Hospitals have developed something of a reputation for being rife with bad processes. When processes are not adequate, the result is an abundance of workarounds: nurses looking for missing equipment, staff bending the official procedure to keep care moving, and teams fixing the immediate symptom without fixing the system that created it.
One AHRQ PSNet perspective reports that nurses spent 33 minutes of a 7.5-hour shift on workarounds outside their job description. That kind of firefighting may keep the shift moving, but it does not remove the root cause.
The 8D problem solving process exists for exactly this kind of recurring issue. It gives a team a disciplined way to define the problem, contain the damage, perform root cause analysis, choose corrective action, validate the fix, and prevent recurrence.
Individual nurses are not at fault here; workplace culture often rewards the person who gets the job done, even when the system keeps creating the same problem. 8D shifts the work from heroic workaround to structured prevention.
In a lean context, problem solving can be distilled into two simple questions:
- What is the problem, and how did it happen?
- How can we make sure it does not happen again?
The 8D methodology, or eight disciplines methodology, is one of the most widely used problem solving processes for answering those questions. It is used across manufacturing, healthcare, finance, government, and other quality-driven environments where recurring failures need more than ad hoc troubleshooting.
In this article, I will introduce the 8D problem solving methodology, outline the 8D problem solving process, and show how it works with other tools like Six Sigma, FMEA, and Process Street.
Here is what you will take away after reading:
- An understanding of the basics of 8D
- Advantages of using 8D
- The purpose and objectives of each phase of the 8D process
- An understanding of how to use 8D for problem solving
- How 8D works with other problem solving tools
- How you can use Process Street to maximize the potential of the 8D framework
Let’s begin with the origins of 8D, what it is, and where it came from.
8D definition and purpose
8D, sometimes called Global 8D or G8D, stands for eight disciplines. It is a team-based problem solving methodology used to identify, correct, and eliminate recurring problems.
Much like how risk management takes a proactive stance, 8D aims to understand why problems happen so the team can stop them from happening again.
The 8D process involves eight disciplines, plus the planning step D0, for solving difficult, recurring problems. It works best when the problem crosses functions, affects customers, creates quality risk, or requires evidence that the corrective action actually worked.
8D origins: Where did it come from?
Despite the popular story that 8D originated at Ford, it was in fact developed in 1974 by the US Department of Defence, ultimately taking the form of the military standard 1520 Corrective Action and Disposition System for Nonconforming Material.
Ford took this military standard, which was essentially a process for quality management, and expanded on it to include more robust problem solving methods. If you are evaluating systems for this kind of work, this guide to quality management software covers the platform layer that supports quality programs.
In 1987, Ford Motor Company published their manual, Team Oriented Problem Solving (TOPS), which included their first iteration of the 8D methodology.
Initially termed Global 8D (or G8D) standard, it is currently used by Ford and many other companies in the automotive supply chain.
8D, PDSA, & other problem solving processes
The disciplines of 8D follow the same logic as the Deming Cycle (also known as PDSA, and sometimes PDCA).
PDSA stands for Plan, Do, Study, Act (or Check, in the case of PDCA).
The similarity lies in the fact that both PDSA and 8D are designed to be used to improve processes. They’re both examples of cycles of continuous improvement.
Whereas 8D may be painted as a more generic problem-solving framework, structurally speaking both 8D and PDSA share a lot in common.
The simple idea of beginning with a clear objective, or desired output, and then testing, analyzing, and iteratively tweaking in a continuous cycle is the basis for both methodologies.
There are, of course, differences. We’ll cover the different applications of both 8D and PDSA in this article.
8D advantages
One of the main strengths of 8D is its focus on teamwork. 8D philosophy encourages the idea that teams, as a whole, are more powerful than the sum of the individual qualities of each team member.
It’s also an empirical methodology; that is to say that it is a fact-based problem solving process.
A branch of continuous improvement, proper use of 8D will help you coordinate your entire team for effective problem solving and improved implementation of just about all of the processes used in your business.
The 8 disciplines for problem solving
As you may have noticed, we’re starting with zero, which makes nine total disciplines. This “zero” stage was developed as an initial planning step.
D0: Plan adequately
Make comprehensive plans for solving the problem, including the prerequisites, available evidence, customer impact, owners, and urgency.
If the issue is already creating risk, define emergency response actions before the full investigation begins. D0 is where the team decides whether the situation warrants a full 8D report or a lighter corrective action path.
D1: Establish your team
Establish your core team with relevant product or process knowledge. This team will provide you with the perspective and ideas needed for the problem solving process.
The team should consist of about five people, from various cross-functional departments. All individuals should have relevant process knowledge.
A varied group will offer you a variety of different perspectives from which to observe the problem.
It is advisable to establish team structure, roles, and objectives as far ahead in advance as possible so that corrective action can begin as quickly and effectively as possible.
