Must Have Tools For Problem Solving In Business

According to certain research, the typical business professional spends 3 hours every week handling work-related problems! Isn’t it quite a lot?

Problem solving is crucial to operating a company, and a strong set of problem solving tools can assist you in taking a planned and logical approach. If you own a company or work as a manager in an organization, one of your primary responsibilities is to resolve issues. 

Unfortunately, in many circumstances, resolving these problems is an exceedingly tough process. The issue might be difficult to resolve, or you may have so many alternative solutions to evaluate that can leave you in a big confusion. 

When the situation starts getting confusing, it is better to have efficient problem solving tools in hand!

We’ve compiled a list of the most effective problem solving tools to help you overcome some common business problems and boost productivity in your company.

1. Fishbone Diagrams

Fishbone Diagram

Source: Fishbone Diagram Templates by SlideUpLift

Fishbone diagrams are a popular problem solving tool named after the skeleton of a fish, after the implementation. Dynamic fishbone diagrams allow you to see the potential root causes of an issue (the ribs) branching out from either side of a spine line connecting to the problem (the head).

2. Mental Maps

Mind Maps

Source: Mental Maps PowerPoint Templates by SlideUpLift

A mental map allows you to get your ideas about what’s creating a workplace problem, out of your mind and drawn on a physical paper or digital sheet. Since mental maps reflect how our brains process and evaluate new information, utilizing them to graphically depict your hypotheses can assist you and your team in working through and testing those mental models.

3. Flowcharts

Flowchart Templates Collection

Source: Flowchart Templates Collection by SlideUpLift

A flowchart is a simple graphic with a wide range of applications. However, it can be used to describe and investigate how the stages of a problematic process relate. Flowcharts, which are made up of a few basic symbols connected by arrows showing workflow direction, concisely depict what occurs at each step of a process and how each event influences subsequent events and choices.

4. Strategy Maps

Strategy Map

Source: Strategy Map Template for PowerPoint by SlideUpLift

Strategy Map

Source: Strategy Map Template by SlideUpLift

Strategy maps, which are often used as a strategic planning tool, also function well as problem mapping diagrams. Thoughts and ideas can be placed on a single page using a hierarchical framework to flesh out a possible resolution. 

Once you’ve identified a few methods that you believe are worth investigating as potential solutions to an issue, a strategy map will assist you in determining the optimal path to your problem solving objective.

5. 5 Whys Analysis

5 Whys Analysis

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The 5 Whys is a methodical questioning approach used during the issue analysis phase to identify potential fundamental causes.

The strategy necessitates that a team question “Why” at least five times or be able to dig down to deeper degrees of detail. When the team finds it tough to answer a “Why,” it is probable that they have uncovered a credible reason which is causing the main issue.

6. CATWOE Analysis

CATWOE Analysis

Source: CATWOE Analysis Template by SlideUpLift

CATWOE PowerPoint

Source: CATWOE PowerPoint Template by SlideUpLift

CATWOE Analysis is one of several methodologies used by a business analyst to determine what the firm is attempting to accomplish, what the issue areas are, and how stakeholder viewpoints impact the individuals involved.

It stands for:

• Customer
• Actor
• Transformation
• World-view
• Owner
• Environment

Wrapping It Up

So, which of these important problem solving tools should you employ in your business?

That is all up to you in the end. It is best to understand how to utilize them all since one that works well for one of your issues may not work at all for another.

We hope you found this collection of business problem solving tools useful. The work of issue resolution will not go away anytime soon for company owners and managers. If you learn how to apply these strategies, you will be able to complete your tasks at a greater level in the future.

If you’re looking for some awesome presentation templates to execute these problem solving strategies, go no further than SlideUpLift!