Toshiba - Ensuring the Reliability of the Portg Z10t Technology - Report Example

Report of Toshiba Product (Portégé Z10t) Table of Contents Introduction 3 Brief Overview of the Current Scenario 4 Identifying Key Factors Leading tothe Challenges 5 Product Quality 6 Product Reliability 7 Recommendations 7 Quality Standard 8 Quality Specification 8 Continuous Monitoring 9 Quality-Based Technical Specification 9 Conclusion 10 References 12 Introduction Portégé Z10t is one of the latest and advanced technology based Detachable Ultra-books manufactured by Toshiba Corporation, which is a renowned Singaporean multinational dealing with manufacturing of innumerable technology-based devices. According to the observation of the product performance within the short run of being launched, it has been ascertained that the company claims to achieve substantial market through its newly launched Portégé Z10t with advanced and superior model detachable computing system in the fiercely competitive technology industry (Toshiba, 2014). Although the product comprises a well-designed set of hardware and application equipments configured with the best use of technology, the customer survey results revealed that Portégé Z10t, in the global market, was unable to attain its desired results of providing customers with utmost quality and experience of newly build technology devices. After reviewing the users’ feedbacks, it was recognised that Portégé Z10t was unable to suffice the desires of the global clients as compared to its available substitute products. Therefore, the study tends to prepare a comprehensive analytical and critical review of Portégé Z10t and explore the key factors leading to the observed failure of the product to meet the desires and expectations of the customers irrespective of the opportunities prevailing within the emerging technology industry. In order to assess the key concerns associated with the product from a critical point of view, the paper also describes the major factors including quality and reliability systems of this particular product and outlines an effective project management structure for Portégé Z10t to attain the desires of the global users successfully. Brief Overview of the Current Scenario Toshiba is well known for its capability to deliver quality based and exceptional range of electronic devices since its emergence in the global technology and electronic business industry. The organisation has been observed to gain significant insights by providing a wide range of innovative technological devices and applications in proportion to the changing trends of the global consumers. The company has also been recognised to achieve adequate satisfaction from its global consumers by offering products and/services with utmost quality and reliability assurance as per the customers’ convenience (Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., 2014). However, the company has recently revealed undesirable feedbacks regarding the quality and reliability aspects from its Portégé Z10t users, which not only imposes high degree of risks to its investment decision but also threatens its brand image in the market to a certain extent. Correspondingly, when manufacturing and marketing its Ultrabooks, Toshiba has been observed to prioritise practicality on maintaining exceptional design installing adequate features and components. It is well known for its convertibleness that can be transformed into either tablet or notebook. Likewise, Portégé Z10t aimed to provide a better option to its users, which not only enriched its exceptional appearance features, but also portrayed a considerably strong hardware configuration of computing systems. Built with 11.6" 1080p IPS display, Portégé Z10t is also comprised with 4GB of DDR3 adding compatibility features with Microsoft Windows applications that can be regarded as few of the major features of the device to collect the attention of both notebook and tablet users across the global consumer technology market (Toshiba Corporation, 2014). However, the recent review of the Portégé Z10t users has been observed to create a major concern on the project management team of the products as well as to reduce the existing brand position and image of Toshiba in the respective business industry. According to the assessment results reviewed from the case scenario provided, the concern emerges due to the flaws associated with the quality and reliability of Portégé Z10t with respect to the desires and expectations of the users. With regard to the feedbacks obtained from its users, the product was argued to have met the needs and desires of the customers in terms of its quality of display, system performance, back-up facilities or reliability of hardware and application components. Therefore, it can be considered as a growing concern for Toshiba to mitigate the issues associated with Portégé Z10t, as the company made major investments to attain the changing trend of the technologically centred customers. Identifying Key Factors Leading to the Challenges The quality of products and/or services being offered is one of the key factors for an organisation to build its long-term sustainability within any industry structure. These measures principally aim towards maintaining superior quality to build a strong market positioning and further helps to preserve their position in pursuit to obtain the advantages from the competitive market. In relation to the present scenario of the consumer and information technology industry, marketers seek to