Public Safety Insights Newsletter: When a Traditional Problem-solving Approach Becomes the Problem

When a Traditional Problem-solving Approach Becomes the Problem
Public Safety Insight:	An appreciative approach to problem-solving can avoid the unintended dysfunctional workplace behaviors and outcomes sometimes caused by a traditional approach.

Years ago when I was in graduate school, I rented a duplex near the university that was owned by the wife of a marketing professor. Whenever repairs were needed, she sent her husband to fix them. No matter what the problem, he would show up with his trusty roll of duct tape. The day he taped up my oven because it wouldn’t get hot, I had to wonder why in the world an otherwise intelligent person thought that duct tape was the solution to every problem.

The answer came in the form of a familiar adage: “When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” Although he was very competent in the marketing arena, outside the classroom, the professor’s only tool in his toolbox was duct tape.

Something similar plays out in the workplace every day. In the U.S., most people are taught to resolve problems using a standard approach: identify the issue, determine its cause, and find ways to solve it. Although this process works well in many situations, it falls short in others. Just as a hammer sometimes is the wrong tool for the job, so too there are times that the traditional problem-solving framework is an ineffective option.

Imagine this scenario: you’ve just returned from a call in which a series of mistakes enabled a minor incident to become much more serious. When you return to the station or office, the questions begin: “What went wrong? Who messed up? What happened? Why did you do X instead of Y?” People become defensive. Perhaps fingers are pointed and blame is assigned. The heated discussion ends on a very negative note, setting the tone for the rest of the shift and beyond. 

Now imagine an alternative problem-solving approach to the same scenario. Focusing on strengths and past successes, an appreciative framework builds on them to identify ways to improve in the future. The discussion begins with, “What did we do well out there today? What or who enabled us to do exactly what we needed to do?” It goes on like this: “Let’s talk about a time when we faced this same kind of incident and we aced it. What did that look like? What did we do then, and how did we do it? How can we repeat that success in the future? What will that look like?” Instead of feeling like they are on the defensive, crew members are energized. Asking them about their strengths and their successes reminds them of what it feels like when they are working as a highly effective team. They want to re-capture that experience. Focusing on a desired future instead of on an unchangeable past inspires them to do whatever is necessary to reach that positive outcome every time. In fact, they are highly likely to end up with a much better solution than would have resulted from the traditional problem-solving approach.

I am not advocating that you discard the standard problem-solving approach. It remains a valuable tool, especially in emergency situations. What I am suggesting is that when the oven isn’t heating, you forsake the duct tape for the best tool for the job. The key is to identify which problem-solving approach is most appropriate for a given situation AND to have the skill to shift from one to the other as needed.

To learn how you can use the appreciative approach to problem-solving in your agency, take a look at my article An Appreciative Approach to Problem-solving.

To find articles and resources that may be of value to you, I invite you to visit my web site at www.PublicSafetyInsights.net.

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©2015 Pat Lynch | Public Safety Insights