Stop Scraping Burnt Toast

Trust in God. All others bring data.

By Gary Nader

Just about everyone has had the experience of burning toast and then trying to salvage it by scraping off the burnt surface. The ironic thing is that many of us do it quite a few times! Why? It is because we failed either to identify or to fix the root cause of the problem. Most would agree that scraping burnt toast is the equivalent of not doing things right the first time. In a symbolic way, scraping burnt toast portrays the many times we respond to the same problems over and over again at work.

The reason that work-related problems often seem very familiar is because they probably are. In almost every company, there are many repeat problems that drain human and financial resources as well as irritate customers and employees. Sometimes these problems are ignored because they are seen as incidents rather than clear patterns. Sometimes problems keep coming back because the symptoms, rather than the root causes, have been addressed. However, it will be a relief to know that there are many simple and highly effective tools to drastically reduce or avoid repetitive problems and improve your organization's bottom line performance.

Fundamentals of Problem Solving
Before problem-solving tools can be successfully applied, it is important to recognize certain fundamental concepts, such as:

• Problems are not inevitable. This is the business equivalent of positive thinking. The first step to not scraping burnt toast is the realization that it is possible to routinely make good toast. This is a mental frame of mind, which must exist in order to successfully rid a company of repetitive problems.
• A problem well defined is half solved. If the real problem is not understood, then it is almost certain that the solution will miss its mark.
• An ounce of data is worth a pound of opinion. Far too often, problem solving is based on someone's opinion, feelings or “expertise.” Time and again, data have proven to be the great myth-busters. The adage “Trust in God. All others bring data” is not far off!
• The vast majority of problems are related to processes, not people. Therefore, if we don't like the outcome of business activities, such as quoting, service calls or billing, we need to examine the processes that produce the outcomes. Telling people to “try harder” may get more effort, but not necessarily better results.
• Problem identification and resolution will only thrive in an error-friendly environment. This is an environment that encourages people to reveal, not hide, problems.

Figure 1 illustrates the most fundamental principle needed for effective problem solving. There are two journeys—a diagnostic journey and a remedial journey. If the same problem occurs over and over again, chances are that the diagnostic journey was either insufficient or skipped entirely. Therefore, the root cause was never really understood. However, if the root cause is understood, the remedial journey is often straightforward and successful.

Problem-Solving Tools
Three useful tools to help identify and solve problems at their root cause(s) are Why5, tally sheets and flow diagrams.

Why5 is a very simple method for getting closer to the true problem and its cause. More often than not, people tend to act on the symptoms rather than on the underlying issues. It pays to keep asking, “Why?” By asking why five times, it forces one to get beneath the surface of the problem.

Here's a simple illustration. You notice a musty smell in your basement. Why? Because there is moisture accumulating under the rug. Why? Because water is leaking through the foundation. Why? Because there is excess water build-up near the foundation of the house. Why? Because the downspouts are blocked, and water is gushing over the side of the gutter and collecting near the house. Why? Because two trees are hanging over the roof and shedding leaves into the gutter system. Some possible solutions: trim the trees, do routine gutter maintenance or install a leaf guard.

So when repetitive problems occur, such as entering orders with the wrong information, installing jobs improperly, placing wrong parts in the service van or quoting inaccurately, do not automatically assume that someone just messed up. By simply asking “why” enough times, the real causes often will become apparent. Then the appropriate solution can be applied.

Flow Diagrams
Flow diagrams are simple pictorial means of portraying the sequence of activities, logic and decision points in a process that results in some desired output. This output can be a job quote, a completed installation, rental ready trucks, accurate usable inventory or timely PMs. Remember, the quality of the output is a result of the process that precedes it. This is why process-flow diagrams are so valuable to controlling and improving performance.

An example of a flow diagram that helped a distributor improve the availability of materials for pick-up by customers who had called in rush orders is seen in Figure 3. Nearly half of the time, some of the ordered parts weren't ready, the paperwork was incorrect or the material was misplaced somewhere in the building, thereby causing delays.

After flow-charting the process with the involved associates, key criteria for control were identified. Holes in the process were plugged, and within three weeks, 100 percent of the orders were on time, accurate and had the correct paperwork. In this case, the flow diagram, like a picture, was “worth a thousand words.”

When there are repetitive problems, such as inaccurate quotes or billing, late service calls, installation issues or any other business problem, focus on the process by constructing and analyzing a flow diagram.

There are many other problem-solving tools that can help your business. However, by just applying the fundamental concepts and the three tools discussed here, you can go a long way to help your material handling organization stop scraping burnt toast!

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The MHEDA Journal • Second Quarter 2005 • Volume 34, No. 2 • Contents are Copyright © Data Key Communications, Inc.
All rights reserved. • Nothing may be reproduced in whole or part without written permission of the publisher.