Problem Solving Tools Guide

Useful Tools
for Problem Solving
© Operational Excellence Consulting. All rights reserved.

NOTE: This is a PARTIAL PREVIEW. To
download the complete presentation, please visit:
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© Operational Excellence Consulting. All rights reserved. 2
Contents
1. Flow Chart
2. Brainstorming
3. Gantt Chart
4. Stratification
5. Check Sheet
6. Bar Chart
7. Waterfall Chart
8. Line Graph
9. Pie Chart
10. Belt Graph
11. Radar Chart
12. Control Chart
13. Pareto Chart
14. Cause & Effect Diagram
15. 5 Whys
16. Histogram
17. Scatter Diagram
18. Affinity Diagram
19. Relations Diagram
20. Tree Diagram
21. Matrix Diagram
22. Matrix Data Analysis Chart
23. Arrow Diagram
24. Process Decision Program Chart

Flow Chart
• Purpose
 To show the sequential steps in a process.
• When to use
 To develop understanding of how a process is
done.
 To study a process for improvement.
 To communicate to others how a process is done.
 When better communication is needed between
people involved with the same process.
 To document a process.
 When planning a project.

Example of a “Swim-lane” Flow Chart

Brainstorming
• Procedure
1. Make sure everyone understands and is satisfied with the central
question before you open up for ideas.
2. You may want to give everyone a few seconds to jot down a few ideas
before getting started.
3. Begin by going around the table or room, giving everyone a chance to
voice their ideas or pass. After a few rounds, open the floor.
4. More ideas are better. Encourage radical ideas and piggybacking.
5. Suspend judgment of all ideas.
6. Record exactly what is said. Clarify only after everyone is out of ideas.
7. Don't stop until ideas become sparse. Allow for late-coming ideas.
8. Eliminate duplicates and ideas that are not relevant to the topic.

Gantt Chart Example
Example of a Problem Solving Project Schedule
7
Aug
14
Aug
21
Aug
28
Aug
4
Sep
11
Sep
18
Sep
25
Sep
1
Oct
8
Oct
15
Oct
22
Oct
29
Oct
Select the theme
Plan the schedule
Grasp the present situation
Establish the target
Implement corrective actions
Analyze the cause and
identify corrective action
Implement the solutions
Standardize and follow up

Stratification Considerations
• Here are examples of different sources that might
require data to be stratified:
 Equipment
 Shifts
 Departments
 Materials
 Suppliers
 Day of the week
 Time of day
 Products

Check Sheet – Example 2
Defective
Item
Mon
9/3
Tue
10/3
Wed
11/3
Thu
12/3
Fri
13/3
Total
Mold
Cracked
5 3 6 3 4 21
Fibers 2 0 5 1 0 8
Grit 4 2 3 5 0 14
Pinholes 1 5 0 2 1 9
Cracks 0 1 1 0 0 2
Other 1 3 0 0 3 7
Total 13 14 15 11 8 61

Bar Chart Examples
Revenue Profit Before Tax
30
25
20
15
10
5
130
173
192
138
198
210
250
200
150
100
50
0
FY 11 FY 12 FY 13
Budget Actual
7
14 15
13
15
28
0
FY 11 FY 12 FY 13
Budget Actual

Waterfall Chart – Example 2
Cost savings opportunity by lever
Percent, 2007 annualized savings
Help desk
Deskside
Deskside Help desk
Implement flexible
manpower systems
Reduce NVA work (e.g.,
standardize operations)
Redistribute activities
Segment work by
complexity
Reduce incoming work
Total
10-25
5-15
5-10
2-3
0
0
25-45
Pool resources
11-14
0
4
5
0
14-30
0-15

Line Graph Example
1000000
900000
800000
700000
600000
500000
400000
300000
200000
100000
0
1999 2000 2001 2002
Prevention
Appraisal
Internal Failure
External Failure
Total COQ
Cost of Quality

Pie Chart – Example 1
Employee Profile (by Age Group)
7%
34%
20%
> 40
< 26
30-34
26-29
35-39
10% 29%
Total employees = 1700

Belt Graph Example
Ranking of Service Attributes
42
13
30
5
28
25
8
21
12
17
28
23
4
18
8
5
6
20
23
14
15
13
4
6
3
9
18
24
8
20
12
13
2 3
18
20
6
21
16
27
1 1 8
21
2
14
27
44
1 0
11 8
35
100
80
60
40
20
0
Rank 1 Rank 2 Rank 3 Rank 4 Rank 5 Rank 6 Rank 7 Rank 8
Clear distinction in customers’ preference as the difference
between ranked 1st for the top 3 attributes is large (>10%).

