Problem solving - A presentation at IISc

Focus: Problem solving
Rinka Singh <rinka.singh@gmail.com>

Agenda
o Why is problem solving important
o What is it
o Tools for Problem solving
o Root cause analysis tools
o TRIZ
o Reading, references

An interesting problem…
The car that was allergic to ice-cream
General Motors got a customer complaint – his new GM Pontiac was allergic to
ice-cream.
“...I won't blame you for not answering me, because I know it kind of sounds
crazy but I have a car that is allergic to ice-cream.
I recently purchased a new Pontiac and since then my trips to the store have
created a problem. Every time I buy vanilla ice cream, when I start back from the
store, my car won't start“.
So GM sent an engineer to check it out…

…allergic to ice-cream
o How did the engineer analyze the cause of a seemingly impossible bug?
o Did not dismiss the issue as being impossible or the customer as being a jerk.
o Collected data without jumping to conclusions or offering a quick fix work around.
o Figured out what parameters to look for.
o Saw a pattern in the data.
o Finally he defined the problem – restart interval. The rest was trivial...
To define the problem, ask the right questions

An expert is not someone that gives the right answer
He is someone that asks the right questions...

Why is problem solving important?
o Growth of Organizations, societies depends on their problem solving ability.
o A good society has less problems, easier to live in
o A successful Organization has answers that others want
o Growth of humanity
o Reducing problems in the ecosystem
o Enhancing value
o HOW: identify roadblocks, create enhanced value & increased
productivity – developing app, building dam, fixing defect

Problem discovery – the Key
o Finding the problem is THE most important thing.
o Solve the right problem and you have the answer
o Solve the wrong problem and you have more problems
o How
o Test your understanding first
o With whom? How will you understand your customer's needs.
o How will you test?
o Understand what the other person expects as a “good result“
o Can you add value?
Ask what, why, how, when and where
Prioritize – which problem will you solve first

Why is a problem focus important
The value you bring depends on the complexity of the
problems you can handle

What is a problem
o Types of problems
o Tame problems: Well defined, Solution is clear and can be given to a
designer to create specs. Defined value.
o Complex problems: non-linear, difficult to understand, solutions can
have unintended consequences. Value can be large.
o Wicked problems: hardest to solve. Goals not known or ambiguous.
Problems undefined. Greatest value if solved
o Problems - symptoms
o Blocks results, causes pain, limitation
o Answer: workarounds or solutions
o Post solution: They disappear – from our consciousness.

What is the value of a problem
o Organizations are meant to deliver value or solutions
o Value proposition of a task (that solves a problem)
o Who sees the value?
o How do we bring value
o Unique – craftsmanship
o Enabler – enable value from others. Consultant, integrator...
o Theory of Marginal cost

Thinking about problems
• Where to look...
• Axioms fail. Evaluate your axioms
• Look at the intersections of trends, of stakeholders, of everything...
• Assumptions fail. Keep validating them.
• Look for workarounds
• Thinking strategically.
• Think ahead. Local optima vs global optima.
• Align & course correct - like a plane from Bangalore to New York.
• Get all your stakeholders perspective.
• Align: Get everyone in the same frame.

Tools
o 6 sigma tools – 5W & 1H, Ishikawa diagrams etc., etc.,
o De Bono – 6 thinking hats
o Brainstorming
o TRIZ

Jeff Bezos – a problem at Amazon...
Bezos and his leadership team have a tradition of visiting the Amazon.com
Fulfillment Centers in Q4; spend time with the associates, and physically work
alongside everyone.
During one such visit, there had been a safety incident where an associate had
severely damaged his finger.
When Jeff heard this, he was very disturbed and emotional — angry at first, then
felt bad for this associate and his family. Then...
He pulled up a board and did a 5W based problem analysis

… Amazon - 5W Problem Analysis
o Why did the associate damage his thumb?
o Thumb got caught in the conveyor.
o Why did his thumb get caught in the conveyor?
o He was chasing his bag, which was on a running conveyor.
o Why did he chase his bag?
o He placed his bag on the conveyor, but it then turned-on by surprise
o Why was his bag on the conveyor?
o Because he used the conveyor as a table
Root Cause
o Root cause of the associate’s damaged thumb is that he needed a table and used a
conveyor as a table. So...
o We provide tables at the appropriate stations
o Also update and a greater focus on safety training.
o Also, look into preventative maintenance standard work.

WHAT IS “TRIZ” ?
A Russian acronym:
Theoria Resheneyva Isobretatelskehuh Zadach
(Theory of Solving Problems Inventively)
Theory of Inventive Problem solving
Pronounced” “treez”

History of TRIZ
Genrich S. Altshuller
o Perceived short comings in current invention theory
(psychology)
o Felt an inventive theory should at satisfy the
following conditions
o Be a systematic procedure
o Guide through a broad solution space to ideal solution
o Be repeatable and reliable
o Access the body of inventive knowledge
o Add the body of inventive knowledge
o Be familiar to inventors
o 1946 Patent Officer in
Russian Navy
o Discovered patterns in
patents, published paper.
Sent to Gulag
o 1954 released, analysed
2,500,000 patents
o Identified what makes a
successful patent
o 1956-1985 TRIZ
formulated

EXAMPLE – of a pattern
I HAVE TO REMOVE CORES FROM A MILLION
GREEN PEPPERS…
How would I do this?

1945: Patent for processing sweet peppers
Force air inside of the peppers. Suddenly reduce the pressure. Seeds and stems
separate from pepper body.
So… What Is The Operator here?
“Slowly raise pressure & suddenly reduce it”
o A path to a solution
o An approach to solving a problem

1950: Patent for removing the shell of cedar nuts
Under high pressure, water is forced inside of the shells.
When pressure is suddenly reduced, the shells break away.

More...
1950: Patent for removing shells from sunflower seeds:
o Air is forced inside the shells. When the pressure is
suddenly reduced, the shells break away.
1972: Patent for breaking artificial diamonds.
o Diamonds placed into a pressure chamber. High
pressure forces air into micro fractures. Releasing
pressure suddenly breaks diamonds into crystals.
And 200 more patents...

Pattern
Pattern: Raise Pressure Slowly then suddenly Release It
Or more generally:
Store up energy and suddenly release it
Or more generally yet:
Store up a resource for later use
Can we create a generic list of such patterns?
Would be useful for solving all sorts of problems...

Contradictions
o The problem can usually be expressed as a contradiction
o The intersection
o We need more of something but less of something else
A more powerful engine is needed to increase the speed of the airplane.
Engine increases the total weight of the airplane.
However, wings cannot support the heavier airplane during take off. So,
increase the size of the wings.
Now, there is more drag slowing down the airplane.

Contradictions...
o We usually solve contradictions by using tradeoffs.
o Do a graph of weight vs. Speed
o Decide on optimal weight
o TRIZ has various ways of solving it.
o Contradiction matrix
o Ideal Final result
o ARIZ

Contradiction Matrix - Resolution
40 Principles
Parameter that gets worse
Recommended principles
Parameter to improve
TRIZ - Contradiction Matrix Elements
1. Weight of moving object
2. Weight of stationary object
3. Length of moving object
4. Length of stationary object
5. Area of moving object
6. Area of stationary object
7. Volume of moving object
8. Volume of stationary object
9. Speed
10. Force
11. Tension, pressure
12. Shape
13. Stability of object
27. Reliability
28. Accuracy of measurement
29. Accuracy of manufacturing
30. Object affected harmful effects
31. Object generated side effects
32. Manufacturability
33. Convenience of use
34. Repairability
35. Adaptability
36. Complexity of device
37. Complexity of control
38. Level of automation
39. Productivity
14. Strength
15. Duration of action - moving object
16. Duration of action - stationary object
17. Temperature
18. Brightness
19. Use of energy by moving object
20. Use of energy by stationary object
21. Power
22. Waste of energy
23. Waste of substance
24. Loss of information
25. Waste of time
26. Amount of substance
1. Segmentation
2. Extraction
3. Local Quality
4. Asymmetry
5. Combination
6. Universality
7. ‘Nested Doll’
8. Counterweight
9. Prior Counter-Action
10. Prior Action
11. Prior Cushioning
12. Equi-potentiality
13. ‘The Other Way Round’
14. Spheroidality
15. Dynamics
16. Partial or Excessive Action
17. Another Dimension
18. Mechanical Vibration
19. Periodic Action
20. Continuity of Useful Action
21. Skipping
22. ‘Blessing in Disguise’
23. Feedback
24. Intermediary
25. Self-Service
26. Copying
27. Cheap/Short Living
28. Mechanics Substitution
29. Pneumatics and Hydraulics
30. Flexible Shells/Thin Films
31. Porous Materials
32. Colour Changes
33. Homogeneity
34. Discarding and Recovering
35. Parameter Changes
36. Phase Transitions
37. Thermal Expansion
38. Strong Oxidants
39. Inert Atmosphere
40. Composite Materials

What did you learn today?
o How will you learn & explore?
o Who is an entrepreneur?
o How will you identify a problem?
o How will you validate?
o How will you solve?
o What tools do you need?

Reading, References
References
o Problem types
o Ishikawa Diagrams or fishbone analysis
o Edward DeBono – 6 thinking hats ISBN 0-316-17831-4
o TRIZ
o http://www.triz-journal.com/
o http://www.trizminsk.org/eng/index.htm
o http://www.trizexperts.net/
Readings
o How we master a skill - I mean REALLY MASTER something

Problem solving - A presentation at IISc

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