Taking ownership of solving complex problems

Taking ownership of a complex problem space, thinking more broadly about how you might solve it, can get you there faster.

When you have a complex problem to solve a starting point might be a referral to an established specialist. You’ll get some advice and recommendations from here but the specialist might only advise in their field of professional expertise, and it can be a narrow approach. Particularly when the problem space is relatively new and not fully understood.

You need to ask how else might we solve this? Particularly if you want to speed things up or get a more comprehensive long term solution.

Ask yourself is this addressing the root cause? Do we even have enough information on what factors might be contributing to the situation? Who else might I consult?

Also, what solutions from other domains or disciplines on similar problems could hypothetically work in this situation? Is it worth trialling one in a controlled manner?

Is there potential for a synergistic impact by combining solutions and can I find any relevant examples?

It’s a risk to effectively outsource the solution to a complex problem that isn’t fully understood to a single domain specialist, however established a path that is. Take ownership of the problem and explore options.