Everyday we are faced with
situations and issues in our daily life that need solutions. It could be as
simple as trying to come up with a solution in routine day to day work or a
complex project at the work place.
The world is evolving fast and in
this fast-paced environment people are constantly looking for solutions to
provide more efficiency.
In the past, you had to write a letter to communicate
with someone. The letter could take days before it was delivered. You also had
to track the letter to see if it had been sent to and received by the
appropriate person.
This is not the case today. Technology has
made sure of this and provided a better solution. Communication has gotten
easier and faster over the years from the aforementioned example.
This is just an example of the problems we
are faced with and how we can offer solutions to our challenges.
This past month I have learnt
more about problem solving as an important skill from a course by the Bridge
Africa. This has been an eye opener for me and I will share some of the key
lessons that I have learnt.
All employment opportunities are
PROBLEMS. All successful employees are problem SOLVERS!
This was very interesting to me as part of the introduction. At their very core, organizations
hire for only one reason – to solve a problem that exists in a particular unit,
department, branch or office. In the workplace, there are a variety of
different problems, ranging from interpersonal challenges with colleagues, to
broken internal processes, to problems around product profitability and how the
organization sells and markets its goods.
So, how do we solve these problems?
I will highlight two important ways to go about this:
1. Every major issue requiring a resolution especially complex ones like
work-based challenges require a coherent approach (called a structure) and the
appropriate tools for that process.
Two things are critical for any problem namely: Defining
the problem and separating it from symptoms. To begin, you should:
Review the information at hand. What impact are
you seeing? Where does it seem to be coming from? How did you learn about it?
Distill it to one core problem. Don’t solve
two problems, follow the information. Where is it leading you? Is there a clear
path to one problem? If not, how can you find one?
Finally, determine its origin. Where does your
problem originate? Is it your teams/people problem? A process
problem? An organizational problem?
2. 5 WHYS TECHNIQUE. This involves initiating your diagnosis by asking, “Why is
this happening?” up to five times to ensure your focus isn’t on symptoms but on
the root cause.
Finally, what
are some lessons on key competencies to develop from the top consultancy
firms e.g. McKinsey and BCG on problem solving?
1) Facts Reading - the ability to
accurately comprehend facts/data and work with it effectively
2) Root Cause Analysis - its the ability to get to the underlying causes by cutting through
the noise and irrelevant facts
3) Fact-Based Conclusion - it is about drawing logical conclusions from NOTHING ELSE but
the relevant facts
4) Client Interpretation - the ability to narrow your focus on the actual project
requirements so that you are solving the actual problem the client presents
5) Estimation/Guestimation
Skills - this is a quantitative skill demonstrated
through the ability to quickly perform mental math, identify trends, compare
aspects logically and so forth.
In conclusion, problem-solving skills help you determine the source of a
problem and find an effective solution.
While problem-solving skills are valued by employers, they are also
highly useful in other areas of life like relationship building and day-to-day
decision making.
This is in my opinion, one of the most important skills to develop.
For more details on the problem solving course you can visit https://www.ureadyafrica.com/
by The Bridge Africa.
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