Casestudy:

TheDysonElectricCar

Organization:DysonLtd-UK

Project type: Development of an electric carProjectname:TheDyson

Date: Oct 2019Cost:500M

Synopsis:

The future of transportation is here to see and it is of course electric! As a result, the development ofelectric cars has been a growth area for the past ten years and the pace of change continues to grow.That growth and the potential to revolutionize the car market has interested both newcomers andincumbents alike. Of the newcomers, Tesla has of course made the cut and has proven they have thestamina to stay in the game. Other startups have come, gone, been resurrected and gone again. AtthetimeofwritingRivian,Fiskerandotherstart-upsarestillinthegame,buttheyfacethemonumental challenge of taking on the likes of Volkswagen, Nissan, GM and other organizations thatalready havetheinfrastructure to design,build,sell andsupportvehiclesonaworldwidebasis.

OneoftherecentchallengerstothrowinthetowelisDysonLtd.JamesDysonisoneoftheUKrichestmen. An engineer, a techie and an entrepreneur, Dyson made his fortune developing high-end homeappliances (most notably vacuum cleaners). Always looking for fields in need of his engineeringprowess, Dyson started down the difficult road of developing a from-scratch electric car.The jumpfrom vacuum cleaners to cars is of course massive and the decision to invest in the project was aquantum leapof faith.

Normally such a move would require careful due diligence and active management of the downsiderisks.Itappears,however,thatasaprivatelyownedbusiness,Dysontookadifferentpath.InaMarch2020 interview with the business magazine "Fast Company" Dyson was asked about the role upfrontmarketanalysis plays in developingDysonproducts.

Dysonreplied...

"We never think of the market for the product. It's not something that guides us. We look for aproblem in the product, and then we go to solve the problem. Hand dryers aren't a particularly bigmarket compared to hair dryers or vacuum cleaners, but that didn't stop us from wanting to make ahanddryer.Havinganinterestingtechnologyforproductsdecideswhatwedo,whetherthemarketissmallor big."

Tobefair,Dyson'sleapoffaithdidmakealotofprogressandreportsindicatethathisnascentprojectgotasfarasafullyfunctionalvehiclethatwasnearreadyforproduction.However,ascostsmountedpast the 500M mark, the monumental costs of product launch came into view. Recognizing that tocovertheinvestmentandproductioncoststhefinishedproductwaslikelytohaveapricehigherthanthemarket wouldbare,theproject has beencanned.

Note: Dyson is a privately owned company and the cost of the project was apparently born by MrDysonhimself.AlthoughMrDysoncancertainlyaffordtoabsorbthe500Mcost,Ithinkweshould

also remember the time, talent, sweat and tears of the team who work on the project. To see all ofthateffortwastedisheartbreakinitsownright.Hopefully,someofthetechnologywillstillfindawayforwardandsomeofthateffortwillberewarded,butasitstands,theprojectmaynotbecatastrophicfor Dyson, but it is likely a massive disappointment for those who vested themselves in the project'ssuccess.

Contributingfactorsas reportedinthepress:

Lack of upfront due diligence (failure to analyze costs, market competitive landscape, market size,productioncostsandprofitmargins).Underestimationofcosts.Perfectionism.Focalimbalance(focusingontheproductratherthanthe fullspectrumofworkneedtolaunchacarbrand).

AdaptedfromCalleam.com(2020)

Question1

Critically analyse the above case study and compile a discussion on why you believe the project didnotsucceed.Inyourdiscussionexplainwhatyoubelievetobethecriticalsuccessfactorsforaprojectandwhat youwouldhavedonedifferentlyin theDysoncar project.

Question2

Constructtheprojectlifecyclethatyoubelieve wouldbeusedintheprojectofDysonLtdintheabovecase study.Includeadiscussiononeachstagebyapplyingthe contextgiventheabovecasestudy.

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