Radar Chart Example
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Sort
Set In Order
Standardize Shine
Sustain
Comparison of 5S Performance
Area A
Area B

Control Chart
• Purpose
 To identify dynamic or special causes of variation in a repeating
process.
• When to use
 To determine if a process is in a state of statistical control.
 To differentiate between special and common causes of variation.
 To detect statistical trends in measurements.
 When regular measurements of a process can be made.

Control Chart Selection
TYPE OF DATA
Attribute Data
Count Classification
Defects Defectives
Variable Data
Equal
subgroup
size
Different (or
same)
subgroup size
Equal
subgroup
size
Different (or
same)
subgroup size
c-Chart u-Chart np-Chart p-Chart
Subgroup
size of 1
Subgroup
size 2-9
Subgroup
size >9
ImR Xbar & R Xbar & S
Poisson distribution Binomial distribution Normal distribution/
Central Limit Theorem

Example: Use of Pareto Chart to compare ‘Before’
and ‘After’ a process improvement
Restaurant Complaints
Before After
33% Reduction
in Wait Time

Cause & Effect Diagram (Manufacturing)
Causes Effect
Problem
Statement
Manpower
cause
Machines
Methods
Measurements Materials
Mother Nature
(Environment)

5 Whys Example
Why? Answer
1
Why is there oil on the
floor?
Oil leaks from the cylinder rod
when activated.
2 Why did oil leak? The O-ring was cut.
3 Why was the O-ring cut? The rod was flawed.
4 Why was the rod flawed? Dirt in the oil abrades the rod.
5 Why did dirt get in the oil?
There are holes and gaps on the
upper plate of the tank.

Histogram
• Purpose
 To show the frequency distribution of a set of measurements
(Note: Not to be confused with a Bar Chart.)
• When to use
 When the data are numerical.
 When you want to see the shape of the data’s distribution,
especially when determining whether the output of a process is
distributed approximately normally.
 When analyzing whether a process can meet the customer’s
requirements.
 When analyzing what the output from a supplier’s process looks
like.

Relations Diagram Example
Source: ASQ

Tree Diagram – Example 1

Matrix Diagram
• Purpose
 To show the relationship between two, three or four groups of
information.
• When to Use
 Provide information about the relationship, such as its strength,
the roles played by various individuals, or measurements.

Matrix Diagram – Example 2
Evaluation Chart for Employee Suggestions

Matrix Data Analysis Chart (MDAC)
• Purpose
 Matrix data is arranged for easy visualization and comparisons.
Relationships between data variables shown on both axes are
identified using symbols for importance or numerical values for
evaluations.
 To decide between several options, where you need to take many
different factors into account.
• When to Use
 To identify clusters of related items within a larger group.
 When decisions are based on approximate or subjective data.

MDAC – Example 3
MABA Analysis
Business attractiveness
Relative small, but
attractive opportunity
Medium sized, quite
attractive market in
which the company
holds a 35% market
share
Large market, yet not
a very attractive
opportunity
Market attractiveness
High MA, but low BA
Least attractive
Highly attractive
High BA, but low MA
Average
Note: By using a bubble instead of a dot, one may indicate the (relative) size of the market.
Additionally or alternatively, a slice of the pie could indicate the market share of the company.
Source: Kotler, 2000

Arrow Diagram
• Purpose
 To show the required order of tasks in a project or process, the
best schedule for the entire project, and potential scheduling and
resource problems and their solutions.
• When to Use
 When scheduling and monitoring tasks within a complex project
or process with interrelated tasks and resources.
 When you know the steps of the project or process, their
sequence and how long each step takes, and.
 When project schedule is critical, with serious consequences for
completing the project late or significant advantage to completing
the project early.

Arrow Diagram – Example 1

Process Decision Program Chart (PDPC)
• Purpose
 To systematically identify what might go wrong in a plan under
development.
• When to Use
 Before implementing a plan, especially when the plan is large and
complex.
 When the plan must be completed on schedule.
 When the price of failure is high.

PDPC – Example 1

About
Operational Excellence
Consulting

About Operational Excellence
Consulting
• Operational Excellence Consulting is a management
training and consulting firm that assists organizations in
improving business performance and effectiveness.
• The firm’s mission is to create business value for
organizations through innovative operational excellence
management training and consulting solutions.
• OEC takes a unique “beyond the tools” approach to enable
clients develop internal capabilities and cultural
transformation to achieve sustainable world-class excellence
and competitive advantage. For more information, please visit
www.oeconsulting.com.sg

END OF PARTIAL PREVIEW
To download this presentation,
please visit us at:
www.oeconsulting.com.sg

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