Thinking Out Of The Box While Deriving Value Through The POWER Of A3. Is Your Organization Utilizing A3?

A3 is a management process that aligns both vertically and horizontally an organization’s functions and activities with its strategic objectives. A specific plan, typically annual, is developed with precise goals, actions, timelines, responsibilities, and measures.

This problem-solver records the results of investigation and planning in a concise, two-page document (the A3 size 11”x17” sheet of paper originated with Toyota) that facilitates knowledge sharing and collaboration, shown below.

Typically, A3 can be thought of as being supported by problem solving, mentoring and coaching, communication, and collaboration. There are several key elements to an A3.

Key Elements of the A3 Thought Process:

• Logical Process Thinking: Using specific methodology SDCA (Standardize, Do, Check, Adjust) and PDCA (Plan, Do, Check, Act) to get to the root causes
• Objectivity: Use of facts (current situation) and data to define the problem at hand
• Results and Process Driven: Balancing between methodology and achieving results. Process adherence or Process stability
• Actualization, Visualization and Affinitization: Concise visual display of the information, data and what to do next
• Core Alignment: Having overall consensus of the problem causes and applicable countermeasures
• Consistency and Coherency Across all Functions: Results in a linkage and flow to the root cause, countermeasures, company goals, and departmental / functional goals
• Functional Viewpoints: Impact of the countermeasures. Asking the question of, “What are the undesirables of implementing these solutions” while looking strategically three to five steps ahead

A3 Manages Two Cycles for Continuous Improvement and Sustainability.

The example A3 below shows the strategy of a finance department director for returning a company to profitability. The Performance box in the upper left corner illustrates that the company missed its revenue and EBIT targets the previous year. It also shows inventory levels because the director considers it to be the company’s biggest waste and a serious drag on cash flow. The “R” for “red” rating in the Reflection box shows that key improvement efforts didn’t work last year. The Analysis below it shows the top actions that must be done to achieve this year’s strategic objective of profitability. The Action Plan on the right provides the who, what, when, where, and how of the strategy. The follow up box displays any lingering concerns and how the director will check on progress.

A3 (strategy deployment), also known by the Japanese term hoshin kanri, may start as a top-down process when an organization launches a lean conversion. However, once the major goals are set, it should become a top-down and bottom-up process involving a dialogue between senior managers and project teams about the resources and time both available and needed to achieve the targets. This dialogue often is called catch ball (or nemawashi) as ideas are tossed back and forth like a ball.

The objective is to match available resources with desirable projects so that only projects that are desirable, important, and achievable are authorized. (This is to avoid the practice in many organizations of embarking on many improvement initiatives that are popular in parts of the organization but aren’t completed for lack of cross-function agreement and resources).

As an organization progresses with its lean transformation and gains experience with A3 deployment, the process should become much more bottom-top-bottom, with each part of the organization proposing actions to senior management to improve performance. A mature lean organization may call this process strategy alignment or policy management.

Tangible Benefits of an A3 Include:

• Consistent approach with common language
• Improved problem solving, decision making, and risk reduction
• Improved customer satisfaction with desirable quality results
• Faster cycle times with less waste at a reduced price while providing the best possible cost to the organization and delivering the best possible quality product, service and or transaction
• Improved speed and sustainment of problem resolution / identification
• Improved culture, behaviors, norms, employee engagement, and problem solving

Utilizing this consistent, powerful, and proven approach results in strengthening the capabilities of the workforce, accelerating the speed to resolution of problem solving, and the generation of valuable results.

If you wish to learn more about “A3” and its implementation in your organization, I would be most grateful to be your guide during this journey. Please give me a call.

Roman Bos
Business Optimization Solutions
Lean Consulting Services
239-671-6813