Archive for Foundation
Lean Problem Solving approach
Posted by: | CommentsPractical problem solving is at the heart of the Toyota Production System and a Lean culture. These skills are based on the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle and are the bases of the A3 problem solving process. Why is learning the foundation of problem solving so important? When you start looking through the lens of Why? Why is this happening? Why is it this way? You start building a learning organization, a problem solving culture that will grow every minute of the day. The very best competitive advantage that you can instill within your organization.
Ron Pereira at the Gemba Academy introduces the 8 step Practical Problem Solving methodology in this video and touches on a few others. The steps are:
- Clarify the problem
- Breakdown the problem
- Set a target
- Analyze the root cause
- Develop countermeasures
- See countermeasures through
- Evaluate both results and process
- Standardize successful processes
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Marketing with A3 Book Release
Posted by: | CommentsSales and Marketing not only needs to improve but must improve their problem solving skills. The book, Marketing with A3 is the introduction needed. It enables sales and 
marketing to use the Lean tool of A3 as a template or structured approach for their strategies and tactics. It will also demonstrate meaningful and measurable results of their activities. You will enter meetings armed with facts and profound knowledge of sales and marketing efforts. As a result, you will engage in more meaningful conversations. It will require a different approach. The dialogue is sometimes not easy. But seldom is any improvement.
Using a structured approach, such as the Lean thinking tool of A3, the mind remains open, enabling one to examine each element of the decision or problem separately or systematically, and sufficiently, ensuring that all alternatives are considered. The outcome is almost always more comprehensive and more effective than the instinctive approach.
Visit the Marketing with A3 Website
Sample A3s
A3 Podcasts
A3 Community
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Amazon Links
Lean Marketing is a Problem Centric Discipline
Posted by: | CommentsCisco took a stand with this company where they solved the problem first before providing a solution. Of course, this could have been risky business if they would not have won the business. If so, I doubt they would have made the video.
This video is a great depiction of future marketing. Sales and marketing is in the process of shifting from a solution-centric culture to a problem-centric culture. Marketing simply needs to become part of the problem solving process of their customers. What if your marketing processes seek to identify problems versus solution? What if you were seen as a diagnostic expert rather than a solution provider? What if you guaranteed to find the problem and collaborate on the solution? Would you build a more trusting and stronger relationship?
What I really liked about this video is that it is practically a Video A3. It follows the basic nine-step process for constructing a A3:
Title/Theme: What Changes or Improvement Are You Talking About?
- Select the problem area
- Clarify the problem
- Break down the problem
- Set the target
- Investigate/analyze cause(s) then determine root cause
- Determine countermeasures and agree on plan
- Manage implementation plan
- Check and evaluate results and process
- Standardize and share, then decide next problem
I have always been told if you are not visual you are not lean! Video A3 may be an upcoming trend.
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