The TOLOPOSOGO Framework: A Manufacturing-Floor Example of Structured Innovation

    A manufacturing team used Edward de Bono's five-step TOLOPOSOGO framework to cut waste and lift efficiency — here is the full worked example, step by step, and how any team can run it this week.

    The TOLOPOSOGO Framework: A Manufacturing-Floor Example of Structured Innovation

    The TOLOPOSOGO Framework: A Manufacturing-Floor Example of Structured Innovation

    Every manufacturing plant I have walked into has at least one process that everyone privately agrees is wasteful — and nobody has touched it in years. In Stars at India Inc., I use a manufacturing-process example built on Edward de Bono's TOLOPOSOGO framework to show exactly how a team can turn that private frustration into a five-step action plan. This is that example, in full, with every step explained so you can run it in your own plant or office this week.

    In short

    Where this sits on your Winning Kite

    Innovation is the eighth trait on the EQ — left — side of your Winning Kite (KITE Leadership Framework). It belongs on the EQ side, not the PQ (productivity) side, because innovation begins with an emotional posture: the willingness to be uncomfortable, to hear an idea from someone junior to you, and to sit with ambiguity before rushing to a fix. TOLOPOSOGO is the productivity-side tool that channels that emotional openness into a repeatable process — which is exactly why EQ and PQ have to work together for a team to actually change something on the floor, not just talk about changing it.

    Why manufacturing teams need a framework, not just enthusiasm

    In the chapter on Innovation in Stars at India Inc., I make the point that innovation is not only about inventing something brand new — a lot of the time it is about making small, deliberate changes to how things already get done. I tell the story of Sumant Moolgaokar, the Managing Director of Tata Motors, whose colleagues noticed he skipped the executive lunch table every day. When a few of them finally followed him out of curiosity, they found him eating at a roadside dhaba with truck drivers — the very people who drove Tata's vehicles on real roads, in real conditions. He was quietly collecting feedback that no formal review meeting would ever have surfaced. That habit, small as it sounds, shaped decisions at Tata Motors — the Tata Sumo itself carries his initials, Su from Sumant, Mo from Moolgaokar.

    That story sets up an important truth: most professionals are not short on ideas. They are short on a structured way to move an idea from “this bugs me” to “here is what we changed and here is the result.” That is the gap TOLOPOSOGO closes.

    The TOLOPOSOGO framework, step by step

    TOLOPOSOGO is Edward de Bono's five-step process for structured innovation. Each syllable of the name is a step, and the discipline is in doing them in order — not skipping straight to ideas, and not stopping at ideas without ever executing.

    TO — where are we going?

    Begin by defining the end result. What problem are you actually trying to solve, and where do you want to end up? Having a clear goal in mind keeps the whole exercise anchored to an outcome instead of turning into a general complaints session.

    LO — look at the facts

    Collect all relevant data and be honest about the assumptions you are carrying into the discussion. Analyse the information for what it actually says, not what you want it to say. The discipline here is to fit all the facts into your thinking rather than cherry-picking the ones that already support your pet theory.

    PO — think through the possibilities

    Once the facts are on the table, brainstorm. Generate as many options and alternatives as you can, deliberately challenging the existing way of doing things. This is the creative phase, and it works best when nobody is allowed to say “that won’t work” yet — that judgment comes later, in the next step.

    SO — so what?

    Now filter. Select the ideas and approaches that can make a real difference to the outcome you defined in the TO step. Evaluate feasibility and decide which options are genuinely worth pursuing versus which ones sounded good in the brainstorm but won't survive contact with reality.

    GO — take action

    Build an action plan and implement the chosen idea. This is the step most teams quietly skip — they do TO, LO, PO, and SO beautifully in a workshop, produce a nice deck, and then nothing changes on the floor. GO is where the framework earns its keep.

    The worked example: improving a manufacturing process

    Here is the manufacturing example from the book, applied in full. Picture a team tasked with improving a manufacturing process to reduce waste and increase efficiency. Instead of jumping straight into “let’s automate this” or “let’s just work faster,” they run it through TOLOPOSOGO.

    TO — Define the end goal

    The team defines the end goal precisely: to create a more efficient and sustainable manufacturing process. Not “reduce costs” in a vague sense — a specific, shared destination that everyone on the floor and in the office can repeat back the same way.

    LO — Gather the facts

    They gather data on the current manufacturing process: how much waste is being generated at each stage, how much energy is being consumed, where the bottlenecks sit. They identify the specific points in the line where inefficiency is bleeding out — not general impressions, but numbers from the floor.

    PO — Brainstorm the possibilities

    With the facts in hand, the team brainstorms different solutions for reducing waste and increasing efficiency. Ideas on the table include automation of specific repetitive steps, redesigning the sequence of the process itself, and substituting materials that generate less waste. Nobody shoots an idea down at this stage — the goal is volume and range of options.

    SO — Evaluate and select

    Now the team evaluates the feasibility and potential impact of each idea. They weigh cost against benefit, consider the environmental impact of each option, and — critically — consider the impact on worker safety. An idea that saves money but puts operators at risk gets filtered out here, not after it's already been implemented.

    GO — Implement and iterate

    Finally, the team implements the most promising solutions and tracks their impact on efficiency and waste reduction. And — this is the part people forget — they iterate on the process as necessary. TOLOPOSOGO is not a one-time exercise; the GO step feeds new facts back into a fresh LO the next time round.

    Notice what this worked example is really doing: it takes an abstract five-letter mnemonic and grounds it in a real, specific shop-floor decision — waste, energy consumption, automation versus redesign versus material substitution, worker safety. That specificity is exactly why the framework sticks. A team that has walked through this once on a real problem can run it again on the next one without needing a facilitator in the room.

    Why idea killers derail this before it starts

    In the same chapter, I talk about “idea killers” — people who instinctively view new suggestions negatively and look for reasons an idea won't work rather than ways it might. Idea killers are usually not villains; often they are experienced people who have seen ideas fail before and are trying to protect the team from wasted effort. But if an idea killer is in the room during the PO (possibilities) step of TOLOPOSOGO, the brainstorm dies before it starts, because people stop offering options the moment they sense judgment.

    This is why I teach leaders to physically separate PO from SO. Let the brainstorm run without evaluation — write everything on the board, no matter how impractical it sounds — and only switch into evaluation mode once you move to SO. Manufacturing teams I have trained find this single discipline shift, more than anything else in the framework, is what actually gets more usable ideas onto the table.

    The seniority trap — and why stars don't fall into it

    There is a second failure mode I address in the book: professionals who are open to new ideas are more likely to invent something that genuinely improves their workplace — but only if the people around them are willing to actually listen. If someone with a lower designation suggests something in the LO or PO step, people in higher positions often don't take it seriously, simply because of where the suggestion came from. I use the example of a software team where a newly hired junior developer has an idea that could meaningfully improve the user experience of the product, but hesitates to speak up because of the seniority gap in the room.

    Stars — the people this book is really about — are the ones who are open to ideas no matter who suggests them. In a manufacturing context, that might be the newest operator on the line who has noticed a small adjustment nobody senior has thought to try, simply because they are the one physically doing the task every day. A team leader running TOLOPOSOGO has to actively invite that voice into the LO and PO steps, not just tolerate it if it happens to show up.

    The manager who resists the framework entirely

    Not every manager takes to this naturally. In the book I describe a manager in a manufacturing company who is resistant to implementing new technology or processes, even when the evidence points to significant gains in efficiency and cost. This resistance often comes down to homeostasis — the very human tendency to prefer the stability of the status quo over the discomfort of change, the same instinct that makes us seek medical attention to restore balance the moment something in our body feels off. Recognising that this resistance is a natural, almost biological reflex — rather than stubbornness or incompetence — is the first step to working with it rather than against it. Psychologist Daniel Kahneman's research on how people systematically favour the familiar over the uncertain offers useful supporting colour here, though the discipline of naming and working through that resistance on the shop floor is what the TOLOPOSOGO steps are built to do.

    How to run this with your own team this week

    You do not need a consultant or a two-day offsite to try this. Pick one recurring frustration — a process, a bottleneck, a customer complaint pattern — and block ninety minutes with the people closest to it, including the most junior person in the room. Write TO, LO, PO, SO, GO on a whiteboard as five separate sections. Spend real time on TO before anyone is allowed to suggest a solution. Ground the LO step in actual data, not opinions. Let PO run wild without judgment. Filter hard in SO. And most importantly, walk out of the room with a GO — a named owner and a date, not just a decision.

    If you want this built into a structured leadership or team-training session for your organisation — with your own shop-floor or process data as the case study — that is exactly the kind of workshop I run through Signature Corporate Training Programs and the wider Corporate Training Topics I deliver across India.

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    Avinash Chate

    TEDx Speaker · Founder, The Future Corporate · Author of Stars at India Inc.

    Avinash has trained the Indian Army, BRO, RBI, BARC, JSW Steel and 1000+ corporate leaders across India. His work focuses on leadership, emotional intelligence and behavioural training rooted in Indian values and modern business needs.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What does TOLOPOSOGO stand for?

    TOLOPOSOGO is Edward de Bono's five-step innovation process: TO (where are we going — define the goal), LO (look at the facts), PO (think through the possibilities), SO (so what — select the best ideas), and GO (take action). Each syllable is a step you walk through in order.

    Can TOLOPOSOGO be used outside manufacturing?

    Yes. The manufacturing-process example in Stars at India Inc. is one illustration, but the five steps work for any workplace challenge — a sales process, a customer complaint pattern, a hiring bottleneck, or a software feature decision. Define the goal, gather facts, brainstorm possibilities, filter for impact, then execute.

    How is TOLOPOSOGO different from a normal brainstorming session?

    Most brainstorms start with ideas and skip the discipline of first defining the goal (TO) and grounding in facts (LO). TOLOPOSOGO forces you to separate fact-finding from idea-generation from idea-selection from execution, so teams don't jump to solutions before they understand the problem.

    Where does Innovation sit in the Winning Kite framework?

    Innovation is Trait #8 on the EQ (Emotional Intelligence) side — the left side of the Winning Kite. It sits alongside self-awareness and self-regulation traits, because being open to new ideas and comfortable with risk is fundamentally an emotional quality before it is a technical skill.

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