A3 Thinking Catchball

What is Catchball?

Catchball involves moving ideas and information from one person or team to another. In the A3 context, the A3 problem owner pitches the A3 to others, and the audience of coaches pitches questions back to help expand and deepen thinking.

 

Effective coaching in catchball is about assessing where the learner is at in working through their problem and how to balance directive and open questions.

 

Good Catchball Questions:

  • Are short, open-ended questions that support the learner's deeper thinking and expand learning
  • Are not "statements in disguise" with the intention of leading someone to your conclusion or path of thinking

  • “Have you tried solving this by doing X?”
  • "Why didn't you X?"
  • "Did you try X?"

 

  • “What solutions/countermeasures have you tried?”
  • "What outcome is needed?"
  • "How will that address the root cause(s) you have identified?"

Examples of Catchball Questions

Impactful and more effective catchball questions are provocative open inquiry questions asked with the intention to help the other person move towards clarity, discovery, understanding and action.

Tip: The most effective catchball questions often start with "What" or "How"

Assessment:
  • What do you know?
    • How do you know it?
  • What do you need to know?
    • How can you learn it?
  • What does that situation look like today?
Focus:
  • What is the actual problem?
  • If you had to pick one, what is the biggest issue?
Outcomes:
  • What would better look like?
  • What outcome is needed?
  • What is the target?
  • How will you know when you have achieved it?
Countermeasures:
  • What impact do you anticipate that to have?
  • How will that address the root cause(s) you have identified?
Planning:
  • What next step do you need to take?
    • By when?
  • Whom else do you need to involve?
  • What resources do you need?
Coaching Relationship:
  • What was most useful for you?
  • And what else?

Process

There are three roles in catchball:

  1. Presenter: The presenter is the person who shares their A3. (Usually this portion is 5-7 minutes)
  2. Coach(es): Occaisionally a select group, but generally applies to everyone in the audience. When someone is presenting and A3, Coaches:
    1. Listen quietly
    2. Make note of areas where they have questions as they listen
    3. Ask coaching questions after the presentation. (Usually for 3-5 minutes)
  3. Observer: Facilitates the debrief (for about 1-3 minutes), the observer also might ask the presenter which questions were most impactful or take this time to comment on questions to help improve the questioning.