Blog - Operational Problem Solving

It is reassuring in operations when the probability of a negative event occurring is limited.  In reality though many small problems recur and cause significant problems, because they are not properly addressed, often creating significant production and financial loss.  Such lack of operational efficiency is often hidden in the finances of an operation, to eventually show up unexpectedly.

Recently during facilitation, it struck me how unable the group was to focus and commonly agree what the problem was they are facing. It was common knowledge that they did not have much time to interact with one another and that they had few facts available to them individually. The vague ‘managerial problem’ would, without good interaction never receive the appropriate focus it deserves, because of unintended "silositus."

Solving problems and creating optimum solutions is often not as simple as just following a linear facilitation process and getting to answers. Added complexity and involvement of several stakeholders requires an approach that can align different inputs towards sustainable solutions. However, from experience, we know that the more input from different sources the higher the risk of lengthy discussions and diverse non-focused results with extensive wasted time and cost.