--- title: 5 things you need to do to solve problems effectively description: "Learning is based in solving problems, preferably without failing at it. Read on to discover how to stop saying \"I don’t know how to solve that problem\"." image: https://www.processwaregroup.com/hubfs/BlogPost15_v2-1.jpg --- [![](https://www.processwaregroup.com/hubfs/processware/logo/processware_logo.png)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/) - [O2P](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/the-platform) - [About Us](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/about-us) - [Solutions](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/solutions) - [Industries](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/industries) - [Stories](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/stories) - [Partners](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/partners) - [Achievements](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/achievements-and-awards-processware) - [Visit Our Blog](https://www.processwaregroup.com/blog) - - - EN - [EN](https://www.processwaregroup.com/) - [BR](https://www.processwaregroup.com/br) - [PT](https://www.processwaregroup.com/pt) - [ES](https://www.processwaregroup.com/es) - [O2P](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/the-platform) - [About Us](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/about-us) - [Solutions](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/solutions) - [Industries](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/industries) - [Stories](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/stories) - [Partners](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/partners) - [Achievements](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/achievements-and-awards-processware) - [Visit our Blog](https://www.processwaregroup.com/blog) - [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMkhsk6rfs23BGMmrIEKwzQ?) - [Linkedin](https://www.linkedin.com/company/processware) - [EN](https://www.processwaregroup.com/) - [PT](https://www.processwaregroup.com/pt) - [BR](https://www.processwaregroup.com/br) - [ES](https://www.processwaregroup.com/es) # 5 things you need to do to solve problems effectively Learning is based in solving problems, preferably without failing at it. Read on to discover how to stop saying "I don’t know how to solve that problem". Apr 13, 2018 3:10:09 PM ![Filipe Janela](https://www.processwaregroup.com/hs-fs/hubfs/processware/blog/Author/Janela.jpg?width=35&name=Janela.jpg) Posted By [Filipe Janela](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/author/filipe-janela) Learning is based in solving problems, preferably without failing at it. Read on to discover how to stop saying ‘I don’t know how to solve that problem’.   ---   On [this](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/how-to-make-your-organization-smarter-) post, we argued that making an organization smarter is all about formulating problems and then solving them. True enough, if you don’t formulate a problem correctly, it’s impossible to solve it. But then again, if you do have a problem correctly formulated, how do you go about solving it? Better yet, how do you improve the odds of succeeding at solving the problem and achieving the desired outcome?   The operative word here is ‘structured’. You can only improve your chances of effectively resolving a problem if you have a structured approach to solving it. It’s another way of saying that, although you don’t know what will solve the problem, you know a path that will enable you to discover what will.   The worlds best problem solvers are Lean Thinkers, mostly because they have a tried and tested methodology that enables a huge success ratio in sorting out better ways of doing whatever. And problems are just a formulation for something that should be done differently to have a better outcome.     **So, what is the secret sauce behind a Lean Approach to Problem Solving?**     - **Have the right attitude** – I know, you’re going all ‘Really? That’s new…’ but bear with me. The right attitude is not wanting to solve the problem or working really hard to solve it. It’s remaining, against all odds, very, but I mean very, clear about everything and all information you gather or generate. There’s absolutely no space for ambiguity or maybes, you need to focus on sharp, clear, insightful information. Remember problem formulation as the starting point? It must be clear and you have to clearly know why it’s important to solve the problem. Another important point: don’t cut corners, do the right stuff. And it’s going to be hard to follow the methodology as you’ll find out soon enough.   - **Know what’s really going on** – Consider that the problem is the clear statement of a manifestation of something that shouldn’t be happening or is not happening as it should. The problem does not contain any indication as to the why’s the problem is happening. This is the key point, you need to discover and be able to clearly state how things are behaving currently. To achieve this, you need to get your hands dirty and go see it for yourself. This means going to the people actually involved, see on the field what’s going on and getting a clear, unbiased picture of the current state design. In an expression Lean guys use, you’ve got to really commit to the “Gemba Walk”.   - **Ask a lot of (right) questions** - With a clear picture of what’s going on, then you need to ask why it’s being done like that, again in direct interaction with the ones really involved. And this is difficult, because most of the time people tend to have replies like ‘I do it like that because I’ve been told to do so’ or ‘That’s how I’ve always done it’ and have a difficult time stating clearly why they do something or why they react on a given situation in a given way. Don’t despair and don’t cut corners, if you don’t know clearly why something is happening, you’re not going to solve the problem. This is commonly known as Root Cause Analysis but it’s actually being very clear about asking people why something is happening and not taking any evasive reply as an answer.   - **If it’s too complicated, it’s probably wrong** – If you’re doing a good job so far, you’ve got a small number of root causes, clearly outlined. It’s interesting how a seemingly complex problem always boils down to a few root causes (no more than 5 actually) and how small changes produce a huge impact. If you’re looking at many complex root causes, then you’re probably not asking the right questions and you need to dig deeper to find the actual thing that is causing the manifestation you’re trying to solve. The goal is to outline a set of changes, preferably small, that address the root causes and mitigate its negative impact, focusing on the ones that will produce the biggest impact on the smallest amount of time.   - **Be realistic** – When setting what changes need to address the root causes, you need to be realistic about two very important things: What you can accomplish and what cannot be compromised. Every organization has limitations that dictate the boundaries and the capacity to change. This means that trying to do everything all at once or establishing unrealistic improvement goals for a root cause may well put you in the road to disaster. Another important point is that change cannot compromise fundamental organization aspects. Changing something on a process that disrupts a critical deliverable or increases the risk of non-compliance is definitively something you cannot do. So, get real and do what is possible without destroying what you’re trying to improve.     There you go, that’s the secret sauce behind having a structured approach to problem solving. You’ll discover that there are a lot of tools to help you putting the Lean Strategy in place and guide trough the four stages of Lean Problem solving. But if you lose sight of these 5 critical aspects, then it’s going to be very difficult to make it happen.     At [Processware](https://www.processwaregroup.com/), we’re Lean Thinkers by heart and we truly believe in this secret sauce. All we do, we do focusing on simplicity, effectiveness and doing more with less. We bring this mindset to every little thing we do, from product engineering to solution design, from talent nurturing to project follow up and communication. And, combined with some finely crafted artifacts to help us along the way, that’s how we’ve delivered solutions for complex problems to all our customers. Share - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) Topics [Problem solving](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/problem-solving) [Achieving results](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/achieving-results) [Strategy](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/strategy) COMMENTS - 0 Comments [Previous ](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/lean-philosophy-respect-for-people-a-leadership-concept-or-behavior-) [Next ](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/improving-team-effectiveness-the-dos-and-donts) ### Follow Us We're waiting for you on LinkedIn [ Connect with our LinkedIn ](https://www.linkedin.com/company/processware) ### Sign up for our newsletter ### Recent Posts ### Posts by Topic - [Digital transformation (10)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/digital-transformation) - [IoT (10)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/iot) - [Change management (7)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/change-management) - [Process Optimization (6)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/process-optimization) - [Industry 4.0 (5)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/industry-4-0) - [Digital Maturity (4)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/digital-maturity) - [Risk mitigation (4)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/risk-mitigation) - [Achieving results (3)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/achieving-results) - [Operations management (3)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operations-management) - [Problem solving (3)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/problem-solving) - [Strategy (3)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/strategy) - [Continuous improvement (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/continuous-improvement) - [Digital strategy (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/digital-strategy) - [Dynamic MRP (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/dynamic-mrp) - [Leadership (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/leadership) - [Lean Manufacturing (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/lean-manufacturing) - [Mobile Apps (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/mobile-apps) - [Mobile Development (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/mobile-development) - [Mobile Platforms (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/mobile-platforms) - [Operation efficiency (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operation-efficiency) - [Organization sustainability (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/organization-sustainability) - [Process automation (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/process-automation) - [Process orchestration (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/process-orchestration) - [Real time analytics (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/real-time-analytics) - [Real time optimization (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/real-time-optimization) - [Sustainability (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/sustainability) - [Traceability (2)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/traceability) - [24x7 Support (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/24x7-support) - [5 Whys (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/5-whys) - [Agile Model (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/agile-model) - [Airline Catering (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/airline-catering) - [Automated Warehouses (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/automated-warehouses) - [Automated Warehousing (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/automated-warehousing) - [Automated process control (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/automated-process-control) - [Automation (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/automation) - [Balsamic (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/balsamic) - [Big data (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/big-data) - [Business Agility (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/business-agility) - [Business Models (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/business-models) - [Capturing value (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/capturing-value) - [Cause & Effect Process (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/cause-effect-process) - [Collective ambition (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/collective-ambition) - [Complex operation management (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/complex-operation-management) - [Compliance management (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/compliance-management) - [Connectivity (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/connectivity) - [Corporate Sustainability (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/corporate-sustainability) - [Customer Experience (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/customer-experience) - [Delivery quality (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/delivery-quality) - [Demand management (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/demand-management) - [Divide and Conquer (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/divide-and-conquer) - [Dynamic operations control (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/dynamic-operations-control) - [Dynamic process control (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/dynamic-process-control) - [ERP Integration (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/erp-integration) - [ERP implementation (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/erp-implementation) - [Effectivity (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/effectivity) - [Flexibility (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/flexibility) - [Gemba (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/gemba) - [Global Supply Chain Planning (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/global-supply-chain-planning) - [Global orchestration (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/global-orchestration) - [Global strategy (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/global-strategy) - [IIoT (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/iiot) - [IT Quality assurance (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/it-quality-assurance) - [IT Strategy (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/it-strategy) - [Improve quality (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/improve-quality) - [Inbound Control (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/inbound-control) - [Inducing excellence (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/inducing-excellence) - [Integration (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/integration) - [Interoperability (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/interoperability) - [Kaizen (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/kaizen) - [Knowledge management (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/knowledge-management) - [Leadership Skills (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/leadership-skills) - [Lean (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/lean) - [Lean Leadership (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/lean-leadership) - [Lean Philosophy (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/lean-philosophy) - [Logistics Automation (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/logistics-automation) - [Manufacturing efficiency (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/manufacturing-efficiency) - [Microservices (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/microservices) - [Mission Critical Support (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/mission-critical-support) - [Mobile (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/mobile) - [Monolithic applications (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/monolithic-applications) - [Operation management (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operation-management) - [Operation optimization (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operation-optimization) - [Operation orchestration (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operation-orchestration) - [Operational Efficiency (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operational-efficiency) - [Operational Processes (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operational-processes) - [Operational solution deployment (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operational-solution-deployment) - [Operational solutions (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/operational-solutions) - [Organization efficiency and effictiveness (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/organization-efficiency-and-effictiveness) - [People effectiveness (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/people-effectiveness) - [People efficiency (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/people-efficiency) - [Performance improvement (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/performance-improvement) - [Predictive forecasting (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/predictive-forecasting) - [Predictive operations planning (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/predictive-operations-planning) - [Prevent failure (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/prevent-failure) - [Process design (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/process-design) - [Process management; (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/process-management) - [Promoting change (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/promoting-change) - [Prototyping (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/prototyping) - [Quality (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/quality) - [Quality assurance (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/quality-assurance) - [Real time IT platform (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/real-time-it-platform) - [Real time operations (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/real-time-operations) - [Real time visibility (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/real-time-visibility) - [Redundancy (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/redundancy) - [Requirement Satisfaction (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/requirement-satisfaction) - [Root Cause Analysis - RCA (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/root-cause-analysis-rca) - [Six Sigma (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/six-sigma) - [Software (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/software) - [Software Architecture (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/software-architecture) - [Software Development (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/software-development) - [Solution design (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/solution-design) - [Talent factory (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/talent-factory) - [Talent nurturing (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/talent-nurturing) - [Team effectiveness (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/team-effectiveness) - [Teamwork (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/teamwork) - [Technical workshops (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/technical-workshops) - [Test Bench (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/test-bench) - [Toyota Way (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/toyota-way) - [Transport planning (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/transport-planning) - [Troubleshooting (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/troubleshooting) - [Value delivery (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/value-delivery) - [Xamarin (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/xamarin) - [technological innovation (1)](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/topic/technological-innovation) [see all](https://www.processwaregroup.com/en/blog/5-things-you-need-to-do-to-solve-problems-effectively#) Contact us Contact us to either receive a budget or clarify any question or doubt that you may have regarding our products and solutions. We will be glad to assist you. If you want to report a complaint, please send an e-mail to complaint[at]processwaregroup.com ©2026 Processware. All rights reserved. +351 21 454 45 28 +55 12 3206 5301 Europe South America