Force Field Analysis is a tool used to visualize the driving forces and the restraining forces that affect some area of interest. A team might use Force Field Analysis to gain an understanding of the forces that are helping something and the forces that are inhibiting something from being at the optimal level.
For Six Sigma teams, Force Field Analysis offers a basic tool that they can use to easily identify these supporting and constraining forces. Doing so helps them delve deeper into finding the root causes that hinder attempts to make changes that will improve operations.
Conducting Force Field Analysis
Force Field Analysis works best in situations where a team has a solution for a specific challenge but is having difficulty putting the solution into action. By identifying and assessing the strength of supporting and constraining forces, they can not only find the root causes that prevent change but also better articulate the reasons for making a change.
The steps involved in Force Field Analysis can work in the following way. The team:
- Agrees on the goal that implementing the solution will achieve.
- Lists supportive forces that provide reasons to move the situation from the current state to the desired one.
- Lists constraining forces that hold back changes in the current state.
- Assigns a number to indicate the strength of each force, usually ranging from 1 (weak) to 5 (strong).
Developed by German-American psychologist Kurt Lewin in 1951, Force Field Analysis is most frequently used in change management. Businesses in virtually any industry that seeks to change operations for the better can use Lewin’s theory to increase the chance of succeeding. This can range from manufacturers who want to buy new machinery for the factory floor to healthcare companies who want to improve the flow of patients through an outpatient clinic.
