Podcast
January 19, 2024
NASA, Fmr Chief, Human Systems Engineering and Integration Division
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How can product leaders design human-centered products? In this episode of the Product Leaders to Watch Series with Cognizant Product Director Chenny Solaiyappan, NASA Fmr Chief of Human Systems Engineering and Integration Division Dr. Jennifer Rochlis discusses her unique path from NASA to private sector roles, emphasizing her focus on human-centered design. She stresses the importance of considering the human as part of the system across the entire product lifecycle. The episode provides insights into Dr. Rochlis’ experience in designing systems for stressful human environments and her perspectives on integrating stakeholders from different disciplines.
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Dr. Jennifer Rochlis has spent her career bridging the sciences with the human element and strives to bring that synergistic approach to her clients. She is the President and CEO of Advancing Frontiers, a consulting company providing spaceflight integration services. Prior to that she was the Vice President for Products and Solution Architecture at Teledyne FLIR, and in her 20 years at NASA, she was a Division Chief in the Human Health and Performance Directorate, a Branch Chief in the Engineering Directorate, and an Associate Director Human Resources. She received her B.A. in Physics at Mount Holyoke College, her M.S. and Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
She has authored numerous publications and book chapters in the areas of human factors engineering, human-machine interfaces, telerobotics, bioastronautics, and human systems integration – including the agency-wide NASA Human Systems Integration Practitioner’s Guide. She also has 15 years of non-profit board and advisory experience, and is a STEM career mentor, and active speaker in the areas of human-centered design and leadership.
Dr. Rochlis is also an entrepreneur with her own coaching company, providing integrative coaching for individual clients and teams, towards both personal and professional advancement. She is Miracle Minded Master Coach trained by Marianne Williamson, Board Certified as an Alternative Medical Practitioner and Holistic Health Practitioner, and a certified Quantum Human Design Practitioner and Family Coach.
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Chenny Solaiyappan is a seasoned product and venture leader with nearly three decades of experience building and scaling enterprise healthcare and government technology platforms. He is currently Vice President, Products at Mphasis, where he is focused on transforming core claims administration platforms into scalable, AI-enabled learning health system for the commercial, self-funded, and TPA markets.
Previously, Chenny spent over 15 years at Cognizant’s TriZetto Product House, where he founded, built, and scaled the ClaimSphere® suite of products and pioneered the Quality-as-a-Service (QaaS) business model. His work helped health plans unlock more than $1B in value-based payments, while repositioning quality measurement from a regulatory obligation into a Learning Health System. Today, ClaimSphere supports tens of millions of lives across leading U.S. health plans.
A recognized thought leader in value-based care, digital quality measurement (dQM), HEDIS, CMS Stars, FHIR interoperability, and population health analytics, Chenny has played a key industry role as HL7 Da Vinci Business Co-Chair for the TriZetto portfolio. He regularly speaks at national forums including NCQA, RISE, AHIP, INFORMS, and Health Plan Alliance.
Chenny is also the host of the Care Catalyst Podcast, where he interviews healthcare executives, innovators, and policymakers on the future of whole-person care, AI, and health equity. He brings an Entrepreneur-in-Residence mindset to large enterprises—combining strategy, product execution, and storytelling to transform complex systems into scalable, customer-centric platforms.
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