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Problem solving and Decision Making

Problem solving and Decision Making is key in determining how well and how far you advance in an organization. It is obvious that an individual will not have all the answers and all the solutions to an organization’s problems. It is however, vital that an individual possess the necessary problem solving skills to address each issue that they come across.

Problem solving is defined as the process of addressing a problematic situation in a structured manner in order to come up with the most appropriate feasible solution. It is an important facet of management and leadership where a structured procedure is applied to come up with a list of options, analyze the results and decide the optimal fit.

Decision making is the process of choosing among a number of alternatives in order to come up with the best option that effectively caters for the problem at hand. This process is based on a logical criteria selected depending on the problem under consideration. Problems generally have several solutions that might be considered to address each particular case; therefore a decision has to be made regarding which path to adopt.

Four step decision making process

Among the numerous procedures that exist in the decision making process, the four step decision making process is most widely applauded. This is a decision making process that adopts the criteria of dividing the activity into four basic tasks. These activities are:

Problem definition: The first and most important part of the decision making process entails understanding and clarifying the issue under contention. It involves a cursory presentation of the impending situation to a team that in turn brainstorms to give a breakdown of the various elements of the problem. Finally, the leader of the team gives a sweeping statement defining the problem under discussion arrived at by a concerted effort. The gravity of this step in stressed by the fact that failure to define the correct problem will result in solutions that do not handle the problem at hand.

Gathering facts: After the problem has been clearly defined, factors surrounding the contentious situation are discussed within the team in order to define the scope of the solution. The team considers the urgency of the problem in order to draw up an effective time table for discussion. It also considers the weightiness of the problem in order to decide the appropriate attention to give to the different aspects, and consider what resources are available toward the solution.

Brainstorming solutions: The team members then volunteer their opinions of the possible solutions to the problems that they are facing. The team leader carefully takes note of the solutions while endeavoring to draw each member into the discussion to contribute and articulate their sentiments.

Decision making: This step involves an analysis of the solutions presented in order to reach a consensus of the best possible package that effectively addresses the problem.

Application of analyzing skills
A structured technique is applied to determine the best solution based on a comparison between merits and demerits of all solutions offered. The analysis technique adopted is based on weighting the pros and cons of each solution. In this method, members of the team list the advantages and disadvantages of each solution against each other and collectively choose one carrying the best quality.