More on A3 Templates

There are a few circumstances where a standard A3 template is a helpful thing. If an A3 Status Report will replace a standard project management report, a standard template helps ensure that project teams include the right information in the update. If a management team requests an A3 report to help them make decisions, the managers should decide upon the information they need, and how it is formatted. If an A3 will replace some kind of document needed to request services, the service providers will need to have input into the format of the A3.

However, these circumstances are not the norm. Most of the A3s in an effective knowledge-sharing organization will need to be written in a form that is flexible enough to accommodate the author's information-sharing needs, including the visual models that make this such a powerful communication tool. If most of the A3s in an organization follow a standard template, either the organization is not using them widely enough or they are over-constraining the form.

These templates should still be designed so that the information customer's need for standard information is balanced against the information producer's need to be concise, clear and focused. There may be standard boxes in standard locations, and then areas that are more flexible.

Even these standard A3s don't have to be pretty. The process should still encourage the author to review work early and often with anyone who can provide useful feedback. That will help the downstream information customers receive the best possible information in the form that works best for them.