Rather than think about the problem, think through the problem.

Your reputation as a leader is very dependent upon your ability to analyze a problem, laying out the best approach to take and the plan for action. There is nothing worse than presenting an issue to a group of executives and letting them brainstorm solutions to your problem. When things get out of control in the meeting because their ideas are all over the map it appears like you are not in control of your issue. Here is a recap of an exchange in a meeting I attended just this week.

Presenter: We previously maintained customer status in the customer paper folder. This folder goes away with our new automation but if the system goes down it’s possible we may charge the customer incorrectly because we don’t know their status, either over or under charging. There are a number of options and none of them are clear winners. Let’s discuss this as a group and reach a conclusion on how we can solve this issue.

Participant: How often will the system go down?

Presenter: It’s impossible to know although we expect minimal downtimes with the new software.

Participant: How long on average are the downtimes?

Presenter: I don’t know.

Participant: Why don’t we print out a list of customer status for every staff member?

Participant: But, that will be out of date and still won’t make sure we’re accurate.

Participant: What percentage of customers at any given time receive a discount?

Presenter: I don’t have that information with me.

This went on for 40 minutes with a variety of solutions being suggested and a number of requests for more information. No solution was reached and the presenter looked unprepared. The perception of the presenter is not strong. There was very little leadership on this issue because of the lack of preparation.

How to handle situations like this:

• Use a solid problem solving method (see the Personal Brilliance Problem Solving Method) that allows you to get to the root cause of the issue. Clearly state the problem, identify the root causes, and then completely analyze each potential solution.
• Identify every possible solution, no matter how crazy. These are the ideas that will be thrown at you in the group setting.
• How do you identify every possible solution that may be recommended at the meeting? Ask. Ahead of time. Meet individually with a good cross-section of attendees and get their initial reactions to the defined problems and solutions they might offer. Yes, this takes more work and time. You can’t do your homework the night before. (Never said this would be easy.)
• Completely analyze every possible solution looking at consistency with strategy and culture, financial impact, potential side effects, and degree of difficulty.
• For the executive group clearly indicate what you want from them: a decision, a sign-off, ideas, any missing cross-functional perspectives, etc. Have a goal. Give them parameters.
• When presenting the issue to the group, state the problem and then lay out the chronology of the analysis: who was involved, what was considered, research done, synopsis of the backup data used, and the point scoring weighting system used for the various options. There should be no question about your methodology. This gets mixed up in the discussion and you get way off track quickly.
• Present each of the solutions in a high level overview and make the case for the conclusions your analysis reached.
• Honor each input during the meeting but be sure to stay on track.
• Identify next step action items from the group.
• State the conclusion to the issue or what will be done in the near future and agree on how you will report back.

It is crucial to your individual success and the success of the organization that problems/opportunities be handled efficiently. The best way to do this is with solid analysis before the meeting.

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