Post presentation Note

“Capacity Building Workshop: Decision making and problem Solving”

Special Guest

Rupsha Das (Senior Program Manager, Frog – a leading design & innovation consultancy)

Moderator

Mr. Amit Saluja (Senior Director NASSCOM & Center Head)

Key Takeaways

  • “You cannot solve a problem, until you are asking the right questions.”

  • A problemcan be regarded as a difference between the actual situation and the desired situation. Clarify the problem before you start looking for a solution. identify the key elements of the problem before you start looking for a solution

  • it’s also important to ensure that you look at the issue from a variety of perspectives. If you commit yourself too early, you can end up with a problem statement instead of solution.

  • Problem-solving is the process of observing what is going on in your environment. identifying things that could be changed or improved; diagnosing why the current state is the way it is and the factors and forces that influence it.

  • Problem solving requires transparent communication where everyone’s concerns and points of view are freely expressed. Its extremely difficult to get to the root of the matter in a timely manner when people do not speak-up.

  • Effective communication towards problem solving happens because of a leader’s ability to facilitate an open dialogue between people who trust the intentions and feel that they are in a safe environment to share why they believe the problem happened as well as specific solutions.

  • Once all voices have been heard and all points of view accounted for, the leader can collectively map-out a path toward a viable and sustainable solution. 

  • Lay out your ideas in a visual way by putting it on to post-it notes to gain clarity on the bigger picture. Platforms like Miro can help in this exercise.

  • Decisions can often fail because the best alternatives are not clear at the outset, or key factors are not considered as part of the process.

  • Important reference links:

Lean Problem Solving – the 5 Whys: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrlYkx41wEE

Creative Problem Solving using CPS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbxyiUG5RRI

Design Activity – Let’s Make Toast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vS_b7cJn2A

Miro Collaborative platform – https://miro.com/app/dashboard/