practical problem solving tips
TRANSCRIPT
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Introduction
This slide set is designed to help us become more effective in problem analysis and problem solving
It will: Look at some common approaches
Present some interesting challenges to overcome
Provide pragmatic, useable tips and techniques to help us refresh and improve our problem analysis and problem solving skills
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Answer
A discrepancy between
what is and what should be
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Types of problem solving
Fire fighting
Fishbone diagrams
Mind mapping
Analytical
Creative
Brainstorming
Teamwork
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Some benefits
The more often we follow a
consistent approach
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
The 4 Ps of problem solving
Patience
Practice
Persistence
Perseverance
Plus a good dose of
Common Sense
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Current situation?
Problems often take too long to identify and
solve?
We jump straight in with a solution without
assessing the problem properly?
Too much time spent fire-fighting?
Inconsistent approach?
No formal and documented approach/process?
Go for the complex solution and ignore the
obvious one?
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
If only we KNEW what we KNOW
88% of organisational knowledge is currently not
searchable or retrievable
Up to 20% of our time is spent finding answers
to problems that have already been solved
As much as 12% of our time is spent looking for
sources of information
- Delphi Group
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
The SIX key questions
What?
Where?
When?
How?
Why?
Who?
“I keep six honest serving men. They taught me all I know: Their names are What and Why and When and How and Where and Who.” Rudyard Kipling (The ‘Just So’ stories)
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Known barriers to effective decision-making
Indecision
Stalling
Overreacting
Vacillating
Half measures
Making assumptions
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Problem solving on the ‘phone
Simple guidelines
Requires a well-structured approach
Talk to customers in business language
Don’t expect them to be an ‘expert’ in IT
Remember they are an expert in their field
Ensure you understand their issue
Ask questions to confirm your understanding
Re-state the ‘problem’ for clarification
Document what they are saying
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Problem solving on the ‘phone
Simple guidelines
NEVER make assumptions
Be empathic
Think before you speak - customer perception
Advise the customer YOU cannot immediately solve their problem - if this is true
Ensure the customer feels confident that the team will look after their interests and keep them informed
Be professional at all times (not matter what the provocation!)
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Influences on group decisions
Peer pressure: Members are reluctant to go against the majority viewpoint
Critical reasoning stifled, leading to wrong decisions being
made - group think
Successful groups are over confident and so take riskier decisions
Majority view: Groups make more extreme decisions than each
individual's decisions
Group polarisation
Pulling your weight: Individuals put in less effort into achieving decisions than
other members - social loafing
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Find the best solution for the situation
Don't view any alternative as the ‘perfect solution’.
If there were such a thing, there probably wouldn't be a
problem in the first place.
Suspend judgment and criticism when first collecting
ideas
Involve a trusted colleague
Is there something you missed?
Do they see a problem with your approach /solution?
Compromise
Consider compromise when you have a full grasp of the problem
and your alternatives
Competing solutions may yield a hybrid solution.
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Knowing when to escalate is essential
Many IT specialists mistakenly believe that escalating a problem is an admission of incompetence, so they violate established escalation guidelines.
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Business impact assignment
You need an agreed business impact, urgency
and priority assignment approach that ensures
business critical issues are handled first
Ensure you have a clear incident process and
procedure in place. This will ensure a structured
approach is followed when you are under
pressure
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Keep customers informed It’s imperative that the correct people are kept
informed Customers experience major frustration when they
have to wait for a status update
Managing customer expectation is the key to success
Customers appreciate knowing what’s been done, the current status of their problem and when to expect a resolution
Don’t forget about your own management team – they won’t like to be embarrassed
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Proactive problem analysis & trending
“We never seem to make the time to be proactive, but always have the time to be reactive”
Dr Don Page
“The Too Busy Syndrome”
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Proactive problem analysis & trending
Identify and resolve problems before new Incidents
occur
Identify potential problems quicker
Verify implemented improvements have been
successful:
• Incidents are being solved faster
• The same incidents and problems are not
re-occurring
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Questions to drive analysis
Why is it necessary?
When should it be done (e.g. now, after hours, weekly)?
Where is the information for analysis located?
Who should do it?
What should be done?
How should it be done?
How should it be documented?
Who should we inform and when?
How should we inform others?
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Analysis should identify/highlight
Request types having the biggest business impact
Request types occurring the most often (and who
experiences them most)
Where requests are occurring
When requests are occurring
Who/what is experiencing the most requests
Request types taking up staff time the most
Request types taking the longest time to turn around
If service improvements have been successful
Customer training needs
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Trending focuses Service affected
Reported symptom
Affect configuration item(s) (Optional)
Identified root cause
Resolution applied
Service agreement used (Optional)
Actual individual time spent
Elapsed time spent
Location
Business impact
Cost/revenue impact (Optional)
Customer satisfaction
Ensure all incidents
are classified with
A ROOT CAUSE and
RESOLUTION code
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Proactive perception analysis
Proactive perception analysis should primarily
focus on:
Requests not meeting agreed targets
Re-scheduled requests
Poor customer satisfaction
Incidents being ‘bounced’ around
Re-opened requests
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Things we can do to save time in problem solving
Record/document everything
we do
Share knowledge and
communicate better
Provide diagnostic scripts,
checklists and staff skills
matrix
Have accurate configuration
management database
(CMDB)
Improved testing and release
process
Enter detailed classification
into incident records
Provide up-to-date processes
and procedures
Perform regular analysis and
link to KPIs
Spend more time planning
and evaluating risks
Develop knowledge base with
access to known errors,
solutions and workarounds
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Top tip: ask "Why?" five times Ask "Why" a problem is occurring - and then ask "Why" four more
times. For example...
1. Why has the machine stopped?
A fuse blew because of an overload
2. Why was there an overload? There wasn't enough lubrication for the bearings
3. Why wasn't there enough lubrication? The pump wasn't pumping enough
4. Why wasn't lubricant being pumped? The pump shaft was vibrating as a result of abrasion
5. Why was there abrasion? There was no filter, allowing chips of material into the pump
Installation of a filter solves this problem
From "What a Great Idea" by Chic Thompson
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
The top 10 common mistakes we make
Making quick assumptions (an assumption is
something that is accepted as true without verification)
Not collecting/having/being given the facts
Being supplied with inaccurate/incomplete information
Not properly evaluating/reproducing the condition
Pressure from customer/business to deliver NOW
Agreeing a time frame without understanding the problem, impact, risks and resources required
Trying to fix things beyond our skillset
Not escalating a request early enough
Not involving the right people
Not keeping the customer/business informed
200 IT staff surveyed
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
Summary
With a well-defined problem analysis and problem solving process in place, you will realise major business benefits:
Repetitive problems solved permanently
Reduction in the number of incidents and problems
Minimised business impact
Shared knowledge
Reduced resolution time
Improved productivity
Confidence in IT improved/maintained
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]
About Marval
Marval offers a
customer-centric
approach to IT service
management (ITSM),
encompassing ITSM
software, consultancy
and education
People
Technology Process
© 2016 Marval Software Limited www.marval.co.uk E:[email protected]