Lessons from Toyota, Wrike, and Airbus on How to Create a Culture of Problem Solvers

Do you feel like your teams are wasting an enormous amount of time and effort solving the same problems over and over again? Are your issues being solved with a “band-aid” rather than a systematic overhaul? Are people jumping to conclusions and coming up with solutions based on assumptions and guess-work? If you’ve answered yes to any of the above and have experienced a sense of deja vu while fixing an issue, then your root problem may lie within your company’s culture. Continue reading to learn three key ingredients for a problem-solving organization.

The Three Key Ingredients for a Problem Solving Organization:

Change our perception of a problem. We tend to view problems in a negative light and see them as a distraction, something that takes away time from our real job. A great way to shift perspectives is to view it as two states: your current situation and an ideal situation. The problem is the gap between these two situations. To work on getting closer to your ideal situation, try to perceive the gap/problem as an opportunity. Because there will always be gaps to close, this means that solving problems isn’t just a distraction, but our main priority.

Reduce recurring problems. Most companies are up to their necks in problems and don’t have the time to analyze them all. We seek to lower the amount of time spent problems by reducing the number of recurring issues. Decreasing time spent putting out fires will result in additional time for value creation activities.

Include everyone. The vision of a successful problem solving culture is one where everyone systematically identifies and solves problems at their root cause. By everyone, we mean everyone, from the expert engineers to the quality team to the frontline employees. The frontline workers are a key asset in identifying and solving problems because they experience day to day operations in the manufacturing and warehousing in the field and shop floor, making them the best people to experience and detect new problems. Engaging them to identify and solve problems is absolute in creating a successful problem-solving culture.

Problem Solving Method

The 8D Method is a problem solving technique designed to identify the root cause of a problem, devise a quick fix, and implement a long-term solution to prevent recurring problems. This method provides structure for a positive outcome and acts as a common language between all team members by minimizing the time required to solve a problem.

To learn real life examples on how Toyota and Airbus use this 8D in their own successful cultures and gain insights and ideas to create an army of problem-solvers in your organization, register for our webinar on ‘Problem Solving: Lessons from Toyota, Airbus and Silicon Valley to Create a System and Culture of Problem Solvers’ hosted by Errette Dunn, founder and CEO of Rever. Errette previously led systemic problem-solving practices in Toyota, Airbus, and in countless of their suppliers around the world, and his work with Rever’s industrial customers developing cultures of non-stop improvement.