D2: Describe the problem
Have your team gather information and data related to the problem or symptom. The goal is a problem statement specific enough that another team could recognize the same issue. Use clear, quantifiable terms and unpack the problem by asking:
- Who?
- What?
- Where?
- When?
- Why?
- How?
- How many?
D3: Contain the problem (temporary damage control)
Depending on the circumstances, you may need a temporary containment action, or firefighting.
The focus of this stage should be on preventing the problem from getting worse until a permanent corrective action can be identified and implemented. Containment is not the final answer. It protects customers and operations while the root cause work continues.
D4: Identify, describe, and verify root causes
In preparation for permanent corrective action, identify, describe, and verify all possible causes that could contribute to the problem happening. This is the root cause analysis stage.
You can use various techniques for this, including a Failure Modes and Effects Analysis, or Ishikawa (fishbone) diagram.
It’s important that the root causes are systematically identified, described in detail, and promptly verified (or proved). How each cause is verified will depend on the data type and the nature of the problem.
Take a look at the section towards the end of this article for some more problem solving tools to help you decide the right approach.
D5: Identify corrective actions
You must verify that the corrective action you identified will solve the problem and prevent recurrence, or at least reduce recurrence to an acceptable threshold.
The best way to do this is to collect as much data as possible and by performing smaller-scale “pilot” tests to get an idea of the corrective action’s impact.
You can’t begin to identify the optimal corrective action until you have identified the root cause(s) of the problem.
D6: Implement and validate corrective actions
Carry out the corrective actions, and monitor short and long term effects. During this stage, validate the corrective actions with empirical evidence, not just team consensus.
Discuss and review results with your team.
D7: Take preventative measures (to avoid the problem happening again)
Here is where you make any necessary changes to your processes, standard operating procedures, policies and procedures, training, monitoring, and control points to make sure the problem does not happen again.
It may not be possible to completely eliminate any chance of the problem recurring; in that case, efforts should focus on minimizing possibility of recurrence as much as possible.
D8: Congratulate your team
It’s important to recognize the joint contribution of each and every one of the individuals that were involved in the process.
Team members should feel valued and rewarded for their efforts; this is crucial and perhaps the most important step – after all, without the team, the problem would not have been fixed.
Providing positive feedback and expressing appreciation helps to keep motivation high, which in turn improves the sense of process ownership and simply increases the likelihood your team will actually want to improve internal processes in the future.
Using 8D for problem solving
The 8D method above outlines a proven strategy for identifying and dealing with problems. It’s an effective problem solving and problem prevention process.
In addition to avoiding long-term damage from recurring problems, 8D also helps to mitigate customer impact as much as possible.
More than just a problem-solving methodology, 8D sits alongside Six Sigma and other lean frameworks and can easily be integrated with them to minimize training and maximize efficacy.
8D is a powerful framework on its own, but it works best when combined with related concepts from lean, quality management, and continuous improvement.
More problem solving tools that work well with 8D
8D has become a leading framework for process improvement, and in many ways it is more prescriptive than lighter problem-solving approaches. It also works well alongside Six Sigma and design thinking when a team needs both analytical rigor and practical implementation.
However, there are many Six Sigma methodologies, and even more frameworks for problem solving and process improvement.
The following improvement tools are often used within or alongside the 8D methodology.
DMAIC: Lean Six Sigma
DMAIC stands for:
- Define
- Measure
- Analyze
- Improve
- Control
The DMAIC process is a data-driven cycle of process improvement designed for businesses to help identify flaws or inefficiencies in processes.
Simply put, the goal with DMAIC is to improve and optimize existing processes.
Interestingly, the development of the DMAIC framework is credited to Motorola, whose work built upon the systems initially developed by Toyota.
In terms of working alongside 8D, you could use DMAIC to identify root causes as in D4; you could also implement the same techniques to better understand prospects for corrective actions as in D5, and D6.
We have a whole article on the DMAIC process, if you’re interested.
SWOT analysis
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. You can use a SWOT analysis to gain insight into your organization as a whole, or on individual processes.
The main synergy with 8D is in the identification of opportunities, threats, and weaknesses.
These can represent opportunities for process improvements, weaknesses in your process that could produce problems further down the line, and threats, both internal and external, that may be out of your direct control but that could cause problems for you.
Here’s a SWOT analysis checklist you can use to structure your own analysis:
FMEA: Failure Mode and Effects Analysis
FMEA (Failure Mode and Effects Analysis) is a way of understanding the potential for problems and making preemptive preparations in order to avoid them. It is a method of risk management.
It is a type of preventative risk management process, and so works well in the context of identifying causes of problems so you can better deal with them.
FMEA and 8D work well together because:
- 8D can make use of information gathered during an FMEA process, like brainstorming sessions, to identify potential problems and their root causes.
- You can reuse possible cause information gathered during an FMEA process to feed into different representational diagrams like the Ishikawa (fishbone) diagram, which will help in the 8D process.
- 8D brainstorming data is useful for new process design. This allows the FMEA to take actual process failures into account, which produces more effective results.
- FMEA completed in the past can be used as databases of potential root causes of problems to inform 8D process development.
Here’s a free FMEA template for you to get started ASAP:
The Pareto Chart
The Pareto Chart helps us understand the impact of different variations of input on our output.
In relation to 8D, Pareto Charts can help us prioritize which root cause to target, based on which will have the greatest impact on improvement (where improvement is the desired output of the 8D process).
Here’s the Six Sigma Institute’s example Pareto Chart:
5 Whys
Here we have a simple deductive reasoning technique that asks “why?” five times to dig into the root cause of a problem.
The logic here is that by asking the same question five times, you work progressively “deeper” into the complexity of the problem from a single point of focus.
Ideally, by the fifth question you should have something that has a high likelihood of being a root cause.
This example from Wikipedia does a great job of conveying how the process works:
- The vehicle will not start. (the problem)
- Why? – The battery is dead. (First why)
- Why? – The alternator is not functioning. (Second why)
- Why? – The alternator belt has broken. (Third why)
- Why? – The alternator belt was well beyond its useful service life and not replaced. (Fourth why)
- Why? – The vehicle was not maintained according to the recommended service schedule. (Fifth why, a root cause)
Ishikawa diagrams (fishbone diagrams)
Sometimes called “cause-and-effect diagrams”, they are as such used to visualize the cause and effect of problems.
The approach takes six different categories and places information about the problem into different categories to help you understand what factors could be contributing to the problem.
One advantage over the 5 Whys approach is the way this method forces a more holistic perspective, as opposed to the potentially narrow vantage point offered by zooming in on a single aspect or question.
According to the Six Sigma Institute, the 6 key variables pertaining to root causes of problems are:
- Machine: Root causes related to tools used to execute the process.
- Material: Root causes related to information and forms needed to execute the process.
- Nature: Root causes related to our work environment, market conditions, and regulatory issues.
- Measure: Root causes related to the process measurement.
- Method: Root causes related to procedures, hand-offs, input-output issues.
- People: Root causes related people and organizations.
There’s also this useful illustration of a company using a fishbone diagram to better understand what factors contribute to a company’s high turn around time.
Gap analysis
A gap analysis is concerned with three key elements:
- The current situation, or “performance”
- The ideal situation, or “potential”
- What needs to be done in order to get from performance to potential, or “bridging the gap”
The “gap” is what separates your current situation from your ideal situation.
Businesses that perform a gap analysis can improve their efficiency and better understand how to improve processes and products.
They can help to better optimize how time, money, and human resources are spent in business.
There’s a lot that goes into a gap analysis, and quite a few different ways to approach it. Check out our article for a deeper dive into the gap analysis process.
Superpowered checklists
Checklists can be a great way to simplify a complex process into a series of smaller, easy-to-manage tasks. They are one of the best ways to start using processes in your business.
For 8D, a checklist is not just a memory aid. It is the operating structure for the investigation: D0 planning, D1 team setup, D2 problem description, D3 containment action, D4 root cause analysis, D5 corrective action selection, D6 validation, D7 prevention, and D8 recognition.
By using structured workflows, you can reduce errors in your workflow, assign owners, capture evidence, route approvals, and keep the team aligned. Process Street supports that with conditional logic, rich form fields, task assignments, automations, and streamlined workflow editing.
Process Street for 8D problem solving
Good problem solving relies on good process. If you are trying to solve recurring problems effectively, the last thing you want is your 8D process living across documents, spreadsheets, screenshots, and follow-up emails.
Process Street is a Compliance Operations Platform that brings Docs, Ops, and built-in AI into one product. Docs gives teams a governed place to document procedures. Ops turns those procedures into assigned, auditable workflows. Built-in AI helps teams draft, monitor, and improve operational processes without turning the work into a loose chat thread.
That makes it a natural fit for 8D. You can build an 8D workflow that guides the team through each discipline, collects evidence, routes approvals, records containment and corrective actions, and creates an audit trail showing what changed and why.
For example, an 8D workflow in Process Street can:
- Assign the D1 team and document each owner.
- Capture the D2 problem statement with required fields for who, what, where, when, why, how, and how many.
- Track the D3 containment action separately from the permanent corrective action.
- Require evidence for D4 root cause analysis before the team moves into D5.
- Route D6 validation for review before changes are marked complete.
- Update the relevant SOP, policy, or control in D7 so the same issue is less likely to recur.
Problem solving is an invaluable skill, but recurring problems need more than skill. They need a system that enforces the process, tracks the evidence, and proves the work was done.
See Process Street pricing to build your own 8D problem solving workflow.
Problem solving is an invaluable skill. What is your go-to process for problem solving? We would love to know how it compares with the 8D method. Let us know in the comments.