In every company, there are problems. But have you also been in a situation where you looked back and thought: “Why didn’t I know this problem was so serious?” You knew about it, but you ignored it. Or have you been in a situation where someone else asked you: “Why didn’t you take this problem seriously?”.
No matter how hard we try, we make mistakes when looking at how serious problems are. Certainly, if there are so many, we cannot solve them all. But, in my opinion, there are ways to reduce this risk.
Knowing someone
When you work with someone, you get to know them. You know what they do, why they do it. Certain things they do, might not be perfect. But you can work around it. Since you understand why it happens, it is easier to accept.
Or you have a colleague that you see working hard. Or you see that person trying to handle a difficult situation. Or you know that person has personal problems. Because of that, you become more flexible. You accept when something goes wrong because you understand the situation.
But what is acceptable for you, what you can handle as a person, doesn’t say something about the people around you. Someone else might find that behavior unacceptable. Or difficult to work with. Then you should be careful to ask a person to accept the situation. Take a step back, forget what you know and then ask yourself: “Is this situation acceptable?” Would an outsider, that doesn’t know that person also say: “That is not that big of a problem.”?
A solution in the future
In my career, I have heard many times the problem will be solved in the future. Either by hiring a new person, purchasing a tool, or introducing a new way of working. There are persons that by some magic know how to solve problems in any situation. But in general, the rule applies: Garbage in, garbage out. If you are not able to give a person the right information, set up a new tool correctly, or train and coach people in a new way of working, the result will not be a good one.
Good people still need the right information, the right tools, and people that have time to help them solve the company’s problems. Because there is almost no problem, that can be solved by 1 person.
Same for tools. When it comes to tools, I have learned that if you do not know how to do it properly without a tool, you cannot do it properly with a tool. Because you won’t be able to choose the right tool, set it up the right way, put the right information in it, and create the right process to use the tool.
A new way of working, often combined with reorganizations, is also often seen as a magic wand. For me a good sign, if this is going to work, is the speed of introduction, the evaluation method, the number of people involved, and the number of functions and departments involved. You need time and people to see the new process from any angle, try it out, and evaluate it.
Transferring problems
The last thing you must be careful of is transferring the problem to someone else. Very often this is your manager or your employee. It is not the transfer that is bad. You might not be able to handle every problem. It is the fact that you keep transferring, even when you get signals the problem isn’t solved.
When you transfer a problem, you do not transfer the responsibility. When your manager or your employee doesn’t solve the problem and you did nothing, you are still responsible. It really doens’t matter who you transfer the problem to.
This might sound hard, but it is important. You are often the only other person, or at least one of a very small group, that is aware of the problem. You might be the only one that knows who is working on the problem. If the problem isn’t handled correctly, you might be the only one or one of a very small group that can notice. If you do not feel that responsibility, then who will? And even in a big group: are you sure there is someone who will keep the responsibility for the problem?
In general: don’t think you know everything
When it comes to problems keep your eyes and ears open. Ask for a second opinion from an outsider. Or ask the opinion of someone that knows the situation very well. There are many examples of problems where looking back a person said: “I should have known. The signs were there. I just ignored them”. Try to avoid being that person.