Problems that are Too Rich

DEFINITION

Examples

Finding a vision for the company

Deciding on the look and feel of a web page

Crafting an architectural design that captures the culture of the company

Designing a marketing campaign

[more detail]

This category of problem is the most difficult to describe, and it was the last to appear in our research. This type of problem is almost the exact opposite of Problems that are Puzzles. There are no objective criteria; the final choice will ultimately be subjective and intuitive. There are no straightforward skills; finding the solution requires courage and artistry more than expertise. And the choice made will not necessarily be compellingly obvious, even to the relevant observers.

The distinctive feature of this problem class is that there are a myriad of potential solutions. The range of choices — and the lack of clear criteria for the choice — makes this type of problem intimidating, even paralyzing. Sometimes we are even unable to see or admit to the problem.

CHALLENGES

Listen to your audience, but not too hard

The problem requires an eye to current reality as well as the novel potential, that is, there is often an audience that must believe it, work for it, invest in it, implement it, or buy it. While that audience may decide a more successful solution from a less successful one by their behavior, the audience is usually of little value in deciding the solution in the first place. In fact, they are sometimes a serious distraction. The proper vision for a company is not a marketing problem, even though inputs from customers can be useful. Building a graphic interface or designing a product may benefit from user input, but the artistry and imagination of the designer needs to reach beyond that data.

OUTCOMES

"I don't know much about art, but I know what I like"

Ideally we would have a surprising but satisfying statement. It would express something essential about the current situation, but it would also reach ahead and define something lasting.

The critical audiences would be pleased enough to support it (through employment, investment, purchase or whatever).