What Are Examples of Creative Problem-Solving Approaches?
In the dynamic realms of law and consultancy, creativity in problem-solving is paramount. We reached out to Founding and Managing Partners to share their unique strategies. From engaging mentors for backward problem-solving to tailoring solutions with operations excellence, discover the eight innovative approaches recommended by these experts.
- Engage Mentors for Backward Problem-Solving
- Embrace Contrarian Approaches
- Apply Design-Thinking and Legal Tech
- Ask 'Why?' to Understand Root Causes
- Follow Steps for Complex Problem Ownership
- Utilize Six Hats Thinking for Collaboration
- Inversions and Missing Elements in Problem-Solving
- Tailor Problem-Solving with Operations Excellence
Engage Mentors for Backward Problem-Solving
One creative approach to problem-solving that I would recommend to others in the legal and consulting fields is to engage with trusted mentors to identify the solution first and then work backward to address the problem. This method leverages the wisdom and experience of seasoned professionals, providing valuable insights and perspectives. By starting with the end goal in mind, we can strategically plan the necessary steps to achieve it, ensuring a more focused and efficient problem-solving process.
Embrace Contrarian Approaches
What if we did the opposite? When I get stuck on a problem or challenge, I ask myself what would happen if I did the exact opposite. For instance, when trying to increase team productivity, we considered all the conventional approaches around adding more structure and deadlines but decided to run an experiment giving the team more autonomy and flexible work hours. Surprisingly (or not), this led to a boost in creativity and efficiency, as team members felt more empowered and motivated. This contrarian approach may not always provide you with the solution, but it will get you unstuck in your way of thinking about problem-solving.
Apply Design-Thinking and Legal Tech
At our firm, we've found that creative problem-solving is crucial to providing value to clients in today's dynamic legal landscape. We strive to apply design-thinking principles, enabling us to truly partner with our clients and craft innovative solutions to move their business forward and meet the challenges they face effectively. We regularly engage in cross-disciplinary collaboration with our clients, bringing fresh perspectives to complex legal challenges. In many cases, we engage in scenario planning to anticipate potential issues and craft proactive strategies for our clients. In terms of innovation, we continuously invest in new legal-tech and AI tools that streamline our processes and help us to enhance outcomes with novel solutions. Lastly, we cultivate a culture of continuous learning within our team, ensuring that we stay at the forefront of innovative problem-solving approaches to maximize client success.
Ask 'Why?' to Understand Root Causes
I've found that the most important step you can take to solve any problem is to spend a little bit of extra time to properly understand the problem. Oftentimes, we end up solving a problem that may alleviate a symptom but doesn't really resolve the root cause.
Pretend you are a toddler and ask "why?" until you've drilled down into five or six layers to understand your root cause. You'll be surprised what you find more often than not, and you'll also be positioned to solve your problem once and for all.
Follow Steps for Complex Problem Ownership
Something that has worked for me in different complex situations where there are multiple stakeholders, broken internal processes, lack of clear data & information, and more importantly, ownership issues of the problem, is what I would like to outline here as some fundamental but effective steps:
1. Try defining the problem through intervention with various process owners within the organization - make sure you have a very crisp and clear statement of the problem (SMART is a good reference).
2. Gather leading and lagging data for metrics defined or related to the problem - they give compelling insights to dig deeper.
3. Use the tool called a Fish-bone diagram to get questioning on Why-Where-Whom-What until you get to the root cause; this exercise is best done with a cross-functional team.
4. After knowing the root cause, create a roadmap for execution with clear milestones, roles, & responsibilities to deploy solutions.
5. Review periodically with related stakeholders if the solutions are working, or revisit your approach.
6. Celebrate success and communicate the case studies across the organization.
Utilize Six Hats Thinking for Collaboration
So many possibilities here.
For creative problem-solving, I'm a huge fan of Six Hats Thinking and use it often, especially in discussions over multiple days where I can help create conversations and collaborative sessions.
White Hat: Focus on data and facts.
Red Hat: Use intuition and emotions.
Black Hat: Look for potential problems.
Yellow Hat: Be optimistic and find benefits.
Green Hat: Think creatively and generate innovative ideas.
Blue Hat: Manage the thinking process.
I also like to engage participants in "Reverse Thinking" and begin with identifying the exact opposite of what the group is trying to achieve.
Lastly, I break the routine often, through longer meeting breaks, or utilizing team activities to build more conversation and camaraderie.
Inversions and Missing Elements in Problem-Solving
There are two approaches I love to use when solving problems:
Using Inversions
Inversion is thinking about the problem by considering its opposite. Instead of asking, "How do I achieve delivery of X number of widgets?" ask, "How could I ensure I fail at delivering the widgets?" By identifying ways to fail, you can avoid them. This means preparing for risk and oversight to strengthen the solution to the problem.
Asking What Is Missing
This approach focuses on identifying absent but crucial information. In consulting, it means asking, "What important data or perspective is missing?" This ensures a thorough analysis and uncovers hidden opportunities and risks. For example, missing stakeholder views or market trends can be critical in strategy development.
Incorporating inversion and identifying what's missing in your practice will lead to more comprehensive solutions for clients. These methods enhance problem-solving by providing fresh perspectives and ensuring thoroughness.
Tailor Problem-Solving with Operations Excellence
There is no 'one-size-fits-all' approach to problem-solving. To arrive at the problem statement and related focus areas, I have made use of functional questionnaires, detailed 'as-is' process mapping, focused interviews, and 'time-and-motion' studies. The problem-solving journey should involve supply chain organization redesign, process review, and redesign followed by a thorough assessment of IT systems, tools, and software in that order. Operations excellence and continuous improvement tools such as 'TOC' and 'Lean' have also been utilized.