Problem Solving, Developing a System to Measure Performance

Implementing a system to measure performance will allow problem solvers to answer the question: "How do I know if the necessary changes have been made to resolve the problem?"

Appropriate measurements will allow for the collection of important information to compare the performance of the team with the goal set and to understand whether the desired direction has been achieved. These measurements can be financial (costs, return on investments, added value, use of various assets, etc.), customer-oriented (for example, to determine whether the plans and strategies are able to maintain or even increase customer satisfaction, attract new customers, or encourage repeat business after they have decided to purchase elsewhere), or relevant to the internal activities of the organization (focusing mainly on process improvement, productivity, people's capabilities, IT system efficiency, internal satisfaction, the ability to attract and retain talent, etc.).

Once a good measurement system is developed, it can be used to develop possible cost-benefit scenarios to decide which solutions to choose for improvement. To be effective, a measurement must be well thought out or, as the Americans say, it must be SMART. The acronym stands for the following words:

1. “Specific” = Specific, meaning that a measurement must refer specifically to an important topic.
2. “Measurable” = Measurable, meaning countable or verifiable in some other way.
3. “Assignable” = Assignable, meaning that the person responsible for recording it and how to use it must be identified.
4. “Realistic” = Realistic, meaning it must make sense within the organization and how it will be used.
5. “Timely” = Timely, meaning it must be provided at the moment the organization needs it.

Creating SMART measures will help the organization be selective about the data it wants to collect and use and create a link between what it is doing and what customers need.

Identifying and Defining the Problem

The fourth phase of problem-solving is identifying and clearly defining the issue. Identifying a problem means:

1. Identifying any internal and external customers who may be affected by it;
2. Identifying the needs, wants, requirements, and expectations of these customers;
3. Determining how the issue might impact the achievement of customer satisfaction;
4. Identifying the gaps between what is desired and what is actually happening.

There are many tools that can be used at this stage; the main one is control sheets, which can be described as sheets that include a list of categories for recording data. When an event happens that falls under one of the listed categories, a checkmark is placed in the associated column. In this way, it will be easy to visually verify how often a particular event occurs.

Another tool that can be used is the Pareto chart, which is a graphical tool used to prioritize issues and arrange them from the most important (the one with the worst negative consequences) to the least important. The Pareto chart will make it extremely simple to identify which problems are most urgent to address.

Documenting and Analyzing the Problem or Process

Once the problem is described, do not rush to its resolution without first documenting exactly what the situation is, as the risk of making mistakes and jumping to conclusions too quickly would be too great. At this stage, we must ask ourselves: “How is the process that caused the problem actually functioning?”

One way to better understand how a process works is to map its various stages. A process map will accurately describe the individual activities, waiting times, redundant actions, errors, overlaps, etc.

Determining the possible causes that led to the emergence of the issue

At this crucial stage of the process, the team can finally start investigating the causes that triggered the problem. Among the tools that can be used in this sixth step are brainstorming, affinity diagrams, cause-and-effect diagrams, histograms, control charts, and many others.

Identifying, Choosing, and Implementing the Solution Once the cause that created the problem is identified, we must answer the following question: “How can this situation be improved?” With this seventh step, the "Do" phase of the Deming cycle begins; after dedicating the first six steps to planning ("Plan") what to do, now we must focus on solving the problem operationally.

At this stage, all possible solutions that can be implemented to solve the issue must be identified, the best one must be selected, all necessary actions to implement it must be initiated, and any required changes must be planned.

As mentioned earlier, care should be taken not to rush into this stage, possibly due to impatience to find an immediate solution to the problem. Without the first six steps, the risk of identifying and implementing an unsuitable solution would be too high. That is why the majority of the effort, six steps, is dedicated to the planning stages.

This does not mean, of course, that all necessary actions to contain the problem and prevent customers from experiencing discomfort should not be implemented right away. The problem should be addressed with very short-term actions to ensure that there is enough time afterward to carefully consider its final resolution, possibly with longer-term actions.

In any case, we must not think that the short-term solution can be the final one because a problem will only be permanently solved when we are certain that it will never recur. The best solution will be the one that:

1. Has the highest probability (if not absolute certainty) of preventing the problem from recurring in the future;
2. Addresses the real causes that created the problem, not its symptoms;
3. Has the best cost-benefit ratio;
4. Can be implemented within a reasonable time frame.

Evaluating the Solution

The third phase of the Deming cycle ("Check") begins with the eighth step of the problem-solving process, in which the adopted solution must be evaluated. The evaluation should be done after a certain period to allow enough time for the solution to definitively resolve the issue. This is the phase in which we must essentially ask two questions:

• "Does the adopted solution really work?" To answer this first question, we must verify whether the performance measurements determined in the third step have actually shown improvements;
• "What have we learned from this experience?"

Ensuring the Solution Becomes a Habit

The ninth and final step is dedicated to the fourth phase of the Deming wheel, the "Act" phase, which we could define as "adjustment." At this point in the problem-solving process, we must decide whether to permanently adopt the change and solution implemented or abandon them because they were found to be ineffective, and repeat the entire process from the beginning. This final phase ensures continuous improvement.

If it is decided to permanently adopt the change made, then methodologies (new controls and procedures) must be established to maintain the achieved level of quality and ensure that the new performance is guaranteed over time.