According to a rather interesting report by the Wall Street Journal, Sony’s approach to developing a product to challenge the iPad was a rather disjointed affair. The report states that Sony had four different teams working on four different projects.
Luckily for Sony, soon to be appointed CEO Kaz Hirai formed a User Experience Group and culled all but one of the projects. This lead to the development of Sony’s Tablet S hardware along with its Playstation suite integration.
The company had long had a reputation for creating 'silos,' or divisions that operated in isolation from each other. Aside from creating a disunited front, it sometimes led to segments being actively jealous of each other and refusing to collaborate. Walkman and home theater groups, for example, didn't get the cooperation from Sony's own music and movie groups to make digital media stores.
Under the leadership of Sony’s new CEO Kaz Harai, it is expected that Sony will have a much more rigid structure. Management will make decisions on product directions and strategies. Individual teams will then be taxed with the problem of making the products real; Sony wants to emulate the Apple way of developing new products.
Source: WSJ via Electronista
