Rethinking Complexity
There is so much opportunity nowadays to drive novel innovative approaches to complex problems. Take for instance 17 year old ‘Jack Andraka’ fuelled with vast amounts of passion, who utilised Google, YouTube and Wikipedia to develop a $5 test to detect Pancreatic Cancer (before it becomes detrimental) or on the other end of the scale Stanford Professor ‘Manu Prakash’ a social entrepreneur, who utilised the Japanese art of paper folding (Origami) to develop a 50c Microscope — as you delve into this trend you will note that they are just a few of the many who are looking at problems under a different light.
Sound knowledge across various fields (and more so in specialised areas) is extremely important and crucial in terms of allowing us to effectively evaluate what we wish to develop and bring to market. However, where things fall by the way-side is when we rely entirely on the theoretical constructs to solve problems, as it sometimes becomes an overhanging burden, that makes us miss things that are in plain sight. It can be duly noted that as we acquire more and more knowledge, we at times tend over-complex even the simplest of things.
So how do we balance this more effectively? My suggestion… flip the traditional approach, reconstruct the boundaries for the problem you wish to solve, and restart!
Review what the market has done in the past and where it is going in the future, and take this as a baseline strategy, as to how things would organically come together. Then, flip the approach for your dual strategy — don’t traverse the normal path/model, however try go back to the root of what exactly you are solving for, and then restart your approach from a lay perspective. If you could do this better, make it more beneficial, and ensure focused outcomes are met and possibly exceeded, how and what needs to be done?
Commence researching alternate methods — get out of your comfort zone, utilise an innovative think-tank by bringing in subject matter experts from varied disciplines and industry (outside of your own), as their extensive knowledge and skill-sets will allow you to view / tackle the problem from different angles. All whilst, in the back of your mind, being cognisant of the cost implications — you are always aiming for the low-cost solution with significant value to your buyer group.
Implementing this type of strategic framework not only broadens the avenues for rapid resolution, but it facilitates a new wave of thinking and solving for the future.
This is a repost from my original article published on LinkedIn: Rethinking Complexity (June 13, 2014)
