Problem-Solving Success Tip: Use Your Time for Problems that are Truly ImportantLearn Management Articles on management-info.biz. Problem-Solving Success Tip: Use Your Time for Problems that are Truly Important article will help answer your questions on Management Articles.We at management-info.biz specialize in Management Articles. Management Articles at management-info.biz provides the most up to date news and articles. If you have questions please do not hesitate to contact us.
Hard as it may be to walk away once you're aware of it, just because a problem is there doesn't mean you have to solve it. Ask yourself and your colleagues, 'What will happen if we don't solve this problem?' If the answer is, 'not much,' then turn your attention to something more important. If you don't know what will happen, find out before you undertake a problem-solving project. It should be clear to you and everyone else involved that the problem is worth the effort--and expense--to fix it. Quantify the cost of the problem quickly, but as realistically as you can. Include lost opportunity costs as well as real expenses such as staff time to deal with the problem, travel expenses, etc. Use actual costs where you can; estimate where you can't. Then guesstimate what it will cost to analyze and fix it. Write your analysis down, stating all your assumptions explicitly. Get a colleague to verify that your assumptions and estimates are reasonable. Start with a rough 'order of magnitude' estimate. That may be enough to answer the question of whether you should proceed. If it's not clear, especially if the cost to solve it will be high, do a more careful analysis. If it will cost more to fix than to live with the problem, or if the number is even close, perhaps your resources (time, people, money) are better spent on other projects. If you decide to proceed anyway, you can do so with a better understanding of what you're undertaking. On the other hand, if you can demonstrate that the cost of the problem is much higher than the cost of solving it, using estimates based on reasonable assumptions, it will generally be much easier to get the resources you need. You can use your written analysis as a sales tool to help win support for your decision to proceed or not. We have to learn to distinguish those things that are truly important from those that are merely urgent. --Jerry D. Campbell
copyright 2005. Jeanne Sawyer. All Rights Reserved. |
More Articles:1. What Consultants Want You to Know (But You Never Ask) By Jan B. King I’ve been both a CEO and a consultant, so I’ve seen from both perspectives what goes right and what goes wrong when a consultant comes in to a company. Generally the CEO or the manager who hires the consultant tells the consultant what he or she wants. Often the manager is frustrated with something that is happening at the company and expects the consultant will have the expertise to “just fix it”. While the manager needs to set the expectations, of course, the consultant rarely gets to voice … 2. Tales from the Corporate Frontlines:Choosing an Effective Employee Recognition Program By Josh Greenberg This article relates to the Recognition competency, commonly evaluated in employee satisfaction surveys. It tells the story of how one company found the right recognition program by paying attention to employee feedback. This competency also explores what type of behavior is appreciated and rewarded within your organization. Studies show that employees who receive regular recognition and praise are more likely to increase their individual productivity levels, increase engagement with their col… 3. Employee Turnover: Is It Eating Up Your Profits? By Marcia Zidle Keeping the cost of doing business down, yet providing a quality product or service, is one of the most critical components of success for today’s leader. What many fail to realize is that employee turnover can represent a very substantial price tag to a company's productivity and its bottom line.Turnover is costly – just how costly? Research studies have shown that the cost of replacing a professional or managerial employee runs 1.5 to 3.0 times his or her annual salary. And it can cost up … 4. CAN FIVE S HELP ME? (A common sense approach to improving quality, productivity, safety and profits.) What is Five S? Five S is a component of lean manufacturing that involves organization and cleanliness, and then using standards to maintain what has been accomplished. The term 'Five S' represents the five stages of a Five S program: Sorting (Eliminate broken or unused equipment, tools and supplies.) Systematic Organization (Put everything in its proper place.) Shine (Clean up on a regular schedule.) Standardize (Make the above three steps easy to accomplish.) Sustain (Take steps to maintain wh… |
||||
