Leading Complex Problem-Solving

Each year I host a workshop for my team, and I give serious thought to what we need to learn considering current challenges and the team's composition.

We do a LOT of complex problem solving. The issues we deal with can be viewed from many different perspectives, have multiple outcomes, and certainly have more than one viable solution. My observation at the time was that every single team member was doing his/her level-best to solve issues as each was able. However, I noticed that each one had different methods or approaches that produced uneven results in unpredictable timeframes.

My mind immediately went to a puzzle we all know and love, the Rubik's Cube. Not unlike our daily work, the cube is also a complex problem that can be solved using multiple methods or approaches. I had my exercise for the workshop!

But before I could impart any wisdom to my team, I had to learn how to solve the cube myself. Yes...I'm almost ashamed to admit that with multiple engineering degrees and certainly the motivation and aptitude to solve the cube, I had never successfully done so. I had to first learn to solve this complex problem before I could ever hope to teach others.

The Rubik's Cube can be scrambled into over 43 quintillion initial states (or 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 to be precise), and the internet is full of methods and strategies to solve the cube. This was my first job as the leader, to decide what method we would use to solve the cube. The most efficient method can solve any of the cube's 43 quintillion initial states in not more than 20 moves. However, this method would require a lot of pattern recognition and correct sequencing to solve the cube. Managers can sometimes fall in love with solutions like this...ones that are ruthlessly efficient but require a huge amount of skill, training, and practice to achieve. I decided that what I really wanted was a method where anyone I asked could solve the cube from any initial state in less than 5 minutes. We weren't going to enter any "speed-cube" competitions, and solving the cube in this short amount of time would still impress many people. Plus, the method only required learning two basic movement algorithms for the cube and six sequences.

If you've never solved the cube, I highly recommend Cubastic's playlist on YouTube. You can watch his four-part video series for solving the Rubik's Cube here.

I enlisted my kids for help to learn and practice my chosen method for solving the cube. Each day they would leave a scrambled cube for me to solve using Cubastic's method. And after a couple of days I was able to solve the cube in under 10 minutes. Then it was about gaining speed. After about an additional week I could confidently solve the cube in under 5 minutes. Of course, I could have intensified my practice schedule and achieved this sooner, but we all know that we have to do our day-to-day work AND learn new skills along the way.

Having gained the confidence and skill to solve the cube myself, I prepared to train my team. In between other workshop activities, I played Cubastic's videos and gave my team time to practice. Then, something serendipitous happened. As is the case with many trainings, the learning mode clicked right away with some of my team, and others struggled to follow the videos and practice. So, the team members who caught on quickly then spontaneously started helping the rest. This is what managers strive for, harnessing the strengths of their team to help all members reach a goal!

After they all successfully solved their cubes, I made the exercise applicable to their daily lives. We have standard work in our jobs that doesn't always seem to be the fastest method. We require reviews/consensus, we require templates to be completed or systems updated, and we expect compliance with policies put in place to maximize safety and quality. While their certainly might be a "20-move" solution that's faster or more efficient, the organization has decided that it's more important that everyone be able to "finish in five" and therefore present a predictable result in a predictable amount of time.

My parting shot to them was leave their cubes on their desks at work for others to scramble so they could practice and improve their speed. This lasting effect would reinforce the lesson and hopefully serve as an effective reminder.

I couldn't have asked for a better exercise. My team gained a new skill, internalized a lesson I wanted them to learn, and had some fun along the way. I hope you'll consider it for your next retreat, team-building day, or just to impress your friends and neighbors when you find a scrambled cube at their desk or home and you put it back solved!