What sticks out to me about the Toyota A3 approach to problem analysis and resolution, and what makes it a great asset to entrepreneurs and those seeking to start their own venture is the degree to which mentoring and oversight by senior managers plays a role in the problem solving process.
Often times in engineering and technology, there is a belief that experiential learning is the most effective and 'sticky' way for younger, fresher employees to internalize and master the day-to-day nuts and bolts of their chosen vocation; just jump into the work and pick at the problems until you come up with a solution, then, deconstruct the work with a more senior partner to identify areas for improvement or possible mistakes… this is where we get the code review from.
But in the small business/startup world, the stakes are too high and the variables too many to have a 'dive in and swim' approach… you need context, experience, and the ability to see in all directions of you are to make the best possible decisions for your firm.
That's what makes the Toyota approach so interesting when viewed through the lens of entrepreneurship… as the article states, it '…creates an organization full of thinking, learning problem solvers.' By baking oversight and mentorship into the problem analysis and resolution process, they invite a more thorough transfer of wisdom and experience form the teacher to the student.
This is similar in principle to the goal Entrepreneurship In Residence programs seek to create- pair a senior entrepreneur with a young gun, and immerse them in the world of their ventures. In software development, we call this 'pair programming' and its a great way for junior programmers to get up to speed quickly, learn a new language or framework, or master all the ins and outs of a codebase.
According the article, "A3 management is a system based on building structured opportunities for people to learn in the manner that comes most naturally to them: through experience, by learning from mistakes and through plan-based trial and error." This would suggest that people are allowed to fail and not necessarily prevented from doing so. By being "plan-based", people are envisioning a solution based on some layer of facts and analysis of the problem. Therefore they now have expected/forecast results to compare what really happens against. Their learning is not by blind luck or happenstance, but by logical reasoning and deduction.
ReplyDeleteI certainly agree that a mentor could be invaluable in a small business or start-up venture. Bringing experience to the table, when evaluating countermeasures to a given set of problems, can help identify those that will potentially be the most successful or perhaps offer other solutions for consideration.
I like your "dive in and swim" comment. In smaller/start-up companies its all about efficiency. In my experience this often means moving forward in a linear way to solve problems. You have a problem, you identify 1 solution, you implement that solution and if it works you forget about it. This works, but its often not the best solution, but in that environment you never have the time to do a full study or evaluate every option. The A3 is great for that, produces very thorough evaluation in very short about of time.
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