Building Better Answers to Old and New Problems: The Power of the Problem Solving Sequence
This week, I had the privilege of working on Strategiser Workshops© with three exceptional organisations, each facing their own unique but highly complex challenges.
- One, a leading NGO, is on the front lines protecting Europe from an incumbent and not-yet eradicated disease.
- Another, a market leader in the food and beverage service industry, is navigating strategic shifts to stay ahead.
- The third, one of the world’s most renowned public transportation players, is strengthening its internal consulting capabilities to drive value for customers and stakeholders.
Despite their differences in mission and industry, a common thread ran through all three engagements: Solving today’s and tomorrow’s most complex problems using the Problem Solving Sequence.
Identifying the Right Battles to Win In Strategiser Workshops© with the NGO and the F&B leader, we worked on reaching a clear understanding of the core issues to solve – defining the Must Win Battles (MWB©) that will keep them ahead in their fields.
Building Internal Capability for Better Problem Solving With the transportation company, we focused on training their highly-skilled internal consultants to apply the Problem Solving Sequence. This included:
- Sharper problem definition
- More effective structuring
- More creative ideation through the Strategic DNA© methodology
- Better synthesis and compelling storytelling—carefully avoiding the dreaded “death by PowerPoint”
Better Thinking, Better Solutions At the heart of our work is a fundamental realisation:
“Every complex problem has a simple solution – and it’s wrong.”
This wisdom, which I first heard from my physics professor at Delft University of Technology, is more relevant than ever.
The world is facing complex, interconnected challenges, yet too often, we see oversimplified solutions – whether from political extremes, one-sided debates, or quick-fix thinking. Many of these “solutions” waste money, cost lives, cause suffering, and delay the actual progress that IS possible.
🌍 What if we took a different approach? What if we learned to think better and deeper before rushing our ideas into the public arena? What if we trained ourselves and our organisations to apply structured problem-solving before acting on assumptions?
This is what we do at W-focus. And I invite you to learn with me.
- How do you approach complex problem-solving?
- What methods work for you in cutting through complexity without oversimplifying?
Let’s start a conversation. 👇
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