Problem Solving and Decision Making Seminar- by Shipcon
“If he had one hour to save the world he would spend fifty-five minutes defining the problem and only five minutes finding the solution.”
Everyone experiences problems from time to time. Some of our problems are big and complicated, while others may be more easily solved. There is no shortage of challenges and issues that can arise on the job. Whether in an office or on a construction site, experiencing difficulties with the tasks at hand or with co-workers, the workplace presents ongoing challenges on a daily basis. Whether these problems are large or small, they need to be dealt with constructively and fairly.
Having the necessary skills to identify solutions to problems is one of the skills that employers look for in their employees.
Problem solving and critical thinking refers to the ability to use knowledge, facts and data effectively to solve problems.
This does not mean you have to have immediate answers, it means you have to be able to think on your feet, assess problems and find solutions. The ability to develop a well thought out solution within a reasonable time frame, however, is a skill that employers value highly.
Ideal employees can think critically and creatively, share thoughts and opinions, use good judgement and make decisions.
Problem Solving and Decision Making is the process of choosing what to do by considering the possible consequences of different choices.
Reasoning skills are utilized in the decision-making process and refer to specific cognitive abilities, some of which include assessing probability and thinking systematically and abstractly.
The basic process that decision-makers use when confronted with a decision involves:
- Listing relevant choices
- Identifying potential consequences of each choice
- Assessing the likelihood of each consequence actually occurring
- Determining the importance of these consequences, and
- combining all this information to decide which choice is the most appealing.
Whether you are dealing with processes such as crisis management, turnaround management, change management or continual improvement, each will have a major component of success that derives from effective problem solving.
