Reflection – Mind Mapping

Challenge & Selection

I am managing a small process optimization team, which has as a client a

metallurgical service provider in the automotive industry.

The challenge was to improve one of the stages of the production process which,

in the view of the plant's coordination, was not delivering the results in the expected

time of the production line design. This is a complex problem because despite the vast

amount of data related to the process, these are completely disconnected, and there

are no previous records of similar problems.

In this way, the mind mapping tool was chosen with the purpose of extracting

meaning from a significant amount of data about the process, allowing the emergence

of patterns and insights. Through the results provided by the mind mapping, the

determination of the design criteria will be facilitated, and consequently the generation

of solutions.

Application & insights

We selected some operators and supervisors of the production line that

represented the critical stage. In order not to compromise the progress of production,

these were divided into groups within each shift to participate in the process, and we

divided the process into three stages.

First, we gathered the maximum data related to the process and put it in a table

in the meeting room, and at the center of this table was placed the flow chart related to

the stage of the process under analysis. Then we asked each group that entered the

room to use post-its, to identify their opinions related to the process information, and

locate them within the flowchart.

Secondly, it was time for the components of my team to analyze the information

on the board and relate it. And in a third moment, each team member created their own

mind map, relating the key criteria together with the production line workers.

The use of this method allowed the emergence of standards within the opinions

of the supervisors and the operators, as well as the separation of the possible problems

by categories such as inherent in the process, relationships within the team and

infrastructure.

Approach

Within the optimization of processes involving people, this method is very

successful, because it can extract the implicit needs of the processes, which would not

be identified in conventional methods.

Adding the visualization to the process generated a major stimulus to the

understanding and the appearance of insights, increasing the performance of the team

and greatly reducing the time of generation of the possible solutions.

This methodology becomes even more suitable in times of great complexity of

projects, where there is a limitation of data or when they are very divergent. Stimulating

team collaboration is the key to solving unconventional problems.

