Applying A3 reports for early validation and optimization of stakeholder communication in development projects

We observed in our company that there is too little communication between development groups and external stakeholders. Large organizational distances can explain some of these problems. Insufficient communication can lead to validation problems, if requirements are developed on the wrong basis. For development groups it can be hard to see real customer needs. Will the operator/customer be satisfied? How will the whole system function as a product? A3 reports emerged as a problem-solving tool from Toyota's lean development. Toyota's success with this method led to the method spreading to other domains. This study applied the method of using A3 sheets, with modeling and text, for early validation and communication purposes. This study's goal was to create tool for early validation and communication, for system design. The study shows that by using A3 reports for early validation designers may improve communication, build a common understanding, and contribute to the early validation for a system or a system function. This research focuses on a top-level system function, developed in a large multidisciplinary project. The function interfaced many systems and required extensive communication. By using A3 reports knowledge was collected, systemized, analyzed, shared, and incrementally improved, Participants in the study concluded that this visualization technique was supporting early validation.