Project: Polishing Glass Samples
Services: Rolling Change
Year: 2024
At the beginning of every year, 3form launches a brand new color collection that introduces new colors that are paired with existing colors from the lineup. 3form's color and translucency is revolutionary and these new colors bring different and exciting options for our customers. This years collection "encapsulates the hues of classic building materials."
My job as the Sampling Project Planner is to assist the Sampling Manager and facilitate the sampling side of this launch. A lot goes on for a product launch like this and sampling it is no small feat. Our production process includes ordering the product in sheets; these are then cut down to our sample sizes, cleaned, labeled, and shipped off to our sales team. We standardized an 8-week lead time to complete the samples and ship them off. On the other side of things, our training process includes a spec sheet that outlines the product, what it looks like, what is being shipped to the sales team, and any rules/specifications that may apply. This is then used to train the sampling customer service and production teams.
THE DETAILS
GOAL
Collaborate with cross-teams to facilitate the new product launch containing 9 new colors paired with 4 existing colors that will be showcased in 3 different materials, Varia, Chroma, and Glass, within our standard 8-week lead time.
SCOPE
Work with the sampling teams to order, cut, clean, label, and ship each sample by the launch date, in addition to training all teams on the new products.
DELIVERABLES
Deliverables for the project includes the 13 colors in each of the 3 materials and printed collateral all packaged as kits and shipped to the sales team.
SUCCESS CRITERIA
A successful end to this project consists of on-time deliveries of the samples to the sales team by the company-wide launch date and integrating the new products into the sampling inventory.
STAKEHOLDERS
Our stakeholders included representatives from the Marketing, Product Development, IT, Purchasing, and Sales departments.
RESOURCES
We have access to the entire sampling team for fulfilling all of the physical samples and ordering for the sales team, the Product Management team, and the Google workspace to allow simultaneous access and tracking.
IN PROCESS
Throughout the project timeline, we have many steps and mini-projects that need to be completed efficiently and on time. To track these steps, we have tools that help us complete each launch efficiently and effectively.
Here, we have a Process Checklist that outlines each and every step that needs to be done. Each team member checks each step once it's completed.
Every week, we meet with the team leads to keep track of the progress of each responsibility.
For each launch we do, we track the product specifications, ordering, produced samples, documentation, and budget in a Google Sheet.
My job as the project planner is to create and facilitate this document to ensure everything is entered correctly and track our progress through the launch. We often fall behind on entering information for the next person, so it is my responsibility to motivate our team to fulfill their part.
DELIVERABLES
Our goal was to each sample, ship each package to the sales team, and incorporate the new products into our standard inventory. We were able to do just that on time and in-scope.
That doesn't mean we didn't have our challenges; we often have trouble working with our glass and producing well made samples in a timely manner. We faced that problem with this launch when our glass samples were delayed due to low quality. Because we have a strong focus on the quality of our product, this was not something to be flexible with.
We worked with our glass factory to expedite remake glass samples and we were able to received that glass order, clean, label, and ship all of the launch samples on time.
We completed our goal of producing 13 new colors in 3 materials and shipping each product kit to each sales representative on time for our January launch.
* all photos belong to 3form