suffice the desires and expectations of the target groups of consumers through a better strategic alignment and installation of appropriate features and quality based components in the product (Accenture, 2013). However, when evaluating on the basis of these prospects, Portégé Z10t of Toshiba has been observed to acquire undesirable outcomes due to its lack of quality or reliability. As observable from the case scenario, the review of the customer feedbacks has been significantly stressed on two major factors including product quality and its reliability. Certainly, a misalignment and gap can be identified in the product features with the customers’ preferences that might have been the principle cause for issue. Product Quality With the increasingly fiercer competition in the global technology industry, quality of products and/or services has been widely accepted as the pervasive factors for any organisation to build long-term sustainability. In relation to the present trend, the market leaders in this respective business industry have become highly focused on delivering substantial significance towards maintaining a benchmarked level of products’ quality that can satisfy the ultimate buyers. Correspondingly, consumers in the recent business environment have been widely observed to seek quality-based products, especially while purchasing electronic or advanced technology gadgets. The emerging use of internet, which further facilitates rapid transmission of the reviews offered by online consumers regarding any product and/or service, can be considered as a major factor to impose strong influences on the consumers’ buying decisions (KPMG, 2013). As witnessed in the case of Portégé Z10t, the issues associated with the product quality can impose significant impacts on Toshiba to market its wide range of technology-based products successfully in the emerging markets. Moreover, the issue may also critically reduce the potential capability of the organisation to preserve its long-term sustainable position in the current scenario of tablet or notebook business industry. Moreover, the concern can also impose major threat to the organisation when aiming at establishing its brand position in the emerging Ultrabook and Tablet-PC business industry. Product Reliability Product reliability is also identified as one of the foremost factors that impose a major influence on an organisation to build strong brand positioning within the market. It generally ensures customers’ gain in terms of value on the product in accordance with their needs and desires. As similar to the role of quality, reliability of products and/services also have major influence on the organisations to preserve their competitive positioning in any respective business industries (KPMG, 2013). With regard to the case scenario derived from the survey review, it has been ascertained that the reliability of Portégé Z10t can also cause significant constraints on the consumers’ perceptions towards the range of technology-based products offered by Toshiba in this particular business industry. Recommendations In relation to the case of Portégé Z10t, the project management team should highly focus on practicing a strategic priority regarding the quality of the particular product. With reference to the potential challenges to be faced by the company, it can be stated that its project management team should focus on taking strategic measures to improve the quality along with reliability of its newly introduced Portégé Z10t Ultrabook. Accordingly, the following strategic measures have been proposed to enable Toshiba in building an effective framework for Portégé Z10t while to dealing with the potential challenges. Quality Standard Establishing a strong set of quality standards can be suggested as one the major considerations for the project management team of Portégé Z10t to minimise its potential issues associated with quality and product reliability. In this context, the formulation of an effective set of quality standards would enable the organisation to keep appropriate tracking of the quality parameters in the particular product. The strategy would help the project management team of the organisation to ensure continuous improvement of its each function in isolation to help better linkage between the various dimensions of the product management framework. The quality standards to be incorporated in this project should also be based on an integrated framework considering range of guiding principles associated with each component to be installed in Portégé Z10t. The process would enable the project management team to reduce potential quality related issues to a substantial extent, upholding its preferences and suitability amid the customers (Schwalbe, 2010). Quality Specification The quality management functions of the project team should also need to encompass effective set of specification activities in each key stage and milestone or benchmark achievement of the project. In this context, quality specifications associated with the equipment and material to be used in each stage, ranging from the initial stage to the closing stage of the project, would enable the project management team to maintain adequate quality of Portégé Z10t. Moreover, the quality specification process of the team should also focus on determining appropriate planning of resources along with costs required to adhere the quality parameter of the product. In order to minimise the risk of potential quality and reliability related concerns, the project management team must therefore ascertain a strong specification process for identifying quality of the components that are supplied by the vendors (Schwalbe, 2010; Schwalbe, 2008). Continuous Monitoring It is also an essential step for the project management team to ensure that the project activities are performed in compliance with the predetermined quality standards. In order to address potential issues associated with quality and reliability of Portégé Z10t, the project management team of Toshiba should assign continuous monitoring process in each stage of the project and ensure rigorous examination of the project activity with the quality standards of the organisation. The process would enable the organisation to examine and monitor the quality and reliability of the product in each stage of the project management process (Josler & Burger, 2005). Hence, the continuous monitoring and alignment of project activities with the quality and reliability policies and standards would enable the project team to reduce possible disputes in Portégé Z10t before entering into the markets. Quality-Based Technical Specification As Portégé Z10t involves exclusive combination of innovative technological features, it is highly essential for the project management team of Toshiba to assign an effective practice of technical specification of the products during the execution and controlling stage of the project. Project execution and controlling stages can be identified as two major phases where the resources and all project activities are implemented altogether and therefore, are subjected to high risks of complexities and cost consumption. This particular stage involves producing and presenting deliverables to the contracting authority intended for acceptance. The project manager controls and monitors each activity including resources, materials and costs required in the execution process in order to meet the project’s goals and objectives. In this regard, the project manager should continuously focus on performing a quality based specification process of the different hardware and application programs that are installed in the product design. The process is likely to help the manager and other individuals to justify each and every component used in the device and help avoiding potential issues associated with quality and reliability of the product while entering into the market (Zhu & Zhang, 2010). Conclusion Quality and reliability of product/service has long been witnessed as few of the major aspects of an organisation while introducing a new product into the markets. In relation to the case of customer review, the issue associated with quality and reliability of Portégé Z10t can be asserted as a major constraint for Toshiba to sustain its position in the fiercely competitive business industry. In this regard, it is essential for the project management team of Toshiba to take preventive strategic measures over the quality and reliability related issues faced by its Portégé Z10t. In this context, the formulation and compliance of a strong set of policies can be regarded as one of the primary strategic measures for the project management team of the company. Moreover, quality specification along with continuous process of monitoring each stage of the project activity would enable the team to minimise the quality and reliability related risks of Portégé Z10t and encourage a better feedback from its users. In addition, the technical specification process in the project execution and implementation stage would also help the overall project management process to detect potential issues within the product. The process would further help to streamline technical features and performances of its hardware and software programs in relation to Portégé Z10t, prior to its penetration in the competitive tablet and notebook business markets. References Accenture, 2013. It’s Anyone’s Game in the Consumer Electronics Playing Field. 2013 Consumer Electronics Report. [Online] Available at: http://www.accenture.com/SiteCollectionDocuments/PDF/2013-Accenture-Consumer-Electronics-Products-and-Services-Usage-Report.pdf [Accessed April 04, 2014]. Josler, C. & Burger, J., 2005. Project Management Methodology in Human Resource Management. College and University of Professional for Human Resource Journal, Vol. 56, No. 2, pp. 25-30. KPMG, 2013. 2013 Technology Industry Outlook Survey. Economic Pressures Temper Opportunities. [Online] Available at: http://www.kpmg.com/US/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPublications/Documents/technology-outlook-survey-2013.pdf [Accessed April 04, 2014]. Schwalbe, K., 2010. Information Technology Project Management, Revised. Cengage Learning. Schwalbe, K., 2008. Introduction to Project Management, Second Edition. Cengage Learning. Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., 2014. Portégé® Z10t. Computers and Tablets. [Online] Available at: http://www.toshiba.com/us/computers/laptops/portege/Z10t [Accessed April 04, 2014]. Toshiba, 2014. Portégé Z10t UltrabookTM. Notebook. [Online] Available at: http://pc.toshiba-asia.com/notebook/personal/ultrabook/Z10t [Accessed April 04, 2014]. Toshiba Corporation, 2014. Portégé Z10T-A. Specification. [Online] Available at: https://www.toshiba.co.uk/ltr/images/en/b2b-images/pdf/Portege_Z10t-A-103_UK.pdf [Accessed April 04, 2014]. Zhu, F. & Zhang, X. M., 2010. Impact of Online Consumer Reviews on Sales: The Moderating Role of Product and Consumer Characteristics. Journal of Marketing, Vol. 74, pp. 133-148. Read More