1. Lean
Lean
Management
Management
Teachers
Teachers
OBSTACLES AS TARGETED
LEARNING QUESTIONS
Emiel van Est
February 2013

2. Focus of the following sheets
Focus Process: Challenge:
Target Current PDCA Cycles
Condition Condition Record
Obstacles
Parking Lot
Adapted from Mike Rother / Improvement Kata Handbook
© Lean Management Teachers 2

3. During the coaching dialog the
proposed next step…
Reflect on the Last Step Taken
Because you donʼt actually know
what the result of a step will be!
1) What was your Last Step?
2) What did you Expect? Last Reflection
3) What Actually Happened?
4) What did you Learn?
Next
------------------------------>
Return
The Five Questions
1) What is the Target Condition?
2) What is the Actual Condition now?
--------(Turn Card Over)--------------------->
3) What Obstacles do you think are
preventing you from reaching the target
condition? Which *one* are you
addressing now?
4) What is your Next Step? (next PDCA /
experiment) What do you expect?
5. When can we go and see what we
Have Learned from taking that step?
*Youʼlloften work on the same obstacle for several PDCA cycles
Adapted from Mike Rother / Improvement Kata Handbook
© Lean Management Teachers 3

4. …sometimes leaves you wondering…
What is the logic for this next
step?
or
Isn’t this more of the same?
or
How will this help to get Last Reflection
closer to the Target Condition
or
…………..
Next
5Q
© Lean Management Teachers

5. Remember what we would like our
mentee to do….
Smash a Targeted
Dent in our Current
Threshold of
Threshold of
Knowledge Knowledge
Next
Step
Last
Current
Condition Step
Adapted from Mike Rother / Improvement Kata Handbook
© Lean Management Teachers 5

6. So, you could try questions like..
What is it that you do
not know right now but
would like to know after
the next experiment?
or
What is your Current
Threshold of
Knowledge?
or
Story
What question are you
trying to answer?
Board
or
…………………..
5Q
© Lean Management Teachers 6

7. …and have the answers recorded.
Obstacle Parking Lot
Obstacle Targeted Learning Question
QQQQQQQQQQQQ Regarding obstacle EEEEEEE, I would like to
find out [how/what/when/why/where] …..
WWWWWWWWWW Regarding obstacle RRRRRRR, I do not know
[how/what/when/why/where] …..
EEEEEEEEEEEEEE Using sub questions for sequential
experiments for the same obstacle.
NOW RRRRRRRRRRRRR I would like to find out [how/what/when/why/where] …..
TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT I do not know [how/what/when/why/where] …..
YYYYYYYYYYYYYY I do not know [how/what/when/why/where] …..
© Lean Management Teachers 7

8. What we noticed in doing so..
Reframing obstacles as
Obstacle Parking Lot Targeted Learning Questions
Targeted Learning gives some advantages:
Obstacle • The next experiment
Question
becomes very obvious.
• The next experiment
becomes more targeted.
• Gives a lot of focus.
• Trains the mentee to
watch for the Threshold
of Knowledge.
• It gets the mentee in a
knowledge acquisition
5Q mode.
• May change the mood.
Obstacles may be seen as
problems or may have a
negative association.
© Lean Management Teachers 8

9. Your feedback is welcome!
Hope this will be helpful in some way.
Comments, suggestions, and feedback are
welcome at emiel {at} leanmanagement {dot} nl
Just a funny
picture about
daily habits.
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/sentences-that-can-change-your-life.html
© Lean Management Teachers 9