Out of the Crisis.Org

[Louis Altazan]

In earlier post we touched on the use of statistical process control (SPC), flow charting and PDSA. Registered members can read the example here. PDSA stands for Plan, Do, Study, Act and is a basis for maximum learning with minimum risk. It seems at first to be such a simple technique that often the power of the method is not appreciated. In this series of articles I hope to cover in depth the four phases of PDSA. How it is used and how it relates to Deming’s fourteen points.

Continual improvement is the aim and every process in our operations might be the target. There is an old saying, "If it’s not broken, don’t fix it." Certainly little is gained from fixing things that work. In a business setting the term broken is relative. Basically everything that could be done better, quicker or less expensively is "broken."

There is no shortage of targets nor methods of improvement. There is a shortage of "learnership." Learnership is similar to leadership and may be a part of it. This is teaching people how to learn in a more efficient manner. This form of training can improve the effectiveness of all other training.

It all starts with a problem that needs improvement, this is the plan phase. Learning to look at problems as opportunities is the first step. This can only be accomplished in an atmosphere of trust [Deming point 8, work to remove fear,] and in the absence of fear. As long as problems are seen as a blame finding exercise, it is unlikely the process can move on.

Most companies never accomplish this first step through their staff. More often, in Western culture, leaders think [plan] and staff members do as they are told. I feel this is very unfortunate. It overlooks the huge experience the staff members have with the problem. Often problems never move beyond this stage and people simply learn to adapt. In time problems are accepted as standard operating procedure [SOP,] the way things are done. Eventually they may not be seen as problems at all.

Management normally becomes involved when problems reach clients. At this point they make a quick assessment of symptoms, issue a decree and move on. This may feel like action, until the problem recurs in the same are slightly different form.

In the absence of fear the situation might be handled differently. When the staff member encounters a problem, they first look for a cause. This is best handled by asking "why" repeatedly looking for cause. This may involve stepping back and looking at the problem. For instance:

1.) "Why is there oil around the base of my lift?" Because the ram is leaking.

2.) "Why is the ram leaking?" Because a seal has failed.

3.) "Why did the seal fail? Because the lift is overloaded.

4.) "Why is the lift overloaded?" Because we lift 8,000 pound vehicles with a 6,000 pound lift.

5.) "Why do we use 6,000 lifts, when we have 8,000 pound loads? Because management thinks they are less expensive.

A simple example, but the principle will work in most situations. It may not be practical at all times to stop work to ponder a problem. In these cases the problem can be noted and revisited when time allows. Often the problem may require allocation of considerable resources or involve others. In these cases management may need to be consulted.

In other instances staff members might have resources available for this purpose. As the company gets better with the technique the resource allocation may increase. Properly administered, this is not a cost center, this is a profit centered. Once a problem is identified a plan is formulated to address the problem. This is step one in the process of PDSA.

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Louis Altazan
Owner/Manager AGCO Automotive Corporation
Baton Rouge, LA