What's the Problem?

Simple question, huh?  So, maybe you’d expect a simple answer wouldn’t you?  But in fact you rarely get one, do you?
 
When trouble strikes, ask pretty much any colleague what the problem is and you’ll almost certainly have to settle in for the long run.  Grab a coffee, put your feet up, and pin your ears back.  In almost every instance you’ll hear a good tale but you’ll be none the wiser as to the exact issue at the end of this exchange. Although you may well be wise as to who’s likely to be getting the blame.
 
A problem well stated is a problem half-solved.
Charles Kettering
 
The problem is, that as a rule, us humans are pretty terrible at defining any problem we’re trying to solve.  When we look at a problem, we tend struggle to untangle ourselves from the wider issue.  By that I mean that most of us confront a problem based on how that issue impacted on us or our teams.  For example, if we work in compliance and a problem partly impacts on compliance, it’s a ‘compliance issue’.  If we’re in sales and sales suffer, it’s a ‘sales problem’.  And it’s the same for quality, reliability, risk, safety and so on.  And of course, from here, our preferred solutions will reflect this.  In psychological terms this is known as ‘availability bias’ – a phenomenon that means we react to what’s close.
 
If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.
Albert Einstein (probably)
 
‘So what?’ you may ask. Let’s take a step back to better understand why this is a problem. Without a clear and shared definition of a problem we run many risks.  Firstly, we could be solving the wrong problem, or put another way we could be solving a symptom and not a cause.  Secondly, we could be applying solutions that will have unintended consequences, ones that we’re totally blind to. Thirdly, we could easily find ourselves in a situation where a number of teams are all simultaneously working on contradictory ways of solving a problem.  So contradictory in fact that they compound the issue, creating bigger problems and greater risk as a result.
 
When solving problems, dig at the roots instead of just hacking at the leaves.
Anthony J. D’Angelo
 
 
Okay, what’s the answer?  Well, first off, the good news is that there IS an answer.  Or rather there are answers.  To expertly define a problem the first challenge is to assemble a team of problem solvers that has diverse thinking and broad experience.  By doing this you increase your chances of establishing a 360-degree panorama of the problem and the issue that needs to be solved. Do not be tempted to assemble of team of brilliant but identical people.  There are precious few efficiencies to be found here.
 
Next off try asking each participant what they think the problem is.  This achieves two very important goals. First off, it demonstrates to your team that each of their perspectives are important and secondly it also reveals whether there is pre-existing consensus on the issue.  (Spoiler: There rarely is). Enabling your team members to reveal what they think the problem is will also reveal alternative points of view to their colleagues and may well prompt a broader view all around.  If nothing else this quick process is an exercise in teambuilding and a guard against ‘groupthink’.
 
When you gain certainty about a problem the problem is gone.
Meir Ezra
 
 
Next, try taking these individual perspectives and placing them in a simple timeline of when they occurred from present (placed on the far left) back in time to the past (finishing far right).  This continuum will reveal a great deal.  The effect falling farthest to the left will be the biggest issue you can tackle (often organisational in scale) and any investigation into this will most likely have to address all the issues on your timeline that are downstream of that focal point.  An investigation of this nature is often demanding and time consuming, but extremely far reaching.
 
Conversely choose the issue to the far right hand side of your timeline and your investigation will be much smaller, more targeted and probably departmental in reach at best.  But on the positive side it will be quick, and you’ll probably solve a small but very real problem.  Never underestimate the sense of achievement and satisfaction that comes from picking these smaller issues off one by one.
 
If there is a problem you can’t solve, then there is an easier problem you can solve: find it.
George Polya
 
What we learn from all of this is that most problems are ill defined and from here any analysis is muddled and solutions ineffective.  Problem definition is the ‘X marks the spot’ of problem solving.  If it’s wrong, it doesn’t matter how far down you dig, there is no treasure to be found.  Accurate problem definition is not a luxury.  It is a necessity. It is rarely difficult, but it is usually neglected.  And the accumulated cost of this sloppy thinking in incalculable on almost every conceivable metric. When it comes to problem solving the tortoise always beats the hare.