David Wilkinson typed
"I don't think many of us are very good at structuring reflection into our
organizations We always want to move to the next solution before we have
defined the problem, let alone consciously identified what we have
recently learned."
One of the attractions of the 7-Step Problem Solving Methodology as
preached by the Center for Quality of Management and practiced at my
company and many others is that Step 7 is entitled "Reflection".
The purpose of Reflection is to review the problem-solving process and
identify the next problem. With this reactive problem solving tool, a
team does the following:
A. Summarizes the team's achievements
B. Summarizes the lessons learned related to the Seven Steps. The focus is on
PROCESS, not content.
C. Compares the milestone chart "plan" and "actual".
D. Recognizes the team and other contributors
E. Recommends a weakness for the next PDCA cycle
F. Completes the Quality Improvement Story and reviews it with the team
sponsor.
G. Communicates the report.
These steps are a conscious and consciousness-raising as I can imagine
anything to be. They recognize that the quality path or continuous
improvement path has no end; that blame culture has no place in "quality"
initiatives; and, if you please, that American business culture still
harbors a penchant for tackling a problem, working miracles, and then
growing bored with it all just short, and before the deep and decisive
implementation, of improvements to process. We are a strange bunch.
-- Best regards, bmallis@markem.comBarry Mallis Total Quality Resource Manager MARKEM Corporation Keene, NH
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>