What is Problem Solving Process and its Importance?

Having excellent problem-solving abilities may have a significant impact on your career. Problems are at the heart of what people accomplish daily at work.

The difficulties you confront might be vast or little, simple or complicated, easy or challenging, whether you’re addressing an issue for an internal or external customer, helping people who are having difficulties or identifying new issues to address.

Finding solutions to problems is an essential aspect of any manager’s job. As a result, being a confident problem solver is critical to your success. A decent technique to follow when tackling a challenge contributes to a lot of that confidence. You can address problems fast and effectively with one.

There are four basic steps to solving a problem

1) Defining the problem

The first stage in every problem-solving process is to define the issue at hand precisely. Despite its apparent simplicity, this is a crucial part of the procedure. It is hard to discover a workable solution if one does not first gain an accurate picture of the issue at hand.

The problem could be defined in a few different ways. The first is the obvious one of figuring out what’s broken and what needs fixing. Possible causes of the issue can also be identified through this method. If you can fully grasp the issue at hand, you can go on to explore potential answers.

The key to a successful problem definition is to focus on the actual problem rather than its symptoms. If your department’s performance is poor, you may believe the issue is with the people who submit work. However, if you dig a little further, you could find that the problem is a lack of training or an excessive workload.

Asking the proper questions and working through the layers of a problem with tools like 5 Whys, Appreciation, and Root Cause Analysis can help you figure out what’s going on. It’s also critical at this point to ensure that you examine the problem from a variety of angles.

2) Generating alternatives

Once the problem has been defined, it’s time to think of various possible solutions that can be considered. It’s crucial to think creatively and explore all ideas, no matter how far-fetched they may appear at first.

The next step, after compiling a solid list of options, is to evaluate each one. Judgment must be made as to which solutions are the most practical and effective in solving the issue at hand. Think about what you want to accomplish and how you want to get there, and then pick a path based on those considerations.

The action might be scary, but you shouldn’t have to face it alone. Consult with others who may have solved difficulties comparable to yours before.

3) Evaluating and selecting alternatives.

In the third phase, when you have various alternative solutions in hand, you need to pick the best one that helps you achieve the specific goal arising from the decision-making. Merits and demerits along with possible consequences of implementing each solution must be carefully evaluated.

4) Implementing solutions.

This is the final step of the decision-making process. It is about actually putting into action what you have decided is the most appropriate solution to the given problem or situation. It is crucial that all the possible solutions are efficiently and critically evaluated before making the final decision.

Importance of Problem Solving Skill in Personal and Professional Life

Problem-solving skills are necessary for dealing with challenges that arise in daily life, such as managing one’s finances, working, and interacting with others. They provide a hand to individuals in comprehending predicaments and coming up with answers to challenges.

The skill to solve issues is a fundamental cognitive function that we have evolved and strengthened throughout our lives as a part of our self-regulation, which enables us to learn, adapt to our surroundings, make sound judgments, and maintain control over our emotional states.