The Problem-Solving Handbook
Management · Nº 37
The Problem-Solving Handbook
From a Well-Defined Problem to a Fix That Sticks, without Hunting for Someone to Blame
You've fixed this problem three times already. It's on its way back for a fourth.
24 tools, a spreadsheet, and one problem followed from the day the customer complained to the day it was closed, so you find the cause with facts and make the fix stick.
You get 24 tools to tell a one-off fire from a chronic problem, protect the customer within 24 hours, find the cause with facts, and lock the fix in place, using an 8-step method (MASP) and a one-page A3. Plus a 7-tab spreadsheet, filled in with the example.
A book explains the method. This handbook puts it to work: the tool, a worked example, and a spreadsheet with your numbers.
One-time payment of $29.00. The order form shows the final amount, with any taxes for your country, before you pay.
Digital delivery: PDF handbook, spreadsheet and access on the Consylion platform.
14-day money-back guarantee: if it isn't what you expected, request a full refund within 14 days of purchase.
Your order is processed by Digistore24, our authorized reseller. By purchasing, you accept the terms of use and purchase · refund policy.
The same failure, again. You fix it on the spot, chew someone out, maybe switch suppliers or move the person to another job. Two months later it turns up on a different machine, a different shift, or with a different customer. The meeting about it goes the way it always goes: everyone has a theory, somebody gets blamed, nobody brings a number. And you leave knowing you'll be back in this room.
THE SPREADSHEET
Problem-solving spreadsheet
Use the completed example as a reference and enter your business data in the marked fields. Check the instructions and the calculations before you make a decision.
SOUND FAMILIAR?
Three situations this handbook solves
A customer rejects an entire lot
Before anyone argues about the cause, you open the 24-hour containment plan: check the suspect parts in process, in stock, and in transit, set aside the bad ones, and tell the customer what you did to protect them.
Someone says "just fire the operator"
You run the substitution test first: would someone else, with the same training and under the same conditions, have done the same thing? If yes, replacing the person fixes nothing. You fix the system instead.
Same day, same time, every week
You stand at the problem board with the owner of each open problem, 15 minutes each, and ask the same five questions: what's the target, where are we now, what's in the way, what's the next step, and when can we see the result.
INSIDE
What you'll find in each tool
Five parts that follow one problem in order. Triage and containment: is it a fire or a chronic problem, and how do you protect the customer first? Then you understand it with history, measurement, and a visit to where it happens. Then you find the cause. Then you plan the fix on one A3 sheet. Finally, you verify it, standardize it, and close it.
WHAT YOU GET
Everything included in your purchase
- The Problem-Solving Handbook in PDF: 24 tools, each with step-by-step instructions, a worked example, and an exercise
- The problem-solving spreadsheet in Excel and Google Sheets, with 7 tabs, from triage to the problem board, filled in with the example
- The Template kit: 12 ready-made texts, including the 24-hour containment plan, the A3 sheet, and the four-block customer response
- 2 worksheets to fill in (one-page problem and weekly verification) and a 30-day plan, one week per stage
- Access to your handbook on the Consylion platform
Full table of contents
The 24 tools, in the order you'll use them
Part 1 · Part 1 · Before you solve it
- 01Put out the fire or solve the problemWhen a quick fix is enough, and when the problem calls for the full method
- 02Containment in 24 hoursProtect the customer before you know the cause
- 03MASP in 8 stepsThe path from the problem to a fix that sticks
- 04The problem owner and the teamOne person owns it, a few help, and the deadline is in writing
Part 2 · Part 2 · Understand the problem
- 05Problem treeCauses below, effects above, and the core problem in the trunk
- 06The problem's historyTwelve months of numbers show when the failure really started
- 07Can you trust the measurement?Check the instrument before you trust the number it gives you
- 08Go and seeLook at the part, the machine, and the person doing the work before you weigh in
- 09What changedA timeline of every change made before the failure showed up
Part 3 · Part 3 · Get to the cause
- 10Best versus worstCompare your best and worst results until the difference shows
- 11Current reality treeMany symptoms traced back to the one cause that explains them all
- 12Human error or system failureWhy replacing the person you blame fixes nothing, and what to ask instead
- 13Why it occurred and why it escapedThe two causes behind every defect that reaches the customer
Part 4 · Part 4 · From cause to plan
- 14Strong or weak solutionPick the fix that prevents the failure over the one that relies on attention
- 15Side effectsWhat the fix can break in cost, time, and capacity
- 16The one-page A3The whole problem, from the facts to verification, on a single sheet
- 17First piece after the changeCheck the first output before you release the rest
- 18Responding to the customerWhat to tell the customer who complained, in four blocks, with deadlines
Part 5 · Part 5 · The fix that sticks
- 19Before and afterConfirm the result with the same number, over enough time
- 20When the solution failsA missed result becomes data and goes back into the analysis
- 21Standardize the solutionThe locks that keep the problem from coming back at the next shift change
- 22Roll it out to similar processesApply the fix to the other machines, parts, and shifts
- 23Close out the problemThe criteria for closing it, and what to do with what's left over
- 24The five kata questionsFifteen minutes a week to keep every open problem moving
Who it's for
It's for you if
- You fix the same problem every month and watch it come back
- You've already replaced the person you blamed, the supplier, or the machine, and nothing changed
- An important customer has complained, and you need a structured answer, not an apology
- You want your team to solve problems with facts, not hunches
- Your problem repeats with a number attached: rework, delays, complaints, late payments
It's not for you if
- You want the basic quality tools, such as Pareto, Ishikawa, and the 5 whys. That's The Quality Tools Handbook
- You need to choose between business paths, like investing or hiring. See The Decision-Making Handbook
- You want to map and standardize your processes from scratch. Start with The Process Handbook
- Your problem is a conflict between two people. The method needs a number that repeats, and that isn't one
Frequently asked questions
The example is a machine shop. Does this work outside manufacturing?
It works for any problem with a number that repeats: delays, complaints, late payments, rework. Every tool shows how it applies to services, retail, manufacturing, and independent professionals. Where the method doesn't help much is a conflict between people.
My business is small. Do I need a team?
You need at least one other person besides you: the one who does the work where the failure happens. Analyze it alone and you end up solving the problem you imagine, not the one on the floor.
I don't have twelve months of history. Can I still start?
Yes. Use whatever exists, like return slips, complaints, and recorded rework, and start measuring today. The handbook notes that four weeks of numbers already show your current level.
What if the cause is at my supplier?
You still answer to your customer. Contain the failure, prove the cause, and hold the supplier accountable with facts. But tell your customer what you changed, not who let you down. The four-block response in the Template kit is built for that.
How long does one problem take?
The one in the example took 14 weeks, 8 of them for verification. Higher-volume problems can be verified faster, low-volume ones take longer. Reading the handbook takes about 2 hours and 24 minutes, or 6 minutes per tool.
What do I get, and in what formats?
Each handbook is a PDF of about 100 pages with 24 to 27 tools. Every tool has step-by-step instructions and a worked example. You also get the handbook's spreadsheet in Excel (.xlsx), which opens in Google Sheets too, with the example already filled in. The message, policy, and clause templates are in the Template Kit inside the PDF, ready to copy and adapt. Read it in the member area or download the files.
How do I know if it fits my business?
Each handbook's page shows the problem it solves, who it is for and who it is not for, the full table of contents, sample pages, and the company used in the examples. The examples come from small businesses in several industries, with illustrative numbers. If it is not a fit, you can ask for a full refund within 14 days of your purchase, as described in the Refund Policy.
What is the difference between a handbook, an area set, and the Series?
A handbook solves one problem. An area set brings together every handbook and spreadsheet in one of the 6 areas, for less than the price of 5 single handbooks. The Consylion Handbook Series brings together all 100 handbooks and 100 spreadsheets, for less than the price of 8 single handbooks, and includes the next handbooks in the Series. Products outside the Series, from Consylion Life or Consylion Business, have their own price. They are sold separately and are not part of an area set or the Series.
Do I need to read everything before I start?
No. Each tool works on its own. Open the table of contents, pick the tool for today's problem, and start there. You can also read it cover to cover.
Do I need to know Excel?
The basics are enough: open the file and fill in the marked fields. The formulas are already built, and the handbook's example is filled in for reference.
How do I pay, and when do I get access?
By card or bank transfer, as a one-time payment with no subscription. Once your payment is confirmed, you get access to the member area by email. Approved card payments are confirmed right away. Bank transfers are confirmed when the funds clear. If access does not arrive within 24 hours of confirmation, check your spam folder and write to team@consylion.org.
How long do I have access, and how can I use the files?
Access does not expire, and you can download the files for offline use. The license is individual. You may read the handbooks, print them for your own use, and fill in and adapt the spreadsheet and templates with your company's data. If you are a consultant, accountant, or manager, you may apply the tools with your clients and deliver the result of your work, not the files. You may not share, resell, or distribute the files or the access.
How do support and refunds work?
Support is by email at team@consylion.org, on business days, with a reply within 5 business days. It covers questions about access, files, and payment. It does not include consulting or advice on applying the material to your case. You can cancel within 14 days of your purchase, without giving a reason, and get the full amount back through the payment method you used. Send the request to the same email. The details are in the Refund Policy.
CONSYLION HANDBOOK SERIES
The 6 departments of your business, for less than the price of 8 single handbooks.
This handbook solves today's problem. The Series solves the next one, and the one after that, with nothing more to pay.
- 100 handbooks with 2,403 ready-made tools, to read on screen and download as PDFs
- 100 spreadsheets for Excel and Google Sheets
- 6 business areas
- Lifetime access, unlocked once payment is confirmed
One-time payment of $197.00. The order form shows the final amount, with any taxes for your country, before you pay.
Digital delivery: PDF handbook, spreadsheet and access on the Consylion platform.
14-day money-back guarantee: if it isn't what you expected, request a full refund within 14 days of purchase.
Your order is processed by Digistore24, our authorized reseller. By purchasing, you accept the terms of use and purchase · refund policy.
Management · Nº 37
Solve it once, with facts
Every business has a problem that keeps coming back. This handbook gives you the method, the spreadsheet, and one problem followed from complaint to closure, so the next meeting starts with numbers instead of theories. Pick a problem that has already come back twice, and start there.
See all 100 handbooks · $197.00
One-time payment of $29.00. The order form shows the final amount, with any taxes for your country, before you pay.
Digital delivery: PDF handbook, spreadsheet and access on the Consylion platform.
14-day money-back guarantee: if it isn't what you expected, request a full refund within 14 days of purchase.
Your order is processed by Digistore24, our authorized reseller. By purchasing, you accept the terms of use and purchase · refund policy.