6. How do I…
6
• Know what to do?
– Gap analysis
– Sensemaking
– Ideal-setting
• Get things done?
– Collaboration
– Performance
• Nurture and enhance relationships?
– Collaboration
– Communication
• Develop myself?
– Personal mastery
– Gap Analysis
– Sensemaking
• Move people and their behavior from
point A to point B?
– Gap analysis
– Influence
– Performance
• Lead teams to produce desired
results?
– Collaboration
– Performance
– Facilitation
• Solve problems?
– Sense making
– Evaluation
– Performance
7. What Might You Gain From This
Session?
• Given a performance situation, you will
– Demonstrate an understanding of a method of problem
solving
– Apply the method of problem solving to produce a
accurate definition of the actual problem and its roots
while also generating criteria that will inform solution
generation and implementation
• Define and redefine
• Analyze
• Generate Criteria for successful solution
7
8. Session Date Competencies
Atom of Work 2/24/15 Results orientation
Relationship Mastery / People Skills
Gap Analysis 3/18/15 Results orientation
Market and Customer Orientation/ Insight
Difficult Conversations 4/7/15 Results orientation
Relationship Mastery / People Skills
Mental Maps 5/28/15 Results orientation
Relationship Mastery / People Skills
Market and Customer Orientation/ Insight Learning Agility
Advocacy versus Inquiry 6/23/15 Learning Agility
Relationship Mastery / People Skills
Problem Solving 7/29/15 Results orientation
Market and Customer Orientation/ Insight
Learning Agility
Team Effectiveness 8/25/15 Results orientation
Relationship Mastery / People Skills
Seven Influence Strategies 9/29/15 Results orientation
Relationship Mastery / People Skills
FeedFoward and Johari Window 10/27/15 Relationship Mastery / People Skills
Events of Instruction 11/30/14 Learning Agility
(Bonus) Six steps 12/10/14
Extra day hold
9. How Other Tools Fit With
Problem-Solving
What
You
Should
Request
10. ETS Success Six Connections
Results Orientation
Delivering on promises and commitments: Select the
right actions to take
Market Insight and Service Orientation
Understanding how actions taken to address the
“problem to be solved” work
Learning Agility
Learn from your setting of criteria for next problem
Functional and Technical Acumen
Can you perform your job? Making the highest quality
decisions that allow you to do so
13. Choice
Design
Intelligence
Search for and
analyze problem
information
Search for ready-
made solutions
Search for
information to
evaluate solutions
Generate solution
consequences
Generate possible
techniques
select a tentative
solution
Generate
alternative
problem
definitions
Choose a
problem definition
Generate
possible
techniques
State
the
problem
Generate
Solutions
14. How do you know when you have a
problem?
• What conditions exist in
order for you to label a
situation a problem?
• Take a few minutes to talk
about those conditions and
select a business problem
upon which your team will
practice today
• Choose 2 or 3 to make
sure you have one that
survives our first test
15. What constitutes a business
problem?
• What would you say?
• The gap between a
given current state of
affairs and a future
desired state?
16. Remember Gap Analysis?
16
the tool to discern
the difference
between what you
wanted to
accomplish and what
you are actually
accomplishing and
the causes of that
disparity
Look
back at
that tool
17. You are aware that
a problem might
exist
Does a problem
GAP Exist?
Is the gap
measurable?
Do you need to
solve the problem?
Are the required
resources
available?
Is the problem
within your sphere
of influence?
Terminate the
problem-solving
process
N
O
N
O
N
O
N
O
A problem exists
Determining if a problem exists
Yes Yes Yes Yes
N
O
18. Pre-Problem Solving
The problem-solving stages and guidelines can
be summarized as follows:
1. Determine if a gap exists between what is
and what should be.
– Guideline: If the costs of obtaining and verifying
information about a problem gap are less than the
costs associated with not solving a potential
problem, assume that a problem gap exists.
2. Determine if the problem gap is measurable
– Guideline: If valid and reliable measurement
criteria are available, assume that a problem gap
exists.
3. Determine if you need to solve the problem
– Guideline: Will closing this problem gap likely
satisfy some personal need or value of one’s self
or significant others or will it add value to the
organization in a way others would acknowledge?
Or both? Or neither?
19. Summary of the Problem-Solving Solving
Pre-Problem Solving continued…
4. Assess resource availability
– Guideline: If the resources (time, information, money, personnel, et cetera) required to
solve the problem are not available and are not likely to be available in time to solve the
problem, terminate the process.
5. Determine if the problem is within your sphere of influence
– Guideline: Consult with others whenever their authorization or approval is needed to solve
a problem. If required authorization or approval can not be obtained, terminate the
process; otherwise, assume that the problem is within your sphere of influence.
Arthur Van Gundy
Where did you end up with your group’s chosen problem?
20. It has been
determined that a
problem exists
Search for problem
information
Is the problem ill
structured?
Redefine and
analyze the
problem
Should others
participate?
Use group
techniques
search for Ready-
made solutions
Use individual
techniques
N
O
N
O
Select individual or
group techniques
Selecting individual and group
techniques for redefining and
analyzing problems
Yes
Yes
21. Problem Definition and Analysis
1. Search for and analyze problem information.
2. Determine if the problem is ill-structured.
Guideline: The more information known about the problem states and how to
resolve the problem, the more structured the problem will be.
3. If the problem is not ill-structured, search for and evaluate the adequacy of
ready-made solutions.
4. If the problem is ill-structured, determine if individual or group procedures
should be used to redefine and analyze the problem.
Guideline: If time is available and acceptance of others is critical, use group
techniques; otherwise use individual techniques. (Exceptions: If time is
available and acceptance is not critical, others could be involved for their
own personal development or to provide additional sources of stimulation.)
Arthur Van Gundy
22. Problem Definition and Analysis continued…
5. Select one or more redefinitional and analytical techniques.
Guideline: Use as many techniques as possible that can be justified by the
available time and the importance of the problem.
6. Generate alternative problem definitions.
7. Select a tentative problem definition.
Guideline: Use Conflict problem solving or CPS techniques in group
situations if there is likely to be conflict over preferred definitions or in
individual or group situations where there is a large number of equally
attractive definitions.
8. State the problem definition decided upon.
Arthur Van Gundy
28. Battelle Method
1. Generate ideas using classical brainstorming
2. Develop culling criteria (low-cost screens) that can
be answered with a yes or no response
3. Develop rating criteria (medium cost screens) that
can be answered with a yes or no response
4. Develop scoring criteria (high cost screens) using
quantitative or qualitative value ranges
5. Conduct an in-depth analysis of the surviving ideas
and select the most promising ones
29. Using Screens to Evaluate a
Proposed Apartment Development
• Culling screens
– Is the area presently saturated with other similar units?
– Is the present turnover rate of units less than 10%?
– Is the population of the market area over 100,000?
• Rating Screens
– Can the required land be obtained?
– Can the land be developed within estimated costs?
– Is the proposed site within commuting distance of at least 30% of the market
area?
• [Set a minimum score; e.g., two out of three must be answered with 'yes' ]
• Scoring Screens— “A development is a good bet if it promises that…”
– … The likely return on investment is good
– … The possibility of no cost overruns is good
– … The projected growth rate of the market exceeds 10%
30. Using Screens to Evaluate a
Different Possible Solutions
• Culling screens (Lowest cost in terms of the amount of information
resources needed to answer the question)
– The absolute essentials that any solution must provide, which can be answered
by yes or no; e.g., fits our mission, is legal, other companies are not doing this
yet, etc.
• Rating Screens (Medium cost in terms of the amount of information
resources needed to answer the question; Information is more difficult to
obtain)
• [Set a minimum score; e.g., two out of three must be answered with 'yes' ]
• Scoring Screens (Highest cost in terms of the amount of information
resources needed to answer the question; Information is most difficult to
obtain)
— “A Solution t is a good bet if it promises that…”
• … [Make sure that your criteria do not exceed the magic number 7+ or -2]
31. Generating Criteria for a
Successful Solution
• A solution to this problem must…
– Each person completes their list of 3 or four criteria separately
– This step follows the group definition of what the problem actually
is
– The group can see a written headline or summary of that agreed
upon definition while they work individually
– Each member prioritizes his or her list to select their top criteria
– The leader solicits a top-rated criterion from a member and asks if
anyone has a similar criterion – top-rated or not. The nominator
determines whether the suggested similar criterion is joined to the
original or mist stand alone as a variant
32. Generating Criteria for a
Successful Solution
• A solution to this problem must…
– Each person completes their list of 3 or four criteria separately
– This step follows the group definition of what the problem actually
is
– The group can see a written headline or summary of that agreed
upon definition while they work individually
– Each member prioritizes his or her list to select their top criteria
– The leader solicits a top-rated criterion from a member and asks if
anyone has a similar criterion – top-rated or not. The nominator
determines whether the suggested similar criterion is joined to the
original or mist stand alone as a variant
33. Scaling Criteria
• You have 100 points to spend; make them
represent your analysis if what conditions must
exists if the solution is to be successful
Irrelevant Want To Have Must Have
100
50
0
34. Generating the Criteria
Match? Moe Curly Larry Shemp Harry
Put the top
one here
And ask for
possible
matches…
Continue the
process
You move
from ‘must
have’
conditions…
To ‘want to
have’
conditions
To one-off
conditions
that …
should NOT
be ignored.
35. Generating the Criteria
Match? Moe Curly Larry Shemp Harry
? Make money Increase
revenue
Increase net
X Fit mission Fit mission Serve who we
are
X No new
resources
req’d
Use existing
resources
Use people
we have
? Innovative Move us to
the next stage
Not just
focused on
the present
Create the
future
? Generate
‘buzz’
Helps PR
36. Weighting the Criteria
Criteria Moe Curly Larry Shemp Harry
Make money 90 70 50 50 30
Fit mission 0 10 10 20 40
Use existing
resources
0 10 10 5 5
Create the
future
0 5 20 20 25
Generate
‘buzz’
10 5 10 5 0
37. Does it work?
• Whichever the approach, does the solution being
evaluated solve the problem? This may sound obvious,
but alternative solutions favored by a few members of a
decision-making team have a way of lingering long after
they been shown to be deficient. As a last resort ask
the proponents of such a solution to explain:
How the available data supports their solution
What available research on a topic supports it?
How does it fit with what we know?
How does the solution work?
And finally, How does it solve our problem?
38. Choice
Design
Intelligence
Search for and
analyze problem
information
Search for ready-
made solutions
Search for
information to
evaluate solutions
Generate solution
consequences
Generate possible
techniques
select a tentative
solution
Generate
alternative
problem
definitions
Choose a
problem definition
Generate
possible
techniques
State
the
problem
Generate
Solutions
42. Decomposable matrices
• To apply this technique, consider a problem of how to
improve employee satisfaction within an organization.
Since most organizations generally are viewed as
complex social systems with hierarchic structures, this
problem can be broken down into different
subsystems. For example, organizational, group, an
individual. The components of each subsystem next
are listed and arranged within a matrix. Weights are
then assigned to each of the interactions, with higher
numbers indicating greater frequencies of interaction
or greater importance of the interactions. Based upon
this matrix, the problem solver might want to
concentrate on all of the interactions within
subsystems, the small triangles created by the
diagonal line, the pay particular attention to the
interactions occurred between the group and
individual subsystems, due to hire weightings given
these interactions. Relationships between specific
components that can be selected as the focus for
generation of problem solutions or additional analysis.
43. Relevance systems
• Relevant systems represent a method of
organizing information about a problem
through successive refinements of major
problem elements. As each element is
listed, other elements are identified and
connect with the preceding months until a
pyramid like structure results. A common
example of relevant systems is the formal
organization chart. Top level managers are
listed at the top and then connected by
lines to progressively greater numbers of
persons at lower organizational levels. This
particular type of relevant system is
comparatively easy to constructs is the
problem is essentially well structured. It is
more difficult, however, to construct a
relevant system for ill structured problems
due to the often unknown qualities of
problem elements and constraints.
44. Work-based learning connection
• Work-based learning requires a new epistemology of
practice that seeks to explore not just the explicit
instructions and guidelines available in the
workplace but also the tacit processes invoked
personally by practitioners as they work through the
problems of daily management.
• Explicit knowledge is the familiar codified form that is
transmittable in formal, systematic language.
• Tacit knowledge is the component of knowledge that
is not typically reportable because it is deeply rooted
in action and involvement in a specific context
(Polanyi, 1966).
45. Work-based learning connection
• In other words, although individuals may be
knowledgeable in what they do, they may not have
the facility to say what they know (Pleasants, 1996).
Ryle (1945) made the distinction between "knowing
how" and "knowing that." "Knowing how" represents
the tacit dimension that often eludes our capacity to
frame our action abstractly.
47. Analogies
• “An analogy is a statement about how objects, persons, or situations are similar in
process or relationship to one another.
• Analogies are reflected in statements of comparison such as: this organization
operates like the military; the engine of this car runs like a fine Swiss watch.
• The usefulness of analogies for redefining problems are generating ideas stems
from their ability to create movement — a feature that gives analogies a "life" of
their own.
• For instance, analogies involving the gills of the fish or the poor status of a material
both express movement that could be used to improve the design for an
underwater breathing apparatus. By repeatedly relating such analogies to the
problem and gradually developing the processes relationships, a new problem
definition or solution could emerge.”
– Van Gundy
51. How is the
making of a
test like the
making of a
car?
How is a
problem of
taking too
long for one
part of the
assembly of
a test best
understood
through the
analogy of a
factory floor?
Or not?
52. Steps for using Analogies
1. State the problem
2. Think of an object,
person, or situation and
relate it to the problem in
the form of an analogy
3. Progressively develop
the analogy, translating it
back to the original
problem at each stage of
development
4. Continue developing the
analogy until a
satisfactory definition of
the problem is achieved
53. Model for Company
A Way To Look at Management
Tendencies
T.J. Elliott & Marty Leahy
54. Where do you ‘go’ when faced
with a challenge in your
company?
The thinking of
individual
employees
The allocation
and availability
of resources
The way
things are
organized
The
communication
& culture
There is
no one right answer
that fits
all situations or managers
55. Where do you ‘go’ when faced with a
challenge in your company?
• To the ‘thinking’ of individuals?
– Do you want people to transcend managerial frames, the
installed base of thinking --- those unquestioned conventions
and unchallenged precedents based on what worked in the
past? Do you want both learning and unlearning?
– Do you call for more “Thinking outside the box” or “Working
smarter, not harder”? Are you intrigued by the idea of a learning
organization where people escape mental models, their
unquestioned assumptions, attitudes, and beliefs?
– Do you think it is about individual knowledge? Do you try to get
at the paradigms of individuals?
• Then your tendency is Think
56. Where do you ‘go’ when faced with a
challenge in your company?
• To the resources that you could allocate or
rearrange?
– Do you focus on money, power, and information — the major
material resources of the company?
– Is your ‘default response’ to invest in new equipment or
technology?
– Do you have a very IT view of Knowledge management, being
able to capture what your people know as a database?
– Does it come down to financial resources? Would your answer
be finding more money as compensation, as incentive, to seed a
new market??
– Then your tendency is Resource
57. Where do you ‘go’ when faced with a
challenge in your company?
• To the communication in the company?
– Do you think that success hinges upon the trust, commitment,
and spirit of its employees?
– Is your ‘default response’ to talk — and listen — to involved
employees to share points of view? Do you think it is important
to make sure everyone is on the same page?
– Do you spend time trying to engage employees, to make sure
they are connected to the mission of their group or the company
at large? Do you focus on inspiring people to do their best?
– Do you believe that problems would lessen if you had a culture
of service instilled among employees?
– Then your tendency is Communicate
58. Where do you ‘go’ when faced with a
challenge in your company?
• To the organization of things?
– Do you look to flaws or deficits in policies an procedures? Would
you concentrate on mapping out the process to see where tasks
might be organized more efficiently?
– Do you tend to focus on better organized work flow, e.g., install
new procedures, systems, reassign responsibilities, to assure
better customer service and product quality
– Is the answer often found in establishing improved systems or
methods for producing the service or product?
– Then your tendency is Organize
59. The value of this model is to help you
reflect on the effectiveness of your typical
response to challenges
The thinking
of individual
employees
The allocation
and availability
of resources
The way
things are
organized
The
communication
& culture
Awareness of your
tendency allows you to
explore its fit
for various situations
63. Think: The subjects in this quadrant
• What’s in the individual minds of EEs, of leaders
• Schema
– Worldview (Weltanschauung)
• Strategy: the choices we make during conditions of uncertainty
• Attitude
– Attitudes
• Belief systems
– Mottoes and Credos
– Expectations of How Things Should Be
• Self Interest / Self worth
• Private Learning
64. Resource: The subjects in this quadrant
• Authority Distribution
• Capital expenditures
• Technology
• $
• Intellectual Capital
• M&A
• Strategic alliances
• Hardware/databases
65. Communicate: The subjects in this
quadrant
• Communication
– Listening, Sharing, Understanding
• Collaboration Cooperation
• Public Learning
• Culture
• Change Management
• Values
– Trust
• Relationships
Commitment
Values
Engagement
Inspiration
Norms
Attitude
Leadership
66. Organize: The subjects in this quadrant
• Systems
• Methods
• Policies & Procedures
• Accountability
• Rules
• Processes
• Quality
Systems
Methods
Strategy
Planning
Workflows
Metrics
Roles
68. 3 heuristic methods
These are NOT Algorithms - a step by step problem solution which guarantees an answer usually
utilized for reproductive problem solving
They are Heuristics an experimental and trial-and-error approach, that does not guarantee a
solution, but may reduce search time. Typically these methods use means-ends analysis, sub-
goal breakdowns, difference reduction, problem solving by analogy, and working backwards from
the goal. Dietrich Dorner offers heuristics systems using trial and error to arrive at a solution by
helping people to narrow their focus in problem solving. They include:
“Hill-climbing” in which you look only at the next action that can close the gap between your present and desired
situations,
“Intermediate goals”, similar to trying to control the four central squares in a game of chess, in which you aim for
middle stages that afford you a variety of options for what to do next
“Walking backward” in which you carefully define your end state and then those conditions and actions that will be
necessary to make it come true. You focus only on those actions as you then “walk forward”. Alternately, you could
employ “past performance” in which you do only what has worked in the past with this kind of situation.
Dorner, Dietrich. (1996). The Logic of Failure, 157-158. New York: Metropolitan Books.
69. Problem solving methods
• These methods are not a
guarantee of success.
Indeed, the last is often
associated with close-
minded folly. They will,
however, rescue you from
the flaw of meandering
from one consideration to
another in your decision
making
70.
71. Common Managerial Skills on the
‘People Side’
• Coaching
• Communication
– Listening
– Dialogue skills
• Establishing the informal culture; ‘way we do things around
here’
– Model positive behaviors: Positive Reasoning
– Provide a constructive environment
– Communicate organizational priorities
– Recognize and reward good work
• Conflict Resolution
72. She is a dynamic and inspirational speaker who has built
a remarkably loyal employee base
He has forged a reputation as a team builder who excels
at revving up the troops
The chain smoking, fast talking, funny man fuels their
legendary esprit de corps
Looks at every single line item on the budget, people
are pretty amazed about the level of detail he gets into
He is known for his brutal travel schedule packed with
dawn to midnight meetings where he is the stickler for
efficiency
Led six years of cutting costs and reshaping the way
the lumbering giant designs and builds cars
Spends lavishly to win an even larger share of the
global market
High profile, helped engineer hostile takeover at XYZ
company, always ready to invade a colleague’s turf; he
is a poor manager, hirer, judge of people
He wants nothing less than to rewrite the rules of the
game; he is constantly lobbying Congress to change
FCC laws constricting ownership of TV outlets and
networks
He is making a daring bid to transform the company
from seeing itself as a collection of chemical and drug
factories into a sleek life sciences concern
He is looking for people who can come up with big bold
new ideas… the kind that give birth to billion dollar
brands… He is convinced these kinds of people are
there among the 11,000, he sees his job as emancipating
them
The primary capital equipment is brain power,
employees can start pursuing radically different
strategies in an eye blink
COMMUNICATE
COMPANY
THINK RESOURCE
ORGANIZE
Innovator
Manager
Deal Maker
Coach
73. Generating Criteria for a
Successful Solution
• A solution to this problem must…
– Each person completes their list of 3 or four criteria separately
– This step follows the group definition of what the problem actually
is
– The group can see a written headline or summary of that agreed
upon definition while they work individually
– Each member prioritizes his or her list to select their top criteria
– The leader solicits a top-rated criterion from a member and asks if
anyone has a similar criterion – top-rated or not. The nominator
determines whether the suggested similar criterion is joined to the
original or mist stand alone as a variant
74. Generating Ideas
1. Search for ready-made problem solutions.
2. If a ready-made solution exists, apply it to the problem and evaluate its
success in eliminating the problem.
Guideline: If time is available and ready-made solution is not likely to solve
the problem, use CPS techniques; otherwise, use ready-made solutions.
3. If it is decided to use CPS techniques to generate problem solutions,
determine if individual or group procedures should be used.
Guideline: If time is available and acceptance of others is critical, use group
techniques; otherwise use individual techniques.
Arthur Van Gundy
75. Generating Ideas continued...
4. Select an individual or group idea generation technique.
a. Determine if the problem scope justifies the choice.
Guideline: Select techniques that are proportionate in complexity to problem scope.
b. Determine if implementation difficulty justifies the choice.
Guideline: Select techniques that will be proportionate in implementation difficulty to the
need to solve the problem.
b. Determine if there are any special training requirements.
Guideline: Select techniques that will be proportionate in training importance to the need
to solve the problem.
Arthur Van Gundy
76. Evaluating and Selecting Ideas
1. Determine if individual or group procedures should be used to evaluate and select
ideas.
Guideline: If time is available and acceptance of others is critical, use group
techniques; otherwise, use individual techniques.
2. Search for information to evaluate the solutions.
a. Evaluate resource availability.
Guideline: If the resources (time, information, money, personnel, et cetera) required to solve a
problem are not available and are not likely to be available in time to solve the problem, select
another solution.
b. Compare solutions with any pre-established solution criteria.
3. Select an individual or group evaluation and selection technique.
a. Determine if time is a critical factor.
b. Determine if implementation difficulty justifies the choice.
Arthur Van Gundy
77. Evaluating and Selecting Ideas continued…
4. If individual procedures are being used, generate and analyze potential solution
consequences, and select a tentative solution for implementation.
5. If group procedures are being used, determine if voting procedures are required.
Guideline: If there is likely to be an unresolvable conflict in regard to preferred
solution alternatives, use voting procedures; otherwise, try to select a solution using
consensus.
6. If voting procedures are required, use the amount of time available as one guideline
for selecting voting techniques.
7. Generate and analyze solution consequences and select a tentative solution for
implementation.
Arthur Van Gundy
78. Implementation
1. Implement the solution, when appropriate, using implementation techniques.
Guideline: If the solution is complex and requires close coordination of
events and activities, use PERT; if the solution is less complex, use RPDs; if
solution complexity does not justify the use of structured implementation
techniques, use a less complex approach (e.g., who will do what, where,
when, and how?).
2. Determine if a problem gap still exists.
3. If the gap has been eliminated or satisfactorily reduced, terminate the
process.
4. If the gap still exists, recycle to the pre-problem solving phase and begin the
process again.
Arthur Van Gundy
79. Problem solving frameworks
Polya 1973 PISA 2003/2012 ATC21S
Understand the
problem
Explore and
understand
Collect and share
information about the
collaborator and the task
Devise a plan Represent and
formulate
Check links and
relationships , organise
and categorize
information
Carry out the
plan
Plan and execute Rule use.. set up
procedures and strategies
to solve the problem
“If then..”
Look back and
check
Monitor and reflect Test hypotheses.. “what
if” and check process and
solutions