Problem Solving Management Strategies for Dealing With Challenges

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Problem SolvingManagement Strategies for Dealing
With Challenges

• January 2005
• Robert Gusnowski

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When faced with a difficult problem, how do you
react?

• Perception is everything when looking at solving
  problems
• Do you view problems as an obstacle?
• Do you view problems as failure?
• Do you view problems as a challenge or puzzle to
  be solved?
• Do you view problems as part of life and a time
  to grow and learn new things?
• Do you recognize the opportunity that lies within
  every problem?
• Solving problems and making decisions have always
  been the two biggest (and most difficult) tasks
  any manager must face.

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Problem Solving Rule 1

• Perception is everything!

How you view the problem will ultimately affect
your decisions and your you choose to find a
solution. It is often helpful to re-frame
problems in to challenges. Just in name alone a
challenge has a different perception than a
problem.
Girl in a mirror or a skull?
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Problem Solving Rule 2

• Every problem has a solution.
• There is no such thing as problem that cant be
  resolved.
• There are however, solutions that have not been
  found yet.

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Problem Solving Rule 3

• Spend 80 of your time on the solution and 20 of
  your time on the problem.

The Pareto Principle. This is also known as the
20/80 rule or the rule of the vital few and
trivial many.
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Strategies For Solving Problems

• Before starting on a course of action look at all
  the possible strategies that may be employed in
  finding the answers you need.
• Do not reject any idea in the pre-planning stage
  when looking at the possible strategies for
  answering the challenge.
• There is no one right strategy for solving
  problems and a percentage of the solution must be
  spent looking at alternatives.

• Every minute spent planning saves twenty!

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Problem Solving Rule 4

• Plan how you plan to find the answers to your
  problem look at all the possibilities!

In preparing for battle I have always found that
plans are useless, but planning is
indispensable. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890 - 1969)
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I.D.E.A. A very simple model

• Identify the problem
• Is it really a problem? Ask questions and take
  ownership of the problem!
• Gather data
• Define the solutions
• Look at the alternatives and possible solutions
• Evaluate your options
• Act
• Put your action plan in to place

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I.D.E.A - Dissected

• While being a very simple approach I.D.E.A.
  contains the the major elements of any strategy.
• The basics of any strategy are
• Look at the problem to gain understanding of the
  issue
• Gather data about the problem
• Gather data about the solutions
• Take ownership of issue avoid the blame game
  taking ownership of the problem is the only way
  YOU can solve the problem
• Plan your course of action
• Put your action plan in to place
• Evaluate the results of your actions and if
  needed start again Failure only happens when
  you stop trying different solutions.

Leaders are good at asking the right questions-
and listening.
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A more complex model
Notice anything familiar?
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Problem Solving Rule 5

• Be decisive, pick a solution, and implement it.
• Make a decision and stick with it until the end
  dont back track. See a course of actions fully
  to the end before evaluating its success or
  failure.

To will is to select a goal, determine a course
of action that will bring one to that goal, and
then hold to that action till the goal is
reached. The key is action. Michael Hanson
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Learning More

• Human-Factor Phenomena in Problem Solving
• http//www.virtualsalt.com/crebok3a.htm
• Problem Solving Definition, terminology, and
  patterns
• http//www.mediafrontier.com/Article/PS/PS.htm
• How Leaders Solve Problems
• http//www.personal-development.com/articles/probl
  ems.htm
• eNotalone Advice Problem Solving
• http//enotalone.com/Problem-Solving-35.html