Reduced product development cycle from 24 months to 5.5 months

Company: 
Global 200, multinational company.

Situation / problem: 
Senior management "sold" an software-controlled electro-optical sensor system to be delivered within 6 months. Normal delivery times were 24 months.

Effort: 
Led a quick-response skunk-works project team. Negotiated with existing managers and recruited members for a small team - from various parts of the company. Developed a master schedule to meet the deadline imposed by the trade show where, we were going to launch the new product.

Applied project management techniques to define the high-level and detailed requirements of the product. Started three times a week skunk-works meetings and helped integrate all the different functional efforts. Led the negotiation teams for major procurement items.

Decided to either make or buy critical components for the project. Created weekly status reports for upper management. Informed and involved various parts of the company to ensure we were heading down the right path. Worked with the customer to make sure their needs were being met.

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