One of the problