Problems and operational improvement
Define a Minimum Operating Standard
Organise essential operating conditions, cases where judgements differ and shared terminology to create a workable minimum standard.
- People
- 4–20
- Session time
- 135 minutes
- Format
- In person
English session plan
Original program status: draft. Source safety category: Medium; this is not a guarantee of safety.
Preparation: Standard preparation. Facilitation team: Four roles, including an experienced facilitator.
What this session can decide
Create an operational proposal for the setting. Leave final determinations about laws, specialist standards and employment rules to the responsible authorities.
Outside its scope
- Do not relax statutory standards.
- Do not conceal exceptions in order to impose uniformity.
- Do not use this to evaluate individuals’ proficiency.
Primary caution: Do not relax statutory standards.
Before starting
- Question and scope
- Organise essential operating conditions, cases where judgements differ and shared terminology to create a workable minimum standard. Before the session starts, state the subject and period to be covered in one sentence.
- What is decided here
- Create an operational proposal for the setting. Leave final determinations about laws, specialist standards and employment rules to the responsible authorities.
- Output recipient
- At the end, the Recorder retains “Definition table for the operating standard”. Use the same terms when applying essential conditions and exception conditions.
- Participation and information boundaries
- Explain that people may pass, rest or leave, and keep personal information, confidential information and judgements about attributes off the recording surface. Assign Participant support separately.
- Operating team
- Assign the Lead facilitator, Recorder, Timekeeper and Participant support before starting, and confirm who announces transitions and stops.
- Next check
- Decide the review date for “Definition table for the operating standard”, who may view it and who is responsible for the next decision.
Who takes responsibility
- Lead facilitator
Keep “Define a Minimum Operating Standard” within its purpose and stated exclusions, and announce the start and end of each stage.
From before the start until the session ends.
- Recorder
Record “Proposed minimum conditions to uphold”, “Table of cases where judgements differ and the corresponding responses”, “Definition table for the operating standard” at each stage and hand the records to their recipients at the end.
From preparation of recording surfaces before the start through storage after the session.
- Timekeeper
Notify the Lead facilitator 3 minutes before each stage ends and when switching to breaks or buffer time.
At the start of every stage and 3 minutes before its end.
- Participant support
Receive requests to pass, rest, leave or check individually, and decide with the Lead facilitator whether resumption is possible.
From before the start until the session ends.
Session flow
Minutes are measured from the session start. Method time, transition time, breaks and buffer are shown separately; they are not additional overlapping activities.
0–38 minutes
Identify essential conditions
Method: Min Specs · 0–35 minutes. Transition: 35–38 minutes (3 minutes).
Check current rules one at a time and retain only those whose removal would undermine the purpose. Exclude conditions relating to laws, safety and rights from the reduction exercise.
Responsible: Lead facilitator; Recorder; Participant support
Output: Proposed minimum conditions to uphold
Handoff: Pass the proposed minimum conditions to the stage that tests them against cases where judgements differ.
This stage may be shortened only in accordance with the stated conditions.
38–86 minutes
Test conditions against cases where judgements differ
Method: Boundary Case Grid · 38–83 minutes. Transition: 83–86 minutes (3 minutes).
Provide specific examples where applying the minimum specifications is difficult to judge. Place each example under routine handling, exception handling, stopping or specialist referral, and record the reason for the judgement in one sentence.
Responsible: Lead facilitator; Recorder; Participant support
Output: Table of cases where judgements differ and the corresponding responses
Handoff: Pass commonly misunderstood terms to the definition work.
This stage is not marked as shortenable.
91–114 minutes
Align operational terminology
Method: Shared Definition Wall · 91–111 minutes. Transition: 111–114 minutes (3 minutes).
Display terms whose meanings differ between people, one at a time. Briefly describe observable states, included examples and excluded examples, and set a review date.
Responsible: Lead facilitator; Recorder; Participant support
Output: Definition table for the operating standard
Handoff: Pass the definition table and cases where judgements differ to the approver of the operating standard.
This stage is not marked as shortenable.
What is retained and who receives it
Proposed minimum conditions to uphold
Owner: Recorder
Show the minimum conditions that protect the purpose of the work.
Table of cases where judgements differ and the corresponding responses
Owner: Recorder
Distinguish routine handling, exceptions, stopping and specialist referral.
Definition table for the operating standard
Owner: Recorder
Use the same terms when applying essential conditions and exception conditions.
Materials and setup
Material names, quantities, groups and handling instructions retain the fixed draft's original helper-derived guidance. Where a format is marked “Source material specification”, the entire bound English source material entry takes precedence over the old helper-derived format guidance. This format-only correction does not resolve other instruction or safety concerns. English names are not substituted into a Japanese-keyed lookup.
Everyday tools
- Black writing tools
Quantity: 1 per person
Format: Dark broad-tip pens or whiteboard markers
Check that the ink flows and place the pens where participants can reach them. Avoid pale-coloured pens.
- Pen for identifying items to delete
Quantity: 1 pen per group of 4–7
Format: A red pen already available. If unavailable, use a black or blue pen.
Mark items to delete with a double strikethrough and the word “Delete”. Even without red ink, distinguish them from other edits through line style and wording.
- Pens
Quantity: 1 per person
Format: Dark broad-tip pens or whiteboard markers
Check that the ink flows and place the pens where participants can reach them. Avoid pale-coloured pens.
- Dark writing tools
Quantity: 1 per person
Format: Dark broad-tip pens or whiteboard markers
Check that the ink flows and place the pens where participants can reach them. Avoid pale-coloured pens.
Sheets to prepare by hand
- Individual paper
Quantity: 1 per person
Format: Source material specification: One individual sheet per person, A5 or larger
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
Write “Individual paper” at the top. Leave enough space to arrange sticky notes or paper slips without overlap, and use lettering that can be read from a distance during whole-group sharing.
- Maximum-specification list
Quantity: 1 sheet per group of 4–7
Format: Source material specification: One A3 maximum-specifications list per group of 4–7
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
State the content, preparation date and person who checked it. If distributing it, also provide a large-print version or digital viewing data with the same content.
- Whole-group consolidation surface
Quantity: 1 per venue
Format: Source material specification: One whole-group consolidation surface per venue, at least 120 cm wide
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
Write “Whole-group consolidation surface” at the top. Leave enough space to arrange sticky notes or paper slips without overlap, and use lettering that can be read from a distance during whole-group sharing.
- Case cards
Quantity: 3 per person
Format: Sticky notes around 75 × 75 mm, or A4 copy paper cut into four pieces.
Before starting, write just one example close to the content used in this method. Show it as an example of how to write, not a correct answer for participants to copy.
- Table separating applicable, uncertain and inapplicable cases
Quantity: 1 sheet per group plus 1 for whole-group consolidation
Format: Source material specification: One A3 grid per group with ‘Applies’, ‘Uncertain’, and ‘Does not apply’ columns, plus one for whole-group integration
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
Create 3 columns from left to right: “Applicable”, “Uncertain” and “Not applicable”. For uncertain cases, record what needs to be checked and who is responsible.
- Principle-statement cards
Quantity: 1 per group
Format: Sticky notes around 75 × 75 mm, or A4 copy paper cut into four pieces.
Do not buy specialised cards. Write “Principle statement” at the top of each paper slip. If participants write on them, use one item per slip and handwrite the necessary headings before the session starts.
- Key-term cards
Quantity: 1 per term addressed
Format: Source material specification: One key-term card per term, approximately A3 size
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
Write “Key-term card” at the top. Retain the designated working surface and leave room for participants to place or write content.
