English Quality Management

What is Problem Solving? Steps, Process, and Approach.

problem solving
Written by Technical Team

Problem solving is a fundamental life skill that is necessary for daily living at home, school, and work. Every day, we fix issues or problems without actually giving them any thought. For instance, let’s say you need to go to the store and it is raining. How do you behave? There are numerous options available. Walk while holding your umbrella. You can drive or take the bus if you don’t want to get wet. Choosing to go to the store another day or calling a buddy for a ride are both options. There is no one right way to handle this problem, and various individuals will approach it in various ways.

The process of detecting a problem, coming up with potential solutions, and taking the right action is known as problem-solving.

Why is fixing problems crucial? In addition to empowering, you in your personal life, strong problem-solving abilities are essential in the workplace. Employers frequently cite everyday issue-solving as essential to the success of their organizations in the current, rapidly changing global economy. Employees can utilize problem-solving to come up with useful and original solutions as well as to demonstrate their independence and initiative to employers.

Accurately identifying your Problem for Problem Solving:

If you’re considering what constitutes problem-solving and how critical it is to establish the nature of the problem. The relevance of the problem definition and some of the most effective approaches to its implementation will next be discussed. Knowing the true reason and the source of the problem is a requirement for any problem you try to solve.

This is due to the simplicity of identifying and resolving lesser issues. However, it is crucial to solving the issue or problem at the root while dealing with problems at the level of many companies. This is due to the fact that if the problem is not fully understood, it will never be completely resolved.

And this will continue to harm the business in a number of ways. The initiative for any of the problem identification techniques can be taken using several instruments. The 5 Ws, root cause analysis, and appreciation are a few of the instruments. It’s also crucial that you carefully analyze each of them from various angles.

This is due to the fact that the problem’s root cause—an exorbitant workload or a lack of training—might not always be apparent, which could have disastrous consequences.

Understanding how complicated the Problem is:

You must be aware that each problem will differ in its breadth and in the amount of time it will take to solve it as you go about doing so. This is due to the fact that every problem’s complexity varies. There are several tools and techniques available to determine the problem’s complexity. Following is a list of some of them:

  • Cause & Effect Diagram
  • Pareto Chart
  • Swim Lane Chart
  • Affinity Diagram
  • Tree Diagram
  • Relationship Diagram
  • Scatter Diagram
  • Histogram
  • Control Charts
  • Bottleneck Method
  • 8D Problem Solving Technique
  • PDCA Approach
  • A3 Problem-Solving Technique
  • 5Why Analysis
7 Quality Control Tools for Problem Solving

You can use any of these tools or in combination and techniques to determine the problem’s complexity after identifying the many contributing aspects. There are instances when what appears to be one large problem is actually a number of lesser ones.

This is when the drill-down method can really come in handy. It will divide the issue into more manageable chunks with ease and effectiveness.

8-Step Problem Solving Process

 Step 1: Define the Problem

  • What’s the Problem?
  • How did you find the Problem?
  • How long has the problem existed and when did it first discovered?
  • Is there enough information at hand to contain the problem and stop it from moving on to the following stage of the process? If so, solve the problem.

Step 2: Clarify the Problem

  • What information is available or required to adequately define or comprehend the issue?
  • Is solving the problem right now of the utmost importance?
  • Are there any further resources needed to define the problem? If so, inform your leader of the problem so they can find the appropriate resources and put together a team.
  • Think about a lean event (Do-it, Burst, Quality Circle, CI Project).
  • Make sure the problem is resolved and doesn’t go on to the following step in the process.

Step 3: Define the Goals

  • What is your ultimate objective or ideal situation?
  • What would you achieve if you solve this problem?
  • What time frame is ideal for resolving this problem?

Step 4: Identify the Root Cause of the Problem

  • Determine any potential root causes of the problem.
  • Sort potential problems cause by importance.
  • What details or evidence supports the root cause?

Step 5: Develop Action Plan

  • Make a list of the steps that must be taken to treat the problem’s fundamental cause and stop it from spreading to other people.
  • Give each activity a time limit and an owner.
  • Status procedures to guarantee fulfillment

Step 6: Execute Action Plan

  • Implement a plan of action to address the underlying issue.
  • Verify the completion of the action.

Step 7: Evaluate the Results

  • Data gathering and observation
  • Have you achieved the objectives you set in stage 3? Repeat the 8-Step Process as necessary.
  • Were there any unanticipated effects?
  • Remove previously added activities that were added to contain the issue if it is fixed.

Step 8: Continuously Improve

  • Find more chances to put the answer into action.
  • Make sure the issue won’t recur and share the lessons learned.
  • Repeat the 8-Step Problem Solving Process as necessary to generate additional improvements.

Conclusion:

Many people are curious as to what problem-solving involves because of the complexity that is growing inside various companies. If you’re unsure of what problem-solving involves, this article will provide you with all the information you need to know.

This is due to the fact that it will not only inform you of some of the best methods for resolving various problems, but also the advice, resources, and strategies we have provided can be quite beneficial to anyone who needs to cope with a challenging problem.

You can further enhance your knowledge and skill in problem-solving tools and techniques by getting enrolled in Quality HUB India’s online learning portal at courses.qualityhubindia.com

Courses on Problem Solving from ‘Quality HUB India’:

  1. Problem Solving Tools and RCA (Hindi)
  2. Problem Solving Tools and RCA (English)
  3. Problem Solving Techniques (8D, PDCA & A3) Hindi
  4. Problem Solving Techniques (8D, PDCA & A3) English
  5. Root Cause Analysis & CAPA (Hindi)
  6. Root Cause Analysis & CAPA (English)

Other Relevant Courses from ‘Quality HUB India’:

  1. Certified Supplier Quality Professional (CSQP)
  2. Certified Operational Excellence Manager
  3. Certified Quality Inspector
  4. Certified lean Expert Gold-Level 3
  5. Certified Minitab Expert
  6. Measurement System Analysis (MSA) -Hindi Version
  7. MSA + SPC (Hindi Version)
  8. MSA + SPC (English Version)
  9. Statistical Process Control (SPC) – Hindi Version
  10. Statistical Process Control (SPC) – English Version
  11. Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) – Hindi Version
  12. Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) – English Version
  13. APQP + PPAP (Hindi Version)
  14. APQP + PPAP (English Version)
  15. Core Tools Complete Package (APQP+PPAP+MSA+SPC+FMEA)- Hindi Version
  16. Core Tools Complete Package (APQP+PPAP+MSA+SPC+FMEA)- English Version

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