Solve the Right Problem

Design thinking has contributed two significant advances on conventional problem solving. Whereas most organizational problem solving boils down to “implement this solution to this problem,” design says, “Are we sure this is the right solution?” and proceeds to generate options before settling on the best solution to implement. That’s the first advance: generating options before implementing solutions. Perhaps more importantly, though, the other thing that makes a design driven approach to problem solving so special is that design says, “Are we sure this is the right problem?”

In our world, a proper frame on a problem is every bit as meaningful of an output of the process as the solution is. While John Dewey famously quipped, “A problem well-put is half-solved,” yet how little attention is given to precise problem framing in business.

After a lecture on these dual outputs of the design process at a recent workshop, a participant from a large tech company approached the stage. “So let me get this straight: You’re telling me that there are actually two outputs of the design thinking process? Not only the answer, but also the question?" "Yes." "… Cool. That’s soooo different from how we approach things at my company. The problem is always given, and it’s only our job to solve it. But we can do all sorts of things with technology that don’t actually solve a meaningful problem, so this is huge.”

Writing yesterday’s post about tempting lightning reminded me of this funny conversation, as it brought me back in touch with an important quote from my friend Philipe Barreaud, who runs the Customer Innovation Lab for Michelin, as he reflected on the challenges innovating in a large organization:

“Most of the time, the problem is the problem.”

He’s discovered that it’s often the framing of the problem to be solved that is itself the problem. But if a team (or often, the leader of a team who’s commissioning exploratory work) is willing to question the premise, and focus on defining the right problem, much of the hard work is solved.

As Einstein is quoted as having said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions.” Which is to say, if you want to be a genius, make sure you’re solving the right problem.

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