- Sticky notes for writing the meaning of a term
Quantity: 3 per person
Format: Source material specification: 3 meaning cards per person, approximately A6 size
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
Write the meaning of the term being addressed as one short sentence per note. Write “What is excluded” and “Specific judgement examples” on separate notes; do not mix them into this note.
- Exclusion cards
Quantity: 2 per person
Format: Source material specification: 2 exclusion cards per person, approximately A6 size
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
Do not buy specialised cards. Write “Exclusion” at the top of each paper slip. If participants write on them, use one item per slip and handwrite the necessary headings before the session starts.
- Judgement-example cards
Quantity: 2 per person
Format: Source material specification: 2 judgement-example cards per person, approximately A6 size
Source-bound format display correction; the other fixed helper-derived guidance is unchanged.
Before starting, write just one example close to the content used in this method. Show it as an example of how to write, not a correct answer for participants to copy.
Setup for each method
Min Specs
- Provide one table per group of 4–7, with group sizes differing by no more than 1 person
- Space in front of the consolidation surface to arrange each group's list, at least 30 cm wide per group
Boundary Case Grid
- One display surface at seated eye level where everyone can read the principle throughout
- One work surface per group where only uncertain cases can be brought into the centre of the table
- One wall at least 1 m wide for keeping the original and revised principles side by side
Shared Definition Wall
- A wall area with 3 columns for each key term: meaning, exclusions, and judgement examples; no more than 10 people per section
- At least 90 cm of space per term to retain up to 3 definitions vertically
When to switch or stop
Fallbacks
- There are more than 20 candidate conditions.
Group them into 3 categories—safety, quality and handoffs—and select representative conditions.
Method guide: Min Specs
Stop conditions
- Interpretation of laws or specialist standards becomes necessary.
- Leave the relevant conditions undecided and refer them to the responsible department.
- People begin dismissing exception handling as a problem with an individual staff member's judgement or proficiency.
- Return to descriptions of the situation, inputs and conditions for judgement.
Sources, rights and limits
This site has composed this programme’s purpose, method sequence, delivery instructions, roles, outputs and switching conditions. See each individual method page for that method’s sources and licences.
Original source records and their required notices are retained below. Their presence does not mean a new legal or cultural-safety clearance. Original citation titles are kept in their source language.
Sources and required notices for the 3 methods used
Min Specs
- Liberating Structures Fieldbook (2026): Min Specs — Henri Lipmanowicz / Keith McCandless / Nancy White — CC BY-SA 4.0 adaptation; changes made
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Source: Liberating Structures Fieldbook (2026): Min Specs — Henri Lipmanowicz / Keith McCandless / Nancy White | https://www.liberatingstructures.com/min-specs | CC BY-SA 4.0 adaptation; changes made
- Source: CC BY-SA 4.0 | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
- Attribution: Henri Lipmanowicz and Keith McCandless; Keith McCandless and Nancy White | Author/contributor credit from the original material
- Attribution: Taiwa no Fumen Editorial Team | Japanese adaptation and this site’s original illustrations
- Changes and adaptation: Adapted with changes as Japanese facilitation scores
- ShareAlike: Provided under CC-BY-SA-4.0
- Cultural caution: open-method screening complete: Closed, ritual or sacred cultural practices are not used as sources; opting out, sensitive information and power differences are addressed in each method’s limits and branches.
- Limits of this record: Adapted with changes into Japanese facilitation scores under CC BY-SA 4.0 and provided under the same licence. Only the current pages are covered; materials dating from June 2026 or earlier, official icons and third-party material were excluded.
Boundary Case Grid
- 対話の譜面編集部: 境界事例の格子 — Original description and diagrams
- Source: Taiwa no Fumen Editorial Team: Boundary Case Grid | Original description and diagrams
- Attribution: Taiwa no Fumen Editorial Team | This site’s text and illustrations
- Cultural caution: open-method screening complete: Closed, ritual or sacred cultural practices are not used as sources; opting out, sensitive information and power differences are addressed in each method’s limits and branches.
