ABSTRACT

Toss a Coin is a very useful technique for finding out what managers really want to do. All they do is select the best options and toss a coin: heads for one solution, tails for the other. Weighting systems are like an inverted pyramid of potential solutions. The Ease and Effect Matrix is a way of prioritizing solutions by arranging them within a nine-box matrix of three columns by three rows. The Ishicooper integrates both the cause and effect fishbone with the solution and effect diagram. Pairs comparison uses a matrix structure to compare a number of alternatives, selecting a final solution through ranking the alternatives on the basis of points allocated. Awakishi is a reversal of Ishikawa, putting the solution as the head of the fish at the left-hand side of the flipchart, using the same major cause labels as in Ishikawa but as major effects, and examining the foreseeable impact which various solutions might have in different areas.