# A3 Problem-Solving

**Framework:** Lean A3 — one page, left to right, problem to plan  
**Use for:** Working a real problem to its root cause and a tested countermeasure, on a single page that forces clarity  
**Time required:** A few hours of thinking across the cycle. The page itself stays short on purpose

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## How to use this template

1. It is one page for a reason. A3 is named for the paper size, and the constraint is the feature. If it does not fit, you have not distilled the problem enough.
2. Go left to right, top to bottom. The early sections define and understand the problem; the later ones propose, test, and plan. Do not jump to countermeasures before the root cause.
3. Show the current state with facts, not opinions. A number, a diagram, a measured gap. "It feels slow" is not a current state.
4. Solve the root cause, not the symptom. The middle of the page exists to stop you from fixing the most visible thing instead of the thing actually causing the problem.
5. The plan is owned and dated, and you come back to it. An A3 with no follow-up section is a nice essay, not problem-solving.

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## The A3 (one page)

### 1. Background
Why this problem matters now, and to whom. The business context in two or three sentences.

[ ]

### 2. Current state
What is happening today, shown with facts and numbers. Where is the waste, the delay, the defect?

[ ]

### 3. Goal / target state
What "solved" looks like, in measurable terms. From [X] to [Y] by [when].

[ ]

### 4. Root-cause analysis
Why is the gap happening? Push past the first answer (5 Whys, fishbone). Name the verified root cause, not the symptom.

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### 5. Countermeasures
What changes will address the root cause? Not "solutions" but countermeasures, because you will test whether they actually work.

[ ]

### 6. Plan

| Action | Owner | Due |
|--------|-------|-----|
| [ ] | [ ] | [ ] |
| [ ] | [ ] | [ ] |

### 7. Follow-up
How and when you will confirm it worked, and what you will do if it did not.

[ ]

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*A3 is Lean's thinking tool: the discipline of fitting a whole problem — context, root cause, countermeasure, proof — onto one page anyone can follow. If it does not fit, you do not understand it yet. More on Lean thinking and continuous improvement in the Frameworks & Mental Models Guide at biztechprimer.com.*