In the “Meet a Dragon” blog series we’ll be introducing our team members who help guide your product through the New Product Introduction (NPI) process and ongoing manufacturing. These people act as an extension of your team and are on the front lines with you day in and day out. They have hundreds of years of collective experience helping to build millions of complex products.
Name: Tan Li
Company Role: Project Manager
What do you do at Dragon Innovation: I have been working as a Project Manager at Dragon Innovation for almost 5 years. Usually, a project is brought to me at the New Product Introduction (NPI) stage once the Contract Manufacturer (CM) has been selected. I start the project by trying to understand the customers, their products and customers’ expectations. Then we communicate to the factory and work out an optimal and feasible timeline/solution to meet the customer’s production goal for cost, quality and schedule. We also highlight the difficulties and help customer to understand potential risks, if any, as soon as possible.
I also work with Dragon’s experienced team to bring a specified quality test plan to be implemented properly at the CMs.
Sometimes, when necessary we help customers on alternative sources for the purpose of lower cost, higher quality or better delivery, by leveraging Dragon’s trusted network of suppliers.
What is something in the manufacturing and supply chain industry you have to deal with that you want to fix?
It is really a big question and difficult for me to answer.
Usually, cost, quality and schedule are the 3 most important factors customers care about. We can always achieve a balance between cost and quality. However, talking about the schedule, I think it would be greatly helpful if order processing time can be shortened, and order processing efficiency can be improved by the CM’s supplier chain management.
What has been your favorite project to work on?
It is hard to say which project is my favorite, I like all of them! Different projects make different products, which are all new and exciting to me. Working with different CMs I get a lot of exposure to various experiences and processes, especially in schedule management, quality control and communication skills.
What do you enjoy doing when you are not working?
When not working, I am busy taking care of my 2 kids, a 8-year boy and a 4-year girl. Both of them have so many after-school interest classes, like dancing, singing, piano, football…. So mostly, I am on the way back and forth between classes and home during weekday evenings.
During my actual spare time, I love to get together with some old friends, spending a pleasant time sharing funny stories as well as troubles of daily life and anticipations of the future. I also like planting flowers on my small balcony. Although I am not good at it, I enjoy it very much! It makes me really relaxed.
Favorite quote: “Never too old to learn, never too late to turn.”
Want to learn more about working with great Dragons like Tan Li to get your product to market? Get in touch with us to talk about what Dragon can do for you.
Get one-on-one help from a manufacturing expert. We’d love to speak with you.
