How Can A3 Thinking Improve Organizational Performance? Let's Share Experiences and Insights

I believe that organizational performance can be improved dramatically if people are trained in logical structured thinking and problem-solving abilities. I have conducted a considerable amount of study to understand why people generally lack this skill and hesitate to learn and practice it. I have conducted a few experiments and tried to find out how it can be taught and practiced in the organization. If anyone else has also experimented and would like to share their knowledge, I would be interested in learning from them. I am now exploring the implementation of these concepts in different organizations. If anyone is interested in trying it out in their organization, please let me know.

A3 Thinking Approach

This approach is known as A3 Thinking, which goes beyond the commonly known A3 report. It involves using common sense and thinking systematically to understand the phenomenon or issues comprehensively by delving deep, observing things physically, engaging with relevant individuals directly experiencing the problems, and developing a shared understanding of the underlying causes. It emphasizes refraining from rushing to solutions until the root causes of the issues are identified. While it may seem simple, it is not commonly practiced. Do you agree?

That is an interesting sharing. You have raised some valid issues regarding structured thinking in general and A3 thinking in particular. In my opinion, some possible reasons why structured thinking is not formally introduced or adopted extensively in India are because:

- Most businesses are personality-driven, either by owners or, in many professional companies, by veterans of the company who have grown with the company. These personalities are more focused on short-term goals than long-term strategic intent.

- Structured thinking is often viewed as being best suited to making improvements, increasing yield, enhancing efficiency, and refining quality. Our mindset in business is less inclined towards these aspects and more focused on "making profits."

- We are naturally inclined to creative thinking with the primary intent of working around patents, copyrights, and wherever possible, making better duplicates than the original.

However, despite these mindset issues, entrepreneurs with vision and a long-term strategy would definitely find excellent value in implementing structured thinking.

Regards

I agree with you that structured thinking, as opposed to snap judgments, will be very critical to understanding any issue, be it business-related, administration-related, or corporate governance-related. It is an interesting perspective you shared.

Regards,
B. Saikumar
Mumbai