KT and Mckinsey Way

Remember the scene in the movie Apollo 13 where the NASA engineers were figuring out what was the problem with spacecraft? What the movie did not show was that they were using Kepner-Tregoes Analytical Troubleshooting Techniques.

I had the fortune to attend two of their workshops nearly ten years ago. To this day, I still remember the principles behind ATS (Analytic Troubleshooting) and PSDM (Problem Solving and Decision Making). It actually formed the cornerstone of my technical troubleshooting skills. The book, The New Rational Manager by Charles Kepner and Benjamin Tregoe is highly recommended by me.

Over the years, I gradually adapted it into hybrid system with other principles whom I felt comfortable with.

Basically, I took the principles of the "low hanging fruit" and "hypothesis", MECE (mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive) from two books, The Mckinsey Mind and The Mckinsey Way by Ethan M Rasiel. Even for ATS and PSDM, there are some differences in their process methodology.

PSDM:
1) Situation Appraisal;
2) Problem Analysis;
3) Decision Analysis;
4) Potential Problem Analysis;
5) Potential Opportunity Analysis

ATS:
1) Recognize a Problem;
2) Find True Cause;
3) Select a Fix;
4) Avoid Future Problems

Application of use between the two are similar but PSDM is much more cross-disciplinary whilst ATS is more technical oriented.

I do not always use the above KT process methodology faithfully in most of problem solving situations, but I had seen that when consciously applying some of the above principles with the ones from Mckinsey; I managed to successfully solve some difficult work problems I had.

Ten years on, I still keep the ATS reminder cards that were given out in the workshops; can't find the PSDM ones, think I may lost them.

It does have its limitations though as KT do not cater to the human element touch which a rational logical process cannot possibly cover. However, as mentioned, Mckinsey's other principles as detailed in their books can help to bridge the gaps.