There are many types of problems, but for this exercise I am using a deviation that has occurred.
Meaning – Should
Deviation – Actual
Usually you must solve a problem quickly, and quite often you will have a lot of help, however without a structured process all too often that help is not especially useful.
Common themes:
Jumping to conclusions, people think they know what is wrong.
Failure to define the problem (accurately)
Action overkill — because it’s urgent we must do something, hoping that it will work, these actions if not checked to see if it really corrected the problem we will not know true cause, (it will repeat).
Simple steps that usually work
Describe the problem:
- There needs to be a specific problem statement, with Object and Defect.
- Then we talk about, What – Where – When – Extent.
Identify possible cause
Based on our knowledge, experience, and common sense we make possible cause specific statements that talk to what is happening versus what should be happening. By developing these possible cause statements, we avoid “jumping to conclusions”.
Evaluate possible cause
We take the possible cause list and using the problem statement developed earlier we test each possible cause against the problem description to see how well it matches and or explains the facts about the problem.
Confirm true cause
Specific tests and experiments can be carried out to verify that the most probable cause is indeed the true cause.