- Limits of this record: The editorial team independently created the text, procedures and diagrams. It claims no exclusive rights over general dialogue operations or ideas themselves.
Shared Definition Wall
- 対話の譜面編集部: 定義の壁 — Original description and diagrams
- Source: Taiwa no Fumen Editorial Team: Shared Definition Wall | Original description and diagrams
- Attribution: Taiwa no Fumen Editorial Team | This site’s text and illustrations
- Cultural caution: open-method screening complete: Closed, ritual or sacred cultural practices are not used as sources; opting out, sensitive information and power differences are addressed in each method’s limits and branches.
- Limits of this record: The editorial team independently created the text, procedures and diagrams. It claims no exclusive rights over general dialogue operations or ideas themselves.
Confirmed source clarification
The author confirmed the intended stop condition in this revision: People begin dismissing exception handling as a problem with an individual staff member's judgement or proficiency.
The original note about individual discretion is retained below as a historical note from the earlier fixed draft. It does not describe the wording now shown above. The action after stopping is unchanged. This clarification is not independent acceptance of the English translation.
Historical fixed-draft notes
The original fixed draft notes are retained without deletion as historical records of those fixed source versions. Current material format corrections are separately identified above; these notes do not imply that other concerns have been resolved.
- The source phrase 個人の裁量不足 in program.stop_conditions.1.trigger does not specify whether it refers to insufficient discretion or authority, or to an individual's exercise of discretion. The translation retains “insufficient individual discretion”; the instruction to return to the situation, inputs and conditions for judgement is unchanged.
- The fixed sourceRaw for preparedMaterials.12 specifies A6, while its helper-produced format offers approximately 75×75 mm sticky notes or quartered A4 paper. The coordinator is separately investigating the A6-size helper issue. Both fixed source representations are retained without correction or a claim that these sizes are equivalent.
- The same unresolved A6-size relationship also occurs in preparedMaterials.10 and preparedMaterials.11: their fixed sourceRaw specifies approximately A6, while the frozen helper-produced formats offer approximately 75×75 mm sticky notes or quartered A4 paper. These inputs and their translations remain unchanged pending the coordinator's separate sizing investigation.
Japanese resources and historical source records
Original Japanese plan and its print view · Japanese operation pack or starter materials
An English print edition is not provided here. The linked plans, print views and operation materials are Japanese resources.
Historical recorded publication holds
The following original hold statements are retained verbatim with their fixed source versions. They are not a statement of current acceptance, nor does this historical label resolve a source-specific restriction.
- English translation and rendered-page independent acceptance pending
- Method dependency source/text SHA binding and current source-specific rights verification pending
- Publication not cleared
Historical fixed-source and English-draft provenance
Japanese program SHA-256: acc38802fa9f96faf40162a65c34a8e5e1897f00a021d93358669673bee2515e
Fixed source context SHA-256: af151e28b9c4cf4b43f7715aafe4d0f9b429adf8971cd2e351334bdd4acd199b
English draft SHA-256: 6e650ea019fab19681eaa0d8919bb228f914ae24087f9906586f0650d81452ad
- boundary-case-grid: source
59561622da3ef5c73dec54ccc635e04ae6df7f4a0d2912045e1c943dee7d9465; English draft07970015d4f07ea81d8a1b6448ecaae6286519a0e0c271643e0be00ffe589ff9 - min-specs: source
ffdba770d0c9e8734e91916b6a5c245669130dfb618f9b06ac483b345f1338b3; English draft56a0e5e841cba86a01d33745981a04c48d90977a377ff0dd65c6c7193281c07a - shared-definition-wall: source
e74038b29c758bf19561b1db20737c6e19b32e9170bfe3344bcf90e01188f1b5; English draftf3ac8198921d391796bb31a5c9e8f4cce6170f96507a2786851311f7331badb3
These hashes identify the checked inputs; they do not grant independent acceptance or publication clearance.