The document discusses Microsoft's introduction of a new Xbox product. It provides details on the Xbox features and estimated cycle time for production. It then analyzes potential bottlenecks and how lean principles could help. Risks of the new product introduction are identified and a risk mitigation plan is proposed. Finally, it discusses strategies for managing a cross-functional team to support the product launch, including applying total quality management principles.

1. QSO 510 Estimates the process cycle time
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The company has engaged its customers through the online marketing
and advertising of
its products. Microsoft has developed a technology strategy of service
in its bid to continue
innovating thus helping the firm to develop a competitive advantage.
Microsoft offers firms
competitive advantage through innovative technology that many
businesses are seeking to boost
their businesses.
The firm has released a new Microsoft Console Xbox that is available
in 500GB and
1TB. This is a new version that is set to offer quality gaming
experience to the game lovers. This
is Xbox Onesie which is designed to with the collaboration with other
stakeholders in the
industry such as TVs, film firms and the sports fans. This is a product
that has the following
features: first is an enlarged pocket that is would help fit your Xbox
Controller and the media
remotes if an individuals do have one. Secondly, it also contains a
pouch that is designed to give
the user a quick access to a mobile phone. It also has an extra-large
hood which would
accommodate the headsets for the ultimate gaming sessions.
Justification
Microsoft is a company that is dominating the world because of its
innovative features in
the market. There are many reasons for choosing company as the firm
stands in the market.
Microsoft is one of the companies that is regarded to be among the
most innovative firms in the
globe. With its innovation, there are many products that we are using

2. in the world today. The XBOX Unveils New Latest Design
3
product development strategy is offering real time solutions to the
needs of the current market.
The businesses that are using the Microsoft products are able to
streamline their business
operations. Moreover, the company is able to develop and monitor its
customized prices so as to
ensure that the consumers are able to access their products. Finally,
this is a firm that has faced a
number of challenges like lawsuits by Netscape but still managed to
get out of its challenges. Its
fundamental competencies are viewed to be more than rebalance of
technology which
differentiates itself from other competitors in the market. A.
Estimated process cycle time for Xbox and compare against estimated
takt time
Analysis and explanations
The cycle time is the time when the request is received from the
customer to the time the
product is ready for delivery. The estimated cycle time for this
product is 6 hours. This is the
time that the product can be ready for delivery. On the other hand the
Takt time is the speed in
which the product will be created so as to meet the demands of the
customers. For this product
(Xbox), the estimated Takt time is 30 minutes per unit. The speed of
completing a unit of the
product is higher as compared to its cycle time. B. The process
bottlenecks that may adversely affect cycle time of the new product
introduction
Analysis and Explanations
The bottlenecks are common in an environment such as this. The
process bottlenecks that
would adversely affect the cycle time include waiting times for the
completion of a unit, the
process capacity of production stages, and the production lines. Long

3. waiting times means that XBOX Unveils New Latest Design
4
the cycle time will increase. This is because at waiting time, it means
that there is limited process
of production. Therefore, the bottleneck will build leading to long
cycle times.
On the part of capacity, where demand is high as compared to the
production capacity, the
process of production is slowed down. For example, where the
employees are slow in producing
and moving complete units to the stage leads to bottlenecks. Finally,
production lines also
contribute to bottlenecks in the production of this product (Xbox).
Given that Microsoft
Company is producing many other brands which increases the
resources and the needs of the
firm that are required to complete processes in these production lines.
With a long production
lines, the speed of delivering products is slowed down. C. How
principles of lean management could be applied to the introduction of
the new
product to account for adverse effects on cycle time.
The first principle is about value that is attached to the final product.
Before delivery of
the final product to the customer, there is the need to determine how
much the customers are
willing to pay on delivery of the product. Focusing on the specific
needs of the customers is one
way of ensuring that the customer satisfaction is achieved. Another
principle that should be
applied in this case is that of creating a flow. When flow is created,
there will be limited
interruption in the system (Seth*, D et al. 2005). Therefore, a minimal
time is wasted in the
process of manufacturing will reduce the cycle time for delivering the
product to the customer.
The principle of pull which require that no inventory should be

4. pushed down unless customers
(both internal and external) makes an order (Cochran, D. S., et al
2000). This will ensure that all
the products will meet the customer’s needs. This is one way of
eliminating the loss on waste
time that would finally increase cycle time. XBOX Unveils New
Latest Design
5 D. Recommendation of the appropriate strategy aligned with
principles of lean
management that the company could implement to improve cycle
time of the new
product introduction.
Explanations and Analysis
There are many strategies that can be used in the production of this
product based on the
lean management principles identified above. The strategy is Make-
to-order (Just-in-Time)
production process. This strategy will ensure that the firm will
produce a products only on
demand. Therefore, the cycle time will be reduced due to less
production units in the whole
production process. A make to order strategy will ensure that the
company will produce products
when they are demanded by the respective. This will ensure that the
products will meet the
specific customer demands. E. Assess the labor, equipment, and
material needs of the company that would be
required to support the new product introduction.
Analysis and Explanations
The labor that is required in the production is mainly skilled. This is
because
manufacturing Xbox require some knowledge on how automated
systems that is required in
developing digitized product. When it comes to equipment, wireless
systems are required so as to
determine whether the remotes and the accessories are functioning as
they are expected. F. Propose a labor, equipment, and materials plan

5. to support the new product introduction
that could be implemented by the company. XBOX Unveils New
Latest Design
6
Analysis
The nature of labor that are required in the production of this product
should have skills
relating with operating systems. This because of the way Xbox is
operating require
understanding of wireless connectivity and functionality of operating
systems (OS). The
equipment also include machines that will be used to manufacture
Xbox boards. Moreover, the
material planning need to be arranged systematically so as to produce
a final product that will
serve all needs of the clients. G. Explain how your proposed labor,
equipment, and materials plan will support the
new product introduction
Explanations
The skilled labor will provide the much needed knowledge relating to
production of
Xbox. This is one product that keep improving over time. The
manufacturing systems would also
provide a chance for speedy production. Finally, the material plan
helps the firm to set a
chronological production approach. Therefore, the bottlenecks and
cycle times will be reduced.
This is one way of improving the productivity of firm. The potential
Risks Affecting the Product
Marketing Risk: This is one of the risk that firm is facing before
launching the product.
Adequate marketing require to be carried out so as to ensure that
many customers are aware of
the product launching. The message that is passed to the target
customers must be tailored in a
way that it will promote a branding appeal. XBOX Unveils New
Latest Design

6. 7
Distribution Risk: Product distribution to the various regions across
the globe is an expensive
affair and therefore the products may not be available for all the
customer who need it. Adequate
logistical planning is required in this case so as to ensure that Xbox is
available across the globe.
Sustainability Risk: This is a risk that relates to supporting quick
growth. For example, how can
the firm maintain a level of performance that exceeded the
expectation of the clients? The
management must have an approach that will mitigate this risk.
Selling Risk: Xbox is one of products that keep improving offer time.
Therefore, selling
strategies have to generate the greatest sales in the market. The sales
agents should be selected
well in order to ensure that the sales target are achieved.
Competition Risk: There are many other companies that are offering
gaming services just like
Microsoft Company offers Xbox Console gaming product. Therefore,
there is a high risk that
Xbox will face a high competition in the market. The players in the
market also compete for their
market space. Risk Mitigation Plan
The plan is expected to provide strategies to mitigate the risks
identifies above
No. Risks Department Responsible 1 Marketing Risk 2 Distribution
Risk 3 Sustainability Risk 4 Selling Risk Marketing Manager
Marketing Department
Marketing Manager
Marketing Department
Distribution Manager
R&D and Product
Sales Manager
Marketing Department How to Mitigate these
Risks
Progressive Prior Planning

7. Seeking Alliances with
other market distributors
Continually improve the
products
Develop proper selling
strategies XBOX Unveils New Latest Design
8
5 Competition Risk Product Manager
R&D and Marketing
Department Monitoring the market
variables How proposed risk mitigation plan accounts and addresses
identified risks
The plan identifies the different departments that are responsible for
addressing these
risks. The departments provide the strategies that would alleviate the
risk. For example, for in the
case of marketing risks, the marketing manager should develop a
progressive planning which
will ensure that the marketing strategy will be matched with the needs
of the product. A strategic
market plan identifies the risk and lay down the risk response
measure.
Moreover, the risks are identified are categorized in their different
classes in which the
different strategies are established to address these risks. The
strategies provides a clear approach
that Microsoft can use to launch and release the Xbox in the market.
Once these risks are
categorized, it give the company a chance to establish proactive
approach of eliminating risks
rather than using a reactive measures. Furthermore, the plan also
provides a root cause analysis
which helps in identifying the major cause of the risk. A root cause
identification is one of the
major approaches that allows any organization to create effective
strategies to address these risks. Management Strategies
The key aspects and characteristics of the team to support

8. introduction of the new product
Communication Skills
The team is required to communicate effectively on the elements that
surround the new product.
The Data Extraction and Analysis
The teams need to have the skills of extracting market data and
making analysis so as to
determine the market space for the product and the extend in which
the new product is likely to
succeed.
Interactive Prototyping
The team require skills to develop a similar product is generate before
the final product is rolled
out. It is expensive to waste products during the process of
production. Other skills include
product understanding skills, communication skills, research skills to
enable them to keep abreast
with the market variables.
The stakeholder from the company who would be included on a cross-
functional teams XBOX Unveils New Latest Design
9
In this case whom I would select to partner with the cross-functional
teams is the Production
Director. This is because the director is able to understand on the
issues surrounding the product.
Since this is a new product, there are many other elements that are
needed to be addressed so as
to ensure that all the critical elements are addressed and put into
consideration during the rime of
the product launching.
How the proposed team is cross-functional and how that assists them
in supporting the
introduction of the new product
The proposed team is a cross functional team because they operate in
a department that is readily
making their own decisions based on the specifications laid down
(McDonough, E. F., 2000).

9. The production department also generates the quality standards and
other elements like product
costs are determined by the department. Therefore, it remains
autonomous department even
though it has some influence from the top management. The proposed
team will also help in
developing the entire plan in order to ensure that the new product is
introduced successfully.
A strategy you would use to manage the cross-functional team
The strategy will have the critical areas which include the goal and
objectives, the scope, the
team trainings, communication plan and new product launching plan.
The Goals and the objectives: The goals include passing a clear and
concise message to the
customers so as to sell the product.
The scope: The scope of this activity covers extensively on the
planning of production
introduction, the costs for product introduction, the customized
marketing message and even the
final launching of the product. The strategy seeks to meet all the
needs of the project and the
demands of the entire introduction of the new product.
Communication Plan: The communication plan will have daily
meetings briefing on the progress
of the new introduction of new product (Xbox). The plan will include
all the stakeholders
including the production team, the marketing team, the sales team and
the executive
management. This is a plan that seeks to ensure that the entire team
remains well informed on the
progress of product introduction.
New product launching: This is the last part that enables the team
develop a whole planning
covering the launch of the product. A detailed plan for launching the
product is laid down
including the budget of the same event. XBOX Unveils New Latest
Design

10. 10
How you could apply principles of total quality management (TQM)
in managing the
product introduction.
The first thing is focusing on the quality of the product. This means
that the product building
processes must meet the quality standards. A continuous improvement
is also adopted in the
production processes. Secondly, customer focus is also brought on
sight so as to ensure that final
product meet the needs of the final consumer (Dev, C. S., et al. 2005).
Thirdly, I would also take
the strategic approach of product improvement. The approach will
eliminate product wastes in
the process of production (Dahlgaard, J. J., et al. 2006). Continuous
improvement is also another
approach of ensuring that the product remain a high quality and meets
the demands of the
market. Finally, encouraging mutual respect and teamwork is another
principle that I would use
in the introduction of this (Xbox) product.
How to utilize the total quality management (TQM) approach for
fulfilling customer
expectations associated with the new product.
The first principle is by producing quality products. Therefore, in the
initial stages of developing
the product, high quality standards are set so as to ensure that product
surpasses the expectations
of the customer. Secondly, by focusing on the customer, it means that
the initial development of
Xbox will based on the knowledge of customer demands. The product
will therefore be
customized to meet the demands of the customers. Product continuous
improvement will mean
that the customer’s needs will be addressed. When the customer needs
and wants are identified, it
is easier to identify on the areas that Xbox do not meet and therefore a

11. continuous improvement
is undertaken. Finally, mutual teamwork is an aspect that helps create
an atmosphere of complete
understanding on the issues underlying the market. The teams will
therefore help to fix the issues
that are affecting the customers.