When it comes to your business, have you ever asked yourself, “what happened to all the fun I was supposed to be having?” Instead of practicing what you love, you likely spend most of your time dealing with problems related to such things as: cash flow management, managing employees, creating processes to run the business better, bringing in new technology, keeping existing technology working, time management, delegating tasks, updating strategic and marketing plans, and of course growing the business.
This leads us to conclude, the understatement of all time,…running a business is hard work; but, does it need to be this difficult?
The above problems are not exclusive to any business. Yet, what tends be the common thread leading to these problems is how they are solved.
Most businesses are focused on the execution of tasks, which means that actions are done quickly in a reactive nature. Rewards and recognition are often given to those who can act efficiently to provide a remedy. While this keeps your practice moving, the result is more long-term organizational stress as only symptoms are addressed and the cause in never fully considered.
To get to the root cause of your organization’s problems a more proactive means of solving the problem needs to be utilized. And for this to happen two things need to be considered:
1) The problem-solving style of the people who are solving the problem
2) The process being used to solve the problem, where a best practice includes:
a. Defining the Problem
b. Developing Solutions
c. Creating and Executing a Plan
This blog will focus on the people who are tasked with solving the problem
PEOPLE AND THEIR PROBLEM-SOLVING STYLES
When it comes to problem solving, empowering them with decision rights is critical to fixing the problem. And, although it is vital to involve many people in the problem-solving process, it is also important to have clear identification of the person who owns the problem to solve. Yet, there is also an equally important factor that goes beyond the role of the person in the organization, which is the style that a person uses to solve problems.
Style relates to a preferred method of doing something. Just like the choices that we make with clothing, cars, and food, the preference is not permanent nor innate. In other words, problem-solving style is highly influenced by the environment. This is great news as problem-solving styles can be taught to and adapted by employees.
Extensive research, by Dr. Min Basadur, has identified 4 types of problem-solving styles:
a) generators (big picture thinkers)
b) conceptualizers (problem definers and ideators)
c) optimizers (guide order from chaos)
d) executors (get stuff done)
We all are a blend of each of these styles, yet we all demonstrate a stronger preference for at least one of them. Each of the styles has pros and cons, which can create disharmony in organizations, as people favor a certain way to approach a problem. No one style is better than any other; yet, the catch is that all 4 styles are necessary to implement an effectively solution.
Are you aware of the problem-solving style of yourself and your fellow employees? Furthermore, do you understand the strengths and weaknesses of each style and how each style can be effectively activated?
Contact the The Noble Consulting Group to find out how you can understand your team's problem solving style and how to build strategies to effectively solve problems.