The Power of Holistic Innovation: Why Solving the Bigger Problem Creates Bigger Impact

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Innovation teams often start by solving a narrowly defined problem—only to realize later that the true opportunity lies beyond their initial scope. The key to unlocking breakthrough solutions isn’t just about addressing immediate pain points; it’s about understanding the broader context in which those problems exist.

One of the most effective ways to achieve this is by bringing together people with diverse experiences, skills, and perspectives across the entire customer journey. When you broaden the lens, you don’t just solve the problem at hand—you create solutions that drive meaningful impact across the ecosystem.

A Design Sprint is one way to do this. By gathering a cross-functional team to ideate, prototype, and test solutions, teams can efficiently uncover insights and opportunities they might have otherwise missed. If you’re looking to facilitate one, check out our guide to running an effective Design Sprint.

Seeing the Bigger Picture: The Drill vs. the Hole vs. Hanging a Picture

Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen illustrated this concept through the jobs-to-be-done framework. Customers don’t buy drills because they want a drill—they buy them because they need a hole. But taking an even broader view, most people don’t actually want a hole either; they want to hang a picture.

This shift in perspective paved the way for innovations like Command Strips—products that allow people to hang pictures without making holes at all.

This kind of insight isn’t possible when teams work in silos, focusing narrowly on their specific function or product. It emerges when diverse perspectives come together to ask bigger questions:

·???????? What is the actual goal?

·???????? What are the pain points along the entire journey?

·???????? How might we solve the problem in a completely new way?

When you consider the full spectrum of user needs, you unlock radically different—and often superior—solutions.

From Small Fixes to Transformative Innovations

Many of the most impactful innovations started as solutions to seemingly small problems. But when teams stepped back and thought holistically, they uncovered much larger opportunities.

Netflix: From Late Fees to a New Business Model

In the late 1990s, Netflix was a DVD rental company trying to eliminate late fees—a major frustration with traditional video rental stores. But instead of just optimizing the rental process, they examined the entire entertainment experience. By shifting from physical rentals to on-demand streaming, Netflix eliminated late fees entirely and disrupted the entertainment industry.

Toyota’s Lean Manufacturing: Beyond the Factory Floor

Toyota’s Lean principles started as a way to eliminate waste in manufacturing. But as they incorporated insights from logistics, supply chain, and customer service, they realized these same principles could transform the entire business. Today, Lean thinking influences industries far beyond automotive manufacturing.

Airbnb: From Extra Space to a Global Hospitality Shift

Airbnb’s founders started by renting out air mattresses in their apartment to make extra money. But as they engaged with hosts, travelers, and property owners, they realized they weren’t just solving a short-term lodging issue—they were tapping into a growing need for personalized, community-driven travel experiences. That shift in perspective transformed Airbnb into a platform that reshaped the global hospitality industry.

The Value of Diverse Perspectives

The common thread in these examples? A willingness to expand beyond the immediate problem, informed by diverse perspectives.

When teams bring together people from different disciplines—marketing, engineering, customer service, behavioral psychology, and more—they uncover insights that a single-function team might miss. Each stakeholder sees different pain points, different opportunities, and different ways to add value.

Cross-functional collaboration helps:

? Identify unintended consequences or limitations of a proposed solution.

? Surface alternative, often more innovative, ways to meet user needs.

? Reduce blind spots and assumptions that limit creativity.

? Create solutions that integrate seamlessly into the broader customer journey.

Building Holistic Innovation Into Your Organization

If your organization wants to move from incremental fixes to breakthrough innovation, consider these steps:

?? Expand the Team’s Perspective – When tackling a problem, bring in voices from across the customer journey. Include people from different departments, disciplines, and even industries.

?? Map the Entire Ecosystem – Look beyond the immediate issue to understand all the touchpoints and pain points a customer encounters. Where else can value be created?

?? Encourage ‘What If’ Thinking – Challenge teams to reframe problems in broader terms. Instead of asking, “How do we improve the drill?”, ask, “How do we help people hang pictures more effectively?”

?? Test Solutions in the Real World – Innovation doesn’t happen in isolation. Engage users early, get feedback, and iterate based on real behaviors and needs.

The next time you’re solving a problem, ask yourself: Are we designing a better drill, or are we helping people hang pictures in a completely new way?

For more insights on how to drive breakthrough innovation in your organization, explore our latest thought leadership at Centered Articles.

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About Preston Chandler

Preston Chandler is a transformation leader, speaker, and author who specializes in helping organizations unlock innovation by building adaptive teams and driving operational excellence. With 20 years of experience across industries, Preston has led major brands like Pfizer, T-Mobile, Colgate-Palmolive, and Ford through significant change and improvement.

·???????? Co-author of The Agile Code (retitled Breakthrough Innovation)

·???????? Expert in Agile leadership, operating models, and innovation strategies

·???????? 20 years of experience driving operational excellence

·???????? Extensive experience facilitating workshops, including Design Sprints

Preston has a proven track record of cutting time to market and improving productivity while developing teams that thrive on experimentation and creativity. His passion is creating environments where innovation flourishes and teams deliver long-term, sustainable results.