Problem Solving in Organizations

Professionalism - Useful Techniques and Skills for the Professional

• Outline:
  • Introduction to problem solving and problem-solving maturity
  • 6-step problem-solving approach
  • PDCA cycle for quality improvements
  • Brainstorming and reverse brainstorming
  • Root cause analysis
  • 5 Whys
  • Multicriteria decision analysis
  • Pareto chart for analysis and prioritization
  • Risk analysis and management
  • SWOT analysis

Introduction

• Problems: Past, present, and future
• Problem-solving maturity:
  • Reactive: Solving problems after they are detected and reported
  • Preventive: Implementing solutions before problems occur
  • Proactive: Analyzing past failures to implement improvements
  • Predictive: Based on current performance, implementing improvements to increase future success
• Systematic approach:
  • Useful techniques and tools to support problem solving

The 6-step Problem-Solving Approach

• Steps:
  • Identify the problem to solve
  • Define and analyze the problem
  • Explore and develop possible solutions
  • Assess and prioritize possible solutions
  • Select and implement the best solution
  • Evaluate the implemented solution, adjust if needed, and learn
• Tools & Techniques: SWOT, brainstorming, root cause analysis, 5 Whys, Pareto and Multicriteria Decision Analysis, Risk analysis

Problem-Solving Technique

• Six-step problem-solving technique: Provides a structured basis to help deliver outcomes and solutions to problems.
• Avoid regrets:
  • Solving the wrong problem
  • Acting too quickly with insufficient information
  • Jumping to a solution too quickly
  • Choosing an impractical and expensive solution

Step 1 - Identify the Problem

• Be proactive, preventive, or predictive
• Source of problems:
  • Current situations (e.g., customer complaints, failed goals, process improvement)
  • Desirable future situations (e.g., future challenges, employee training needs)

Step 2 - Define and Analyze the Problem

• What is the problem exactly?
• Scope of the problem
• Assumptions, limitations, and constraints on potential solutions
• Why solve the problem?
• Benefits, tangible and intangible
• Business value
• Engage the right people or stakeholders
  • Who knows about the problem?
  • Who is affected by it?
  • Who is causing it?
  • Who cares about solving it?
  • Who can help solve it?
• Detailed examination of the situation
• Collect facts about the problem and its symptoms
• Identify the nature of the problem and its root causes
• Perform root cause analysis (RCA)

Step 3 - Explore and Develop Possible Solutions

• Generating creative or proven solutions
• Facilitated group process to generate possible solutions
• Use brainstorming sessions

Step 4 - Assess and Prioritize Possible Solutions

• Filter possible solutions using feasibility analysis
  • Is there sufficient funding?
  • Is there sufficient time?
  • Are the necessary people and expertise available?
  • Are the necessary tools available?
  • Is the solution legally and socially acceptable?
• Use decision analysis techniques to assess and rank possible solutions

Step 5 - Select and Implement the Best Solution

• Select the solution with the highest rank
• Use a predictive or agile system development approach to implement the solution
  • Define requirements for the solution
  • Design the solution
  • Implement the design
  • Test the implementation
  • Deploy the implemented solution

Step 6 - Evaluate the Implemented Solution, Adjust if Needed, and Learn

• Evaluate the effectiveness of the deployed solution
  • Use benchmarking, performance indicators
• Evaluate the efficiency of your problem-solving process
• What did we learn - lessons learned
• What can we improve?
• Improvements and adjustments to the implemented solution
• Improvements to the problem-solving process and techniques used
• Was the solution faulty?

The Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) Cycle

• A management process for continuous improvements to products and processes.
• Optimize the performance or make adjustments to the improvement.
• Plan, Do, Check, Act

Brainstorming

• Excellent way to foster creative thinking about a problem
• Aims to produce numerous new ideas to derive themes for further analysis

Reverse Brainstorming

• Helps find possible solutions for a problem
• Combines brainstorming and reversal techniques
• By asking reverse questions to stimulate alternative ideas

Steps in Reverse Brainstorming

• Clearly identify the challenge/problem
• Reverse the problem to generate reverse solution ideas to produce new ideas
• Once reverse problem ideas are explored, reverse into original problem ideas and evaluate

Example of Reverse Brainstorming

• How to improve patient satisfaction?
• Reverse it to: How do we make patients more dissatisfied?
• Brainstorm possible ideas

Decision Analysis - Decision Matrix

• Decision analysis formally assesses a problem and possible decisions
• To determine the value of alternate outcomes, under conditions of uncertainty
• Helps evaluate different outcome values in complex situations

Simple Decision Matrix

• Criteria and factors, equally or unequally weighted

PERT Average - Three-Point Estimation Technique

• Obtain three opinions from experts (lowest, middle, highest)
• Calculate the weighted average using PERT

Assigning Weights to Criteria

• Based on perception, expertise, etc.
• Collect three independent assignments of weights
• Use Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) technique to assign weights

The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP)

• Rational framework for needed decision
• Quantifies criteria and alternative options, and goal relationship

Example of AHP Application

• Decide on criteria or solutions
• Experts will do a pairwise comparison amongst the criteria/solutions
• Compute the weighted average for each criteria

Pareto Chart

• Identify problem areas quickly by grouping problems together by root cause and ranking them.
• Prioritize by using a bar graph to identify the most significant causes.

Five Whys

• Iteratively ask "why" to determine the root cause of a problem
• Drill down to find the underlying cause of the issue

Usage Considerations of 5 Whys

• Strengths
• Help maintain an objective perspective while performing cause-and-effect analysis
• Limitations
• Works best for well-trained individuals and teams.

Risk Analysis and Management

• Risk analysis

  • Identifies areas of uncertainty
  • Analyses and evaluates uncertainties
  • Develops plans to deal with risks
    • Identifies, analyzes, and evaluates risks

• Risk Evaluation/Assessment

  • Compare risk analysis results with the potential value of the change

• Risk Treatment

  • Some risks are acceptable
  • Take measures to reduce risks
  • Avoiding the risk
  • Transferring the risk
  • Reducing the risk
  • Accepting the risk
  • Increasing the risk

• Risk Response

  • Select a risk response.
  • Develop a plan for the risk owner.
  • Monitor the risk.

• Continuous Risk Identification/Assessment

  • Re-analyze the risk.
  • Determine the residual risk

SWOT Analysis

• A simple tool to evaluate strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
• Analyze internal and external conditions.

Review

• Used to evaluate work products.
• Different review types
• Objectives: Define the review purpose
• Techniques: Formal or informal methods
• Participants: Who is involved?