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Technology Information:

Understanding A3 Thinking: A Critical Component of Toyota's PDCA Management System

Description

Winner of a 2009 SHingo Research and Professional Publication Prize. Notably flexible and brief, the A3 report has proven to be a key tool In Toyota’s successful move toward organizational efficiency, effectiveness, and improvement, especially within its engineering and R&D organizations. The power of the A3 report, however, derives not from the report itself, but rather from the development of the culture and mindset required for the implementation of the A3 system. In other words, A3 reports are not just an end product but are evidence of a powerful set of dynamics that is referred to as A3 Thinking.

In Understanding A3 Thinking, the authors first show that the A3 report is an effective tool when it is implemented in conjunction with a PDCA-based management philosophy. Toyota views A3 Reports as just one piece in their PDCA management approach. Second, the authors show that the process leading to the development and management of A3 reports is at least as important as the reports themselves, because of the deep learning and professional development that occurs in the process. And finally, the authors provide a number of examples as well as some very practical advice on how to write and review A3 reports.

Reviews

Rating: 4 / 5
Date: 2010-08-23
Summary: "Very good addition to your lean library"

Pro:
+ Very, very good summary of PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act)
+ Good use of references using solid, reliable sources
+ Explains misconceptions of western interpreation of the word, "standard"
+ Solid summary chapter at the end
+ A3 building exercises for the reader is a novel approach, thumbs up
+ Practical advice
+ Good examples of A3s
+ Appreciated the honesty glimpses of the realities of Toyota as a global, multinational company, even if they were small or only hinted at
+ A decent section on the "digital" vs. "paper" debate
+ Describes some elements of good or proper visuals (e.g. Tufte section on proper display of analytics)

Con:
- By far the largest issue is the repetitious nature of the material. Chapters 3, 4, 5 could have perhaps been best presented as one with notes describing key differences. As is, I think the repetition has a tendency to hide and demphasize differences and key points.
- Fig 6.2 and related description seems to have some serious issues, whether it is message, erroneous, or other I cannot yet say
- Some jargon (e.g. "spinning your wheels") that will not translate easily if you are not American

Neutral:
> 5 Whys was not deeply described and maybe borders in my opinion on an incorrect description, although in fairness to the authors this is not the focus of the book
> Heavy use of "at Toyota" (which is on the cover) so if this is a turnoff, please note that "Toyota" shows up in here quite a bit

Bottom line: Recommended for everyone.

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Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2010-02-15
Summary: "Very simple."

A3 means reporting improvement activity with A3 size paper. This kind of tool is very popular in QC Circles Japan.

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Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2009-10-24
Summary: "A3 Thinking made simple"

I bought this book out of a recommendation. It is totally worth it. Easy to read, clear examples and a very good guidance for anyone that has had contact with Manufacturing processes and want to start A3 thinking right away. Ideas and overall thought process of this book is clear for almost anyone to apply in real life. Highly recommended!

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Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2009-05-11
Summary: "Outstanding and In-Depth"

This book is outstanding. I initially thought it would be a quick read since the page count is short, but I found myself slowly savoring it. This book is like a good wine where you appreciate the textures and nuances if you take it slow.

I suggest this book to all Lean practitioners, most project managers, people who use data to understand problems and show improvements, people who like to draw, and anybody else that enjoys the thought process behind problem solving.

This is a great next book for fans of THE BACK OF THE NAPKIN. http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24203...

The authors offer profound insights to A3 thinking and structure. They also paint a deeper understanding of the thinking at Toyota. I particularly liked the explanation of nemawashi and how the A3 author must return to those where their concerns were not addressed to explain why.

I found the thinking behind data to be fascinating. It is nice to see how much or how little is used. The authors even give a nice overview of Tufte's graph theories while providing an easy template to choose the best graph to match your communication goal.

For project managers, the A3 project status template is worth exploring. I have used dashboards in the past but this structure paints a better picture while ensuring the organization's objectives are still being met (projects can chug along way past this simple goal and this report keeps it grounded).

Last but not least, my organization is in the infancy of launching A3 to our mix of Improvement Workshops and Value Stream work. This book offers practical suggestions for starting A3 at your enterprise.

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Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2009-02-14
Summary: "Good A3 Reference Book"

Outstanding reference work of the logic and mechanics of creating A3's. Covered are 3 variants: 1) Problem Solving A3's, 2) Proposal A3's, and 3) Status A3's.

The authors present a refreshingly pragmatic approach to helping improvement teams and leaders to drive communication, scientific method thinking and organizational alignment for improvement. Clearly building on the A3 heritage of Toyota...the focus is on the thought process and not on one correct format. " ...like snowflakes, no two A3's are alike."

Six Sigma professionals will recognize many elements (both existing and omitted) of DMAIC thinking in the PDCA format of the A3. For today's challenging business cycle, the A3 approach can offer faster, less bureaucratic results, building on more frequent cycles of learning through revision than DMAIC.

This book is valuable for beginners as well as veteran Six Sigma professionals looking to make the transition from DMAIC to A3 thinking.

The case studies included in the book provide an outstanding opportunity to test your understanding and gain initial cycles of learning with A3's writing and reviewing.

Save this book for a long flight; you can get through the case studies easily.

Managing to Learn: Using the A3 Management Process to Solve Problems, Gain Agreement, Mentor, and Lead is another helpful guide to A3's which deals even more with the "human side" of A3 thinking.

For those who wish to go deeper into the graphical aspects of A3, which are discussed to a limited degree in Mr. Sorbek's work, Edward Tufte's The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, 2nd edition is a valuable resource.