![]() ![]() The fourth step is to review the teams’ recommendations for change. If it makes sense to show the data, upload a photo or chart. The key here is to tell the story of the data. The third step is to review what/ how the team document or researched for data. Some teams may want to display this by adding the process map into the A3. The second step is to review the team’s current state map or process and document the current challenges. You can have fun and add photos of your team members into the A3. The first step is to refer to the team’s project documentation and utilize this to document the background, Opportunity Statement, and goals. You do not always have the time to show all the information in all the team’s boards, so this A3 highlights the great accomplishment of the team. This A3 can be used to promote the Lean efforts at summits or seminars, leadership meetings, social media, newsletters and more. ![]() ![]() This template is designed to take that information and condense it down to one document. Often there are multiple boards that are utilised to document a team’s journey such as: I hope you see how this simple tool can be used to drive very effective problem solving and continuous improvement initiatives.The Lean A3 Template is a way to highlight a team’s journey through a Lean project. You will see how they used the tool to analyse the issue in depth and plan actions that I'm confident will ensure they create a sustainable pipeline for attracting and retaining skilled workers in the business. Training on the A3 method was completed with two members of the management team that volunteered to be guinea pigs for the business and try the method. It was only a band-aid measure that was not addressing the root cause of the issue. They had been using an agency to temporarily fix the issue but it was proving expensive and the quality of skilled workers was very inconsistent. I used it with a relatively small construction business that was starting to struggle due to a lack of skilled workers. That keeps accountability and action status checking clear and easy to follow-up on.Ībove is an example of the A3 tool in action. It is important to remember that only one owner should ever be assigned to a particular action. PDCA Action Plan - a clear table describing issues, corrective actions, owners, deadlines and status. The root cause is what you should focus all corrective actions on. Materials, Method, Man, Machine, Measurement) to keep the users focused on brainstorming contributing factors and not slip into problem solving mode, this comes later.įive Why Analysis - ask “why?” five times to any issue & you will identify the root cause. Tools Supporting A3 Analysis Fishbone Diagram - a fishbone shaped tools used to brainstorm possible contributing factors to an issue. Act is when you close-off completed and successful actions or you re-plan more actions if those taken did not resolve the issue. Check is where you determine if the issue has been fixed. Do is where you take action to rectify the issue. Planning involves identifying and describing the issue. It is a structured process for driving actions to fix ongoing issues and prevent their re-occurrence. This can be the tipping point for shifting the culture of the business towards performance excellence. This results in more staff being exposed to & implementing additional Lean skills and tools into their everyday work. It also encourages the use of additional Lean tools for analysis such as Fishbone Diagram, Five Why Analysis, PDCA action planning and pareto charts. Its design ensures consistency across different problem solving or continuous improvement initiatives. It has been designed to keep things simple by focusing on the facts. The tool is flexible and can be used in a variety of situations. What are the benefits of using the A3 method? Planning - what resources are needed & when is the best timing?.Proposed Actions - what steps do we plan to take to address the issue?.Analysis - what are the root causes of the issue?.Overall Goal / Target - what improvement are we trying to achieve?.Current State - description of the current issue.Background - what is the reason for working on the issue (business case)?.Here is an overview of the information required when using the A3 method: The A3 template has been constructed in a way that forces the users to populate key information in an accurate and concise manner. The method is simple to apply, using pencil, paper (A3 format obviously!) and inputs from the team on the ground floor. It makes communicating ideas simple and eliminates the need for constructing time consuming powerpoint presentations. An A3 is a simple one page format problem solving methodology that is based on lean principles. ![]()
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