Managing Organizational Change Part 2: Identifying the Correct Type of Problem
With nothing as ubiquitous as change in our society and world, this blog is the second in our four-part series on effectively identifying and managing change in your organization.
The last blog post talked about the critical importance of problem identification for organizational change and of continually scanning your environment to identify problems that may have a negative impact on your organization.
Once you effectively identify the problem – the real problem, you need to categorize the type of problem you have. Leadership author and expert Ronald Heifetz identifies two types of problems: technical and adaptive. He argues that the appropriate approach to solving each type of problem differs significantly. As such, appropriately identifying the type of problem becomes a precursor to finding and implementing the correct solution.
Technical problems have a clear definition and a clear solution. You already know how to solve them and can do so using your authority. Make a decision and implement it. For example, if you have an outdated database that no longer serves your organization’s needs, research options and buy a new one. You can’t afford a new database? Find a funder who will underwrite the costs, increase your earned income, or find cost savings elsewhere. Simple. Problem solved. Thankfully, most day-to-day problems that you encounter in your organization fall under the category of technical problems.
Adaptive problems, on the other hand, have no clear definition or solution and require learning, often across sectors. That learning comes both through books and more formal means and by talking to the people impacted or experts in other related fields. Because implementing one solution often causes more problems or uncovers more challenges, we call these compound or wicked problems.
For example, the affordable housing problem that has gripped the Quad Cities community and much of the nation qualifies as an adaptive problem. Certainly, we can “build more affordable homes,” but that does not fully address the problems inherent in housing insecurity. That takes a much more creative and cross sector approach that may include mental health care, employment training, basic life and budgeting skills, affordable child care, reliable transportation, and access to quality, affordable housing. I have surely missed others that those of you with expertise in this field can clearly identify and articulate. Most of the human service issues facing our nation qualify as adaptive issues as do many other social and organizational ills.
Too often when faced with adaptive problems, organizations shake their head and turn away because solving them is hard. The fixes often require systemic change, both throughout the organization and beyond it. So, we go for the quick fix and apply a technical solution to an adaptive problem, such as building more affordable housing. Guess what, those don’t work in the long run. They mimic putting a band-aid on an amputated limb.
As Heifetz writes in his book, Leadership without Easy Answers (which I highly recommend!):
“We should be calling for leadership that challenges us to face problems for which there are no simple, painless solutions…. Making progress on these problems demands not just someone to provide the answers from on high but changes in our attitudes, behaviors, and values.” (p. 2)
Once we identify the problems facing our organization, we move to the second step – generating solutions – which we will cover in the next blog post. But, without a clearly articulated and correct analysis of the problem – and the type of problem, the solution will certainly fail because it will not address the true, root problem.
