ABSTRACT
PDCA is an acronym that makes it easier to remember the steps in problem solving. Six Sigma’s Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control is also known as DMAIC and includes PDCA. DMAIC is easy to remember, and there are other methodologies that are purposely renamed yet following the same steps as DMAIC. Chalk it up to egos, maybe, that companies have to rename the scientific problem-solving steps, but it would be harmless if they follow the steps in order and include an acronym that makes it simpler to remember. What I do not understand are terms for scientific problem solving that do not hint at the steps or use terms that were created for other purposes. A3 problem solving is one such term. A3 is the size of a piece of paper and thus the name for a storyboard that Toyota promotes to share an effort with very few pages. Toyota promotes telling the story on one side of an A3 piece of paper. Sometime afterwards, someone started using the term A3 to denote a problem-solving methodology. Toyota uses the same PDCA cycle and steps that are found in DMAIC going back to its quality circle problem solving that is borrowed heavily from Deming and Ishikawa. Why one thinks naming the scientific problem solving A3 and then having to constantly define the steps seems wasteful to me. Toyota also continues to use the term, “Quality Circles” that is a selfevident term where circles (teams) of frontline staff learn the steps and apply to problems in their work area.
