Getting to the Root
Introduction
Many companies struggle with perplexing problems leaving management trying to understand the minds of staff and staff feeling unappreciated and over-worked. In more extreme cases customers are on the receiving end of less than perfect products/services and soon there-after a new supplier is sought. In reality many of these problems have their roots in fairly humble origins.
CASE STUDY
Company A finds that a customer complains about late delivery of parts over the past three months. This comes as a shock as everything that's been made has been delivered and since this had been going on for so long its hard to define what the specific cause would have been.
Only after careful and meticulous research does it come to light that the production process is working slower than anticipated. Hence the quantities in finished goods inventory is less than thought, but the delivery truck delivers what-ever is available and delivers this to the customer. Productivity might appear healthy, but customers are unhappy and improvement is needed.
The keen eye will recognise several stages of failure in this example: Lack of production control and feedback, Lack of order collection data and reconciliation and possibly a few more. None of the above are particularly difficult to implement and control, even at a rudimentary level, so the real question is why has it not been implemented?
Back to Basics
Its always nice to quote clever people, so lets go to one in particular - Einstein has been quoted to say that "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them." For this reason its obvious that we need to think differently about our problems when solving them. The example shows this too - management clearly thought that not controlling the quantities produced and shipped would be fine, since they planned to make and deliver enough!
So how can we think differently?
Solve the right problem
This is SO obvious that most people never do it!
The right problem depends a lot on how we define that problem. If I say that my tire is flat, on most cars that could be any of four different tires. So to solve it I need to know which tire is flat.
Same with business - if the problem is well defined it will be easier to focus the efforts of all involved. Consider things like the difference between actual and expected outcomes and try to be specific.
Problems are Situational
To some people having long hair is a problem that needs to be addressed, however to others it might be fashion statement.
In order to solve a problem one needs to understand the situation surrounding it. This will give clues to finding the cause or causes of the problem.
The situation can be described in several ways - the two most common ways are the 4W2H and the flow-chart approaches. 4W2H asks Who, When, Where, What, How and How much (not Why!). The flowchart asks the solver/s to draw a flow-chart describing the process where the problem occurs.
Both of the above options are done to aid in identifying the data that is needed to understand the problem and its situation completely. Without understanding these it will be impossible to reach the new way of thinking that will be necessary to solve the problem.
Rooting for your Team
Problem-solving is rarely a one-person job. Particularly if the problem is big enough - it will affect several departments/areas. Then you definitely need a team! However, many companies have a very tight schedule and staff cannot afford to sit in endless meetings.
Management support is essential. If such a session is considered time wasted by management it will not fly. Two ideas come to mind - schedule the time to do this and find a champion or facilitator to drive the process.
If the process is well-managed with the right level of support - the returns should be greater than the cost of having those people away from their workstations. Also this will create a new attitude and culture towards problems in the organisation. One that should lead to regular problem-solving sessions.
Continuous Improvement
Like most things this process will become smoother through repetition, repetition leads to habit and habits create culture. Building a culture that solves problems will, without fail, create a culture that improves.
Another quote: "Nothing breeds success like success."
And when they don't have any more problems they will start looking for opportunities, because the euphoria of success is addictive.
Conclusion
Can your company afford NOT to use proper problem solving techniques? Contact us today to set up a consultation.