Problem Solving Visually

Root Cause is Easy! Right?

Wrong!  It takes dedication.

I have lost count how many times team members have announced, after 10 minutes discussion, that the root cause of X is Y, only to be shown later that Y was in fact only a Point of Cause.  Let's take a visual journey through True Problem Solving.  The following is based on teachings during my time at Toyota, and my continued learning since.

Problem Solving Visually? Throughout this post you will see the use of colors, pictures, symbols, and visual cues.  By presenting your ideas and explanations visually you enable the audience to better understand what you are trying to explain, and hopefully maintain their interest.  Three magic words from my Toyota days I never forget - DRAW A PICTURE.  This is at the heart of the A3 process, the concept of presenting a visual story on a single sheet of A3 paper (11x17).

Let's get started solving some problems.

1. Background - Give some context.

 2. Clarify the Problem - Measure the Gap!

First, consider your Ultimate Goal of your responsibilities at work.  Then grasp the Current Situation of the work. Question if the current situation is contributing to the ultimate goal.

After fully understanding the Ultimate Goal and Current Situation, clarify the Ideal Situation, which is how the Current Situation should be. Now compare the two in order to visualize the Gap. This will make the problem clear.

Oh yes, remember to draw a picture!  Visualize your current and ideal situations/conditions.  Visualize the gap, and the 'real' problem.

Important - If you don't quantify the gap, how will you measure your improvement?  Think this through.  How do you describe the problem in terms of WASTE (MUDA).  Use a metric that is measurable. Example - We lose 12 hours production every 4 weeks due to oils leaks.  In 1 year we lose 144 hours production.             <144 hours is our gap>

3 - Break Down the Problem to find the Points of Cause

This is probably the most important part of Problem Solving, and where most people go wrong and jump straight to trying to find the root cause.  Before you can even think of 5 Why Analysis, you first need to Break Down the Problem and Prioritize the problems to solve.  Before WHY comes, What, Where, Who, When.

DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!  Keep an eye on those Red Stars, you'll see them again soon.

Remember, draw a Picture!  Draw diagrams or pictures that visualize your analysis.  Illustrate your processes highlight deficiencies.  Make clear where the problems are.

4 - Setting a Target

You've measured the gap, broken down the problem, prioritized the items you are going to analyze, now Set a Target.  You need to be able to measure the successfulness of any countermeasures or solutions you implement through PDCA, so it is critical you can measure that success.  Set an achievable target that will be realized by solving the prioritized problems. 

Ask Yourself - How much, and by when? Are we contributing to the ultimate goal?

Draw a Picture!

5 - Root Cause Analysis - The Exciting Part

If you've made it this far, you are now ready for Root Cause Analysis, but only if you've completed all the other steps!  Jumping to Root Causes is the same as jumping to conclusions.  Invariably you'll get it wrong as you are not in possession of all the facts!

Start with your prioritized problems from Step 3 - The Red Stars

Start with one of your prioritized problems.  Ask WHY it occurred.  Ask WHY again.  Now ask WHY again.  Keep going until you have reached the REAL cause of the problem.  The 'true root cause'.

Sometimes it doesn't need 5 WHYs, and other times it needs more.  FIVE is a guide, not a rule.

The Green Stars you see are used soon when we define countermeasures to cure those root causes.

Tip: Write each level of WHY on a Post It Note, and then organize them on your desk.  Add or remove Post It Notes and change the order until the analysis makes sense.  This is how I was taught to analyze problems, and I still use this method today to test my analysis is correct.

When you think you have it worked out, use THERFORE to test your WHY analysis as in the example below.  If it doesn't make sense, your analysis is incomplete.  Gather more facts and keep asking WHY.

6 - Defining Countermeasures to Solve the Problems

For each root cause identified define countermeasures to eliminate the cause. 

The green stars denote which root cause we are tackling, and we have assigned each countermeasure a letter which we will use later.

Evaluate and Prioritize

Now assess each countermeasure for effectiveness choosing categories that have context in your situation.

Prioritize them.  Do them in that order!  Stay focused on the outcome.

If you're wondering about those symbols I used above, look out for an upcoming post on visual management and status reporting. 

7 - Define a Plan

Whatever your tool or method you should define a plan.  Explain your planning method and approach.  State key actions that will be done.  State key activities that will take place.  Make sure everyone understands how they will deliver on the plan to achieve the solution.  If you're Lean then Plan Do Check Act.  If you're Agile define Stories for each countermeasure and Scrum them.

Visualize your approach.  Do daily standups.  Practice Hansei (relentless reflection, acknowledge your mistakes and pledge improvement).

8 - Monitor and Review

     The Chart of Our Great Success

So now you have a Plan, and are DOing something, you need to define how to Check if your countermeasures are as effective as you said they would be. 

You should also have in place a mechanism to ensure we Act when we see the results of our efforts, such as any governance you have put in place to ensure this approach is successful.

Visualize your results so that reviewers know how you are doing, or have done.

9 - Standardize

After all your hard work it would be a shame if someone else repeated the same mistakes.  We should always be aiming to learn and then standardize our processes and methods. This is the goal of any Problem Solving exercise.

Standards reduce waste, improve quality, and deliver customer value.

 "Where there is no standard, there can be no Kaizen" Taiicho Ohno - Master Sensei and Creator of the Toyota Production System.

10 - Spread the Word - Yokoten

Yokoten is the practice of spreading knowledge across an organization so that everyone can benefit from your hard work, and best practices.

Once you have created your standard, spread the word to enable the benefits throughout the organization.

Conclusion

I hope this post has provided some guidance when approaching problem solving, and root cause analysis.  It's not easy, but if done right it will bring benefits and rewards to you and your organization.

I'll give the final word to Taiichi Ohno "Having no problems is the biggest problem of all".

Acknowledgements

I have learned many things from many great teachers over the years, and their knowledge is reflected in everything that I do, and this post is no exception.  My Toyota leadership is omnipresent, as are influences from Jeff Liker, Mike Rother, and others.