Defining the Problem

This goes back to my earlier point on the previous page, that often we experience symptoms which are caused by a different problem. In my teens I experienced repeated infections which we put down to sensitivity to chemicals, diet, environment etc. The actual problem was bacteria which was naturally occuring in my kidneys but it took months of investigation by a process of elimination for the Dr's to work this out. Once they did it was "fixed" in no time and I've been fine since, but my Consultant at the time admitted that a bit of pertinent questioning when I was first ill would have resolved it much sooner - you can argue that "hindsight" is a great thing but he had a valid point. The medical profession treats symptoms and is often so overloaded that it doesn't have time or resouces to find the real cause. So, investigate fully and find the root cause of the real problem, not just the symptoms. Be creative.

Identify the Options

Most problems or opportunities have a number of options, there are a variety of techniques to establish which is the best and the one that you use will very much depend on your personal style and preference. The options need to be evaluated and "scored" in terms of how well they fit to the needs, preferences and capabilities of your business.

Choose the Best Solution

It may be that you choose a number of solutions, for example you might want to set up a website to handle customer care, but what about staffing, shift cover (it's a 24 hour society out there your customers could be many hours ahead or behind your working day), available resources of the right calibre in your area, technical expertise, costs etc but that might also be backed up by a call centre and a customer service desk in every branch of your firm (or the only branch of your firm if you are a small business). The solution you choose needs to be the best match to your capability and budget but also meet your own policies and standards.

Implementing the Solution

You need to plan how to implement your solution and what resources you'll need to achieve it. It's no good rushing off and hiring ten people to answer the phone for you and then failing to train them to do it in the right way and without the core knowledge they need to be able to inform customers about your products and services. So think carefully about this. Kipling summed it up nicely.
 
"I Keep six faithful serving-men
Who serve me well and true:
Their names are What and Where and When
And How and Why and Who.
I send them over land and sea,
I send them east and west;
But after they have worked for me,
I give them all a rest."
 
This questioning approach works well when used in an action learning setting and allows the student to work through problems in a logical way without missing steps along the way.

Does the Solution Work?

It if does, monitor the situation to make sure it's moving along nicely and if things are okay then no further action is required.
 
If it doesn't, go back to the beginning and review the situation, did you define the problem correctly, have you got all the information you really need etc?