Six Questions I Ask When Solving Problems

Problems come in many forms and are solved by different remedies. Unfortunately, problems do not solve themselves - people solve them. The objective of this article is to provide you with a systematic approach to solving problems by asking six questions:

1. What is the problem?
2. What are the causes?
3. What are the potential solutions?
4. Which is the best solution?
5. How should the solution be implemented?
6. Did the solution work?

1. What is the problem?

The most critical and challenging activity in problem-solving is identifying and selecting the problem. A problem statement should be as clear a statement of the problem as you can get. Remember, it isn’t a problem if it doesn’t have a bad consequence.

A problem exists when there is a discrepancy between 'what is' and 'what should be'.

An example problem would be having too few newsletter subscribers. This is a general statement of the problem. A more precise statement is:

The Learning Pages newsletter has 65 subscribers. It should have at least 500 subscribers.

A well-defined problem is a problem half-solved.

2. What are the causes?

The purpose of Question 2 is to identify the causes of the problem — not the solutions. This is very important as there is a tendency to jump from an ill-defined problem statement to a solution without identifying the causes — we all want to get on with the job.

There are three stages in analysing problems:

1. Collecting Data
2. Displaying Data
3. Analysing Data

Collecting Data

Checksheets
One of the main tools for collecting data is the checklist or check sheet. Checksheets show how often an event occurs over a designated period. Information may be collected for events as they happen or for events that have already occurred. The purpose of a checksheet is to track - not analyse data. They often help to identify what the problem is. Do note that checksheets need to be specific.

Common items noted on checksheets are:

• Number of times something happens;
• Length of time it takes to get something done;
• Cost of a certain operation over a given period;
• Frequency of occurrence by a group or a machine, etc;
• Impact of an action over a given period.

The example below shows which days have the largest number of website visits during the month.

Displaying Data

After sufficient data has been collected, it is helpful to present the information visually. This helps to make trends, sequences and comparisons more evident and understandable. The tools for displaying data are:

• Time Charts
• Bar Charts
• Pie Charts

Time Charts

Time Charts display changes in a particular event over a given period. They can help summarise occurrences of a situation and depict a (casual) relationship between two quantities. Time is usually shown on the horizontal axis.

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Bar Charts

Bar Charts display the number of times an event or characteristic occurs.

Pie Charts

Pie Charts show what proportion a characteristic is of the whole.

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Analysing Data

Tools for analysing data and determining causes are:

• Pareto Analysis
• Fishbone Diagram
• Flowcharts
• Forcefield Analysis
• The 'Five Whys'

Pareto Analysis

The Pareto Analysis is named after Vilfredo Pareto. He was an Italian 19th-century sociologist and economist. In 1897, he argued that the distribution of income and wealth is uneven and follows a regular, mathematical pattern:

• 80% of customer complaints come from 20% of the customers;
• 80% of service calls are generated by on sub-system;
• 80% of the cost is accounted for by 20 % of the parts.

So, by identifying the 'significant few' and 'trivial many', we can focus our problem-solving efforts on where they will have the biggest effect.

The basic concept behind a Pareto analysis involves ranking data. Like a bar chart, a Pareto diagram shows a distribution but also necessitates ordering information from the largest to the smallest. The Pareto diagram is constructed in five steps:

1. Decide how the data should be classified
2. Use a checksheet to collect the data
3. Summarise data from the checklist
4. Construct a bar graph with the tallest bar on the left and the shortest on the right
5. Enter cumulative amounts using a single line

The following is an example that shows the number of computer network breakdowns for five reasons:

Efforts should be put into eliminating Reasons A and B because together they account for nearly 70 per cent of the problem. Putting as much effort into eliminating the two least significant causes would only solve 15 per cent of the problem.

Please see my article on the Pareto Analysis for more details on this example.

Fishbone Diagram

The 'Fish Bone Diagram' (also known as the 'Ishikawa Diagram' or 'Cause and Effect Diagram') is a popular technique for analysing problem causes in which a diagram, with the appearance of a fishbone, is constructed.

Constructing the "Cause and Effect Diagram" is a four-step process:

1. The problem statement (the 'Effect') is entered in a box at one end of the 'backbone'.
2. Primary categories (1-4) of cause are written in boxes placed parallel to, and some distance from, the backbone. The boxes are connected to the backbone by slanting lines ('ribs').
3. Potential causes are shown as small bones connecting to the ribs.
4. On the basis of evidence, identify the key causes and eliminate non-causes. Keep asking: "Why?" to identify root causes.

Please see my article on the Cause and Effect Diagram for more details and an example.

Flowcharts

A flowchart makes it easier to look at complex systems and procedures. Flowcharts often highlight duplication and mismatches between steps of the process. Each process step has an input and an output, and it should be possible to trace the final output back to the initial inputs. Intermediate outputs should be inputs into the next step of the process. A simple flow chart uses three symbols:

This example uses a flowchart as a guide for using possessive apostrophes:

Forcefield Analysis

Forcefield Analysis identifies those forces which both help and hinder you from closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be. Helping forces are people or circumstances driving you to reach your goal. Hindering forces restrain you from reaching your goal. Forcefield Analysis is useful in analysing problems because it is a way of identifying all possible factors contributing to a problem, especially when dealing with subjective issues that are difficult to quantify. It is also useful for identifying potential solutions, as there are three approaches to closing the gap:

1. Increase the number and/or strength of the helping forces
2. Decrease the number and/or strength of the hindering forces
3. Convert a hindering force into a helping force.

Please see my article on Forcefield Analysis for more details and an example.

The 5 Whys

The "Five Whys" is a great method for identifying the root causes of a problem. It’s simple and involves asking "why?" several times in succession—just like children do.

The idea originated with the Toyota Motor Company, which found that asking "why" five times encourages people to go beyond the first idea they think of and usually determines the root cause of a problem. Although the technique is called the five whys, you can ask "why" as many times as necessary to get to the root causes of a problem. Determining root causes not only produces better, longer-lasting solutions but also helps solve other problems and prevent those that have not yet surfaced.

Please see my article on the Five Whys for an example and more details.

3. What are the potential solutions?

When you reach this point, you have:

• identified and selected a problem that needs to be solved,
• gathered and analysed information about the problem,
• considered possible causes, and selected the most probable cause.

In this step, you will generate potential solutions to the problem, following this sequence:

• Generate as many solutions as possible using brainstorming.
• Review the list and elaborate or combine items to improve the quality of the potential solutions.
• Try to create additional solution ideas.

4. Which is the best solution?

This is the point where a decision needs to be made. I use a structured decision-making process which is shown in the diagram below:

Important criteria are costs, benefits and the time required to implement the potential solutions. Make sure that the selected solution reflects the real priorities and a realistic sense of the resources under your control.

Please see my article on Decision Making for more details.

5. How should the solution be implemented?

Implementation is as critical as careful analysis of the problem and the appropriate selection of the solution. In planning for implementation, it is important to:

• Clarify your goals.
• Specify and clarify the tasks that must be done.
• Sequence those tasks - decide on the order in which they should be
• Assess the requirements for each task - Who is needed to do what? How long will it take?
• Establish a schedule, with completion dates for each task or activity.
• Make sure everyone knows who is responsible for each task.
• Specify the results you expect.
• Specify how the results will be monitored and measured.

6. Did the solution work?

Simply stated, the evaluation process revolves around this basic question: "Did the solution solve the problem?"

Answering this question is done by assessing the results to determine whether the problem has been solved effectively and efficiently.

Despite the care taken to analyse and plan a solution, sometimes it doesn't work. In this case, re-evaluate all your data and be positive.