A3 Dojo: Share and Discuss A3s with Other Lean Thinkers

A PDF of the A3 template provided in the book Managing to Learn.

Templates courtesy of the Lean Enterprise Institute:

Dowload the A3 Templates: 
A3 Template (PowerPoint File) 
A3 Template (Word File)

A current-status or yearend review A3 is a one-page storyboard on 11-inch by 17-inch paper that summarizes the status of an important strategic planning initiative, such as our Customer Satisfaction strategy. Normally, we use them at our midyear and yearend strategic planning reviews.

The yearend review A3 comprises two main boxes: the top box provides an overview of how we're doing with respect to our critical end-of-pipe metrics (e.g. revenue, profit, customer delivery, quality rates, lost time injury rate, etc.) including the target and actual measures, a rating, and a brief explanation. The second box provides an overview of our activities, and usually reflects what's been prescribed on the action plan of the right side of our strategy A3. Again, we provide activity targets and actual measures, ratings, explanations, and next steps.

Getting the Right Things Done, from which this example is taken, Pascal Dennis outlines the nuts and bolts of strategy deployment, answering two tough questions that ultimately can make or break a company's lean transformation.

Other Resources:

Workshops:

• Getting the Right Things Done

Articles:

• What I've Learned About Planning and Execution
• Mike Hoseus on Hoshin Kanri
• White Paper: Strategy Deployment

Forms to download:

• A3 Strategy Form (PDF)
• A3 Action Plan Form (PDF)
• Team Board Form (PDF)

The action plan template helps us define the who, what, when, where, and how of our plan on one page. It also helps us track progress and highlight problems so we can take action. Action plans help us deploy our mother A3 strategies effectively. We need to ask: What does this mother A3 mean for my section? How do I translate the mother A3 into meaningful tactics? Once we've written our first draft action plan, we need to engage our team members by asking, "what do you think?" Thus, the plan becomes their plan—creating ownership is fundamental to deployment.

Some organizations find it useful to put blank action plan templates on pads of paper and make them available to team leaders and group leaders, and this template can serve that role: Some people aren't comfortable with computers, and we want to make deployment as easy as possible. It's also a good idea to hold learning sessions (called "lunch and learns" at some companies) where people learn the planning and execution basics.

Getting the Right Things Done, from which this example is taken, Pascal Dennis outlines the nuts and bolts of strategy deployment, answering two tough questions that ultimately can make or break a company's lean transformation.

Other Resources:

Workshops:

• Getting the Right Things Done

Articles:

• What I've Learned About Planning and Execution
• Mike Hoseus on Hoshin Kanri
• White Paper: Strategy Deployment

Forms to download:

• A3 Strategy Form (PDF)
• A3 Status Review Form (PDF)
• Team Board Form (PDF)