into aspirational designs that evoke desire & prestige.

    • Shape customer perception through aesthetically refined, experience-driven innovations

    • Create distinctive, cohesive product identity that reflect brand’s renewed vision & ambition

    • Create or adapt products that addresses specific market needs (e.g. Asian consumers)

    • Go beyond stereotypes & assumptions: to richly understanding real, latent needs

    • See & appreciate customers needs with renewed perspectives & opportunities

    • Create a distinctive innovation that consumers would love

    • Find the differentiation that can be big on impact yet small on cost/technical hurdles

    • Find the sweet spot where applied creativity converts to business ROI

    • Distil & articulate connecting logic across market segments & product line-up

    • Redefine category assumptions to rejuvenate growth amidst stagnation/disruptions

    • Direct future product roadmaps & horizon to to advance business mission

    • Sensemake emergent disruptions (e.g. tech, behavioral) & “what it means for us”

    • Create key “aha” moments & insights that shifts audience’s perspectives effectively

    • Elevate appeal for product/pitch with audience resonance & crisp appeal

    • Create memorable stories & expressions that evoke emotion & enhance persuasion

    • Rally diverse teams to align around a co-owned & co-built vision of their future.

    • Reshape conventional mindsets & approaches to (re-)focus on human connection

    • Bridge knowledge & empathy gaps between ‘ground’ truths & leaders

    • Enhance team capability through learning, process and facilitation

TYPICAL CHALLENGES

HOW

Change begins by seeing anew.

We know the ‘why’, but how does one catalyze change?

Whether your goal is in winning business pitches through persuasion, launching lovable products that people will buy, or creating memorable engagements, there is a common thread: you’d need to combine 3 essential ingredients for success.

These 3 core ingredients are clarity, freshness & persuasion.

3 ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS TO SUCCESS

  • If you are like most leaders: you are likely immersed (read: drowning) in the cacophony of inputs, unprocessed ideas, suggestions that span customer needs, product direction, business priorities, tech constraints, desired outcome. They may be entangled, incoherent, going off in different tangents, ambiguous and chaotic. Not to mention being entangled by ongoing operations & firefighting that makes it hard to have the right headspace & vantage point.

    What’s needed? Willing & able to immerse & sensemake across all these input, grapple with them & then distil the crux. So that you can see potential where others see confusion. An artful marriage of intuition & analysis.

  • Leaders know they should rise above business-as-usual: but exactly how? How might one process the raw materials & information that others can also access, yet still able to see different & distinguishing potential? To not be trapped by outmoded assumptions or inherent blindspots, knowing that “what got us here, can’t get us there?”

    What’s needed: a blend of intellectual curiosity, mastery of pattern recognition, and a certain detachment that allows for insightful objectivity: giving rise to an ability to see, evaluate & frame possibilities for the future that are pregnant with potential

  • What good is a set of vision that only you love but nobody else cares? Whether it’s securing a buy-in, or creating adopters & customers in the marketplace, you’d need compelling stories so that your audience sees it, understands it, believes it, identifies with it and owns it.

    That’s a high bar. More so amidst our increasingly distracted, busy-ness obsessed culture.

    What’s needed: Being able to articulate the vision in a clear, memorable & compelling manner; create an infectious insight; utilize storytelling techniques that facilitate effective persuasion.

WHAT

Engagement Formats

If you are:

  • Leading an innovation-related project (venture, product, design, …)

  • Want to raise your game & the odds of success

  • Seek veteran guidance to elevate clarity, freshness & persuasion

There are 3 tailored ways I can support your goals:

  • Project Lead: hands-on project management & direction; brings structured expertise over a focused timeframe

  • Principal Consultant: for ongoing initiatives that need targeted, high-impact input; in-depth feedback based on your evolving needs

  • Executive Advisor: for senior leaders looking for a trusted partner to explore strategic insights and manage complexity, as a trusted sounding board for navigating your highest-level decisions

SUPPORTING YOUR GOALS …

  • In this role, I lead or join your team through a focused engagement, typically lasting 4 to 12 weeks, where we tackle challenges in innovation, strategy, insights, or consulting. I work hands-on, guiding the project from concept to actionable outcomes, aligning cross-functional efforts to deliver results tailored to your goals. This format is ideal for scoped projects where you need experienced direction, structure, and strategic insight.

    [CURRENTLY FULLY BOOKED]

  • Designed for ongoing projects, this retainer model starts with flexible 4-hour blocks.

    You can share your innovation-related project (intention, directions, existing materials, …) in advance. I review them thoroughly, then provide targeted, constructive feedback to you asynchronously, or a discussion session (to be arranged).

  • I act as a trusted sounding board, offering a steady cadence of insightful support.

    This service provides a confidential, knowledgeable partner to discuss ideas, uncover blind spots, and refine project management strategies in innovation. Live conversations with a pre-determined cadence (e.g. 1h every fortnight).

    Ideal for leaders seeking an external viewpoint grounded in experience to help you lead with clarity & avoid avoidable blindspots.

  • "Sometimes you need a smart, experienced outsider to help you see things in your business in a different light. KK is perfect for that."

  • "...so pregnant with wisdom..."

  • "... is like a shrink that expands minds"