SIX KEYS TO UNLOCK PROBLEM-SOLVING POTENTIAL
DO RIGID PROCESSES WORK IN TODAY’S WORLD DRIVEN BY AMBIGUITY AND CHANGE?
PROBLEM-SOLVING IS A KEY SKILL THAT BUSINESS LEADERS CAN BUILD BY ADOPTING SIX MUTUALLY REINFORCING MINDSETS, ACCORDING TO CONSULTANTS MCKINSEY & CO:
01
ALWAYS BE CURIOUS about every element of a problem.
02
BE AN IMPERFECTIONIST – with a high tolerance for ambiguity.
03
SEE THE WORLD THROUGH MULTIPLE LENSES – adopt a “dragonfly eye” view
of the world.
04
Pursue “occurrent behaviour” (WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS, NOT WHAT WAS PREDICTED) AND EXPERIMENT RELENTLESSLY.
05
Acknowledge that the SMARTEST PEOPLE are NOT NECESSARILY IN THE ROOM (sometimes a difficult one for sales leaders! – Ed), instead TAP INTO the WIDER COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE.
06
Understand that STORYTELLING BEGETS ACTION (something that sales leaders can identify with – Ed), by practicing “show and tell” to CONNECT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH the PROBLEM.
Source: For more see: Charles Conn and Robert McLean, “Six problem-solving mindsets for very uncertain times,” McKinsey Quarterly, 15 September 2020, https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/six-problem-solving-mindsets-for-very-uncertain-times.
