Teradyne Case

Compare and contrast Teradyne's traditional project execution strategy to the approach it used in Jaguar? What was similar? What was different?

The Jaguar project was a project undertaken by Teradyne Corporation - the world’s largest supplier of  equipment for testing semiconductors. The project was aimed at developing a highly flexible tester   platform that that could easily easily adjust adjust to the needs of different different device device segments. segments. It was was a critical critical project that at the time will determine the ability and success of Teradyne to compete in the market. Teradyne in the Jaguar project execution utilized several Project Management tools to force discipline in the development process, which included WBS - work breakdown structure which is a detailed description of all the tasks required to complete the project and their interrelationships;; and finally, Finally the EVA - earned value analysis that measured progress of the project utilizing the following three metrics - budgeted cost of work scheduled, actual cost of work performed, and budgeted cost of work   performed. However, each of the tools had its own limitations - the critical path method had several unknowns and unclear estimates to be calculated which puts the accuracy of CPM at risk. The WBS that required for  each single task to be recorded in proper sequence was inaccurate, as well as the 3-point estimation tool that relied on precise time estimates in order to be effective. Also EVA was inaccurate and unable to be applied effectively as it works best only when one knows precisely what needed done, which was challenging especially with Teradyne. With the traditional approach, effective management with projects was lacking ensuing with delays, poor   product quality quality and reliability reliability,, no basic operating processes and performance performance measures measures ultimately ultimately resulting in no systemic controls and oversight. Additionally, the traditional approach relied on the use of   processes that that had no checks and balances balances to evaluate evaluate performance performance and tracking tracking progress with projects projects and schedules. What impact did the project management tools have on the Jaguar project? Specifically, how did they change behavior? How did they influence performance?

The project management tools implemented in the Jaguar approach helped Teradyne to enforce discipline in the development process. It was one of the critical elements of the Jaguar project execution strategy. With the data and information provided by the new tools people were able to know whether a team was having work done at the right pace or not. The WBS –  WBS – work work breakdown structure breaks down a project down into its individual tasks and details to identify the relationships between them. It had two major goals. First, to ensure that the project has all the work needed to complete the project successfully. Secondly, it ensured that the project includes no unnecessary work. Ultimately, this ensures the project manager to clearly describe the hierarchical nature of the work to be performed and establishes a foundation for other elements of the formal project plan including the project’s resource plan, budget, organizational plan and master schedule, and also used to identify the tasks for the Critical Path Analysis. The mixture of the PM tools used in the Jaguar project helped to see different things that were going on in such a complex project. The tools provided visibility into the project. This allowed Teradyne to respond to Alpha Tech and be confident that could hit all the milestones. The PM tools helped as well to force discipline in the development process. This was one of the critical elements of the Jaguar project execution strategy .

What were the unintended consequences of using the project management tools? What lessons should Teradyne take away from the Jaguar project?

Tedious work involved in planning to ensure dependable results with project management tools with Jaguar approach to be effective with CPM. Many more unknowns and unclear estimates puts accuracy of  CPM at stake. Additionally, there was resistance to change by certain engineers who did not want to use the required tools, lack of “post -meetings” action reviews that would have provide much needed insight into how effectively to manage the Jaguar project, and external factors such as enforcing an accelerated timetable were lacking. However, all these limitations of CPM can be addressed through frequent and continuous meetings by the core team whose members would compile recent results, analyze their effects on the project, and adjust the CPM and all its tools accordingly. This way, any deviations from the plan would be detected early and managed accordingly. Finally, in an attempt to preempt any short falls and unintended consequences. Teradyne should make every effort to attract the best caliber in engineering, system architects and developers. Invest in R&D to keep up with the rapid technological development in the semiconductor industry. As well as pursue best methods of product development and project management techniques.