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. Meaningful Diversity: Creating Cultures of Inclusion By Susan Schutz In the fitness room the other day, I caught a glimpse of a movie trailer on television. A father spoke very open-heartedly with his son about his work as a fireman. He acknowledged the fear that welled up in him when he looked into a small, dark room filled with life-threatening heat and flames, and described the instinct to run in the opposite direction.He had to pause in a safe hallway and assess the situation, the father explained, consciously remember why he had chosen his work – a… 2. A Blindingly Stupid Example of Change Management An airline president wanted his Boeing two-engine 737s to fly faster. He asked Boeing if they could help, and they assured him they could...so they added two additional engines to each airplane. After a few weeks of service with the added engines, the airline president asked his Operations Manager if his airplanes were flying faster. The president was surprised to hear that, in fact, they were flying slower ... and that the number of oil-related engine failures on the old engines was up dramati… 3. Character: Is It Necessary In Leadership? (Part One) By Brent Filson We know character when we see it, but what exactly is it? How do we define it? What role does it play in our getting results as leaders? What role does character play in our careers?In this two part article, I'll explore these questions and give tips on using character to get results and build your career.A key function of character in leadership is to engender trust in people, and the function of their trust is to have them take action for results. Few leaders come to grips with the challenge… 4. The Fastest Way To Revenue The more you need the money, the more narrowly you have to focus on customer needs and agendas. I learned that the hard way, struggling for several years before finally seeing the light and making a permanent change. In 1983 my fledgling company was among several that were trying to market a sales training program to one of America's largest sales organizations. Back then, The Brooks Group consisted solely of a part-time secretary and me, though I was closely counseled by my mentor who had tuto… |
||||
