Four Stages of Problem Solving - Essay Example

The paper "Four Stages of Problem Solving" is an outstanding example of a business essay.The four stages of problems solving are indeed realistic since they can be involved and applied in a variety of situations. While their broad approach may make them ambiguous and even difficult to understand, it is their very broad nature itself which gives them greater applicability in different situations. To better understand how the stages of problem-solving can be applied in the real world, it would be best to examine them individually.

The first stage of the problem-solving methodology discussed by Kolb et. al. (2007) is the stage where the overall situation is fully analyzed and understood. This begins with looking at the facts of the matter as concrete factors along with gut feelings and past experiences as guides. It also helps to break down the problem into parts as in certain parts of the problem may have a higher priority for the organization than others. A situation analysis may be represented as a SWOT analysis or a PESTEL analysis both of which are widely accepted means of determining the situation of a company as well as giving it some guidance for future actions.

The second step is where the problem is examined directly and solutions may be presented on how to solve the given problem depending on the restraints or positional variables that come from the first step. The problem needs to be approached from several different angles and brainstorming sessions in this phase of the problem-solving process may lead to invaluable discoveries on how the problem could be solved. Further, analyzing the problem could also lead to the discovery of other issues that might put the person conducting the analysis back to step one.

However, if the problem is fully analyzed, several possible solutions might jump to the person who spends a bit of time thinking about it. The solutions themselves are analyzed in the third stage under the title, solution analysis. A problem may have a perfectly valid solution but it may be an impossible solution given the constraints legal, ethical, technological or resource-based constraints an organization may have to deal with. Further, the person making the analysis would also have the opportunity to review the solutions which seem impossible and also evaluate the cost/benefits of the possible solutions.

Most importantly, the solution can be given parameters against which the success of the problem solution can be judged. This judgment comes from the implementation state in which one or a combination of the solutions created in the third state as put into place and after a fixed timeframe, the problem can be evaluated to see if it has met the solution criteria as well as to see if the solution itself created any unforeseen problems. In this manner, the overall system of problem-solving through the use of the four stages gives a very positive approach to handling problems that an organization may be faced with.