Finding A Solution by exploring problems

Original Published in The Yorkshire Post on 24 July 2024

There are times when the only light you see is the end. Darkness prevails and all is lost. A problem has arisen and you are determined to find the solution - and quickly!

In that moment, this is the very time for you to take a step away from that approach. It is a default approach that many businesspeople have. Sales are down. It must be the price, it must be the poor performance from sales. Distributors are pushing back on keeping our stock! We need to review the deals we have made. ?The biggest mistake that most people in business make is believing that time is of the essence and that means immediate decision making and immediate action is required to “fix the problem”.

I recently had a business situation in which we were presented with a request to complete a service in a certain manner which was never done before.

From everyone’s starting point, the answer was ‘no, it was not possible.’ It is times like these when taking a step back from it all provides the space to think, contemplate what really requires action and what are the alternatives. The issue here is of course the default of believing “thinking time” is trying to find the solution to the “problem”. What if there was another approach?

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Harvard Business Review writers Julia Binder and Michael D Watkins suggest an alternative approach to problem solving.? In order to solve a problem, “Reframe It”.?

This is commonly known as "Frame Storming". Before we explore the solutions, let’s actually explore the problem. This is something that can also be applied at the executive board level when considering strategy. Some of the reframing questions applied included “what if there were unlimited resources to tap into?” Write down your assumptions and reframe into questions. Where sales have dropped, ask “is it because competitors are cheaper?” Or “is our brand message changed?” Or “what do customers actually think?”? The time dedicated to this section of addressing the issue can save money and time later down the line.

For instance, in my case, the question was “if the rules did not apply, how would we make it happen?” The answer was then tried within the rules we had to work to. Surprisingly, a solution was found resulting in a happy customer.

The idea here is to look for the causation of the problem but not default to the assumptions.

All solutions must then revert back to the stakeholders and those that can be impacted by the solution directly and indirectly. Prioritise the stakeholder in terms of those that can cause influence over the problem or have an interest in the problem. In most organisations the stakeholders will be multiple, including employees.? Your answer could lay not in what they are doing but particularly with clients/consumers in what they are thinking and how they are feeling, which inevitably leads them to talk about these feelings and thoughts. What do you want them to say about your brand? Can the reputation take a hit?

This process can help connect other issues within the organisation and, as ever, help keep the business on its axis of continuing with its purpose.? By reframing the question, you could be changing the priority.

So, we do have all the time in the world. Problems do not need to be fixed immediately. Albert Einstein once said, “If I had one hour to solve a problem, I would spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes about the solution.”?

In the current technological, economical, and political landscape, businesses will be faced with a number of issues. How many of you spend time in a diverse group thinking about the problem and the stakeholder?

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