The document provides a guide for developing and fact-checking solutions, emphasizing a SMART model for effective problem-solving. It highlights the importance of ownership in implementation, understanding performance gaps, and focusing on return on investment (ROI) while ensuring solutions are easy to implement and maintain. The document advocates for simple, low-tech solutions and stresses that effectiveness should not be sacrificed for efficiency.

1. Guide to developing and fact checking
solutions

2.  Use this model if you have:
 Ever applied a countermeasure to a problem
and it failed
 Never got to the implementation phase of your
idea
 No buy-in from peers/leaders
 Did not get the gains you were hoping for

3.  SMART in the SOLUTION model is different from SMART
in a goal
 S – Specific, the idea is not generalized, but has a specific plan
attached to it (See slide 11)
 M – Measurable, the solution’s impact can be quantifiably
predicted (i.e. will reduce flow time by average 2-minutes)
 A – Aggressive, the proposed countermeasure will bring a
high impact (worth implementing)
 R – Realistic, projected results are based off facts (helps if a
process map has been done to understand current state
versus projected state)
 T – Time bound, a deadline is associated with all
implementation aspects of the idea

4.  The idea must allow a gain to be made
where needed, not just efficiency for the
sake of efficiency
 Helps if a performance gap analysis has been
conducted on your problem prior to
considering any solutions

5.  This is all about ROI, Return on Investment
 Ideas should not require excess time, money,
personnel or other resources to implement
 Consider accomplishing an analysis on your idea to
determine effectiveness of idea vs. ease of
implementation
 Also helps if a Root Cause Analysis was performed
 Will prevent the fire rather than fight the fire

6.  Your idea must be easy
 Easy to implement
 Easy to accomplish
 Easy to maintain
 People must understand why the new
change
 Show the performance gap and its impact
 Share your projections and what it means for
each person based off a translated value

7.  Low tech is better then new tech
 It is easier to update a giant dry-erase board
then to update, share and maintain a
complicated database
 Cheaper to display on a giant erase board, then a 65-
inch plasma screen

8.  Don’t sacrifice Effectiveness for Efficiency
 Simple Lean tools like Standard Work, 5S and
Visual Management are all easy ways to gain
efficiencies while also gaining effectiveness
 Have your cake and eat it too!

9.  Whichever agency is responsible for
carrying out the solution, should also own
the solution
 It should be their idea
 Implementation should be from their effort
 Ownership of the idea gives it it’s own
lifeblood ensuring a honest attempt at
change

10.  Don’t just add more steps to the process
without understanding the process first
 Adding another Quality Inspection does not
improve quality, it just adds another chance to find
the defect without ever preventing the defect
 In addition, the more Quality Inspections performed
increases the phenomenon known as Pluralistic
Ignorance
 People on front end of inspection expect back end inspectors
to find/correct
 People on back end of inspection expect people on front end to
find/correct

11.  Who – Who is responsible for the action, and who the action
will affect
 What – What will the action be
 When – When will the action occur and frequency of
occurrence
 Where – Where will the action take place
 How – How will the action be managed (what triggers the
action, how will it be maintained for currency)
 Resources Required – What will we need to implement this
idea
 Projected Results – If we do this, what projected quantifiable
savings can we hope to achieve
 Timeline – When can we expect to have this implemented

12.  Use the SOLUTION Model as a checklist
 Success rate at implementing change increases
 Output increases
 Gained Efficiencies and Effectiveness
 Change welcomed rather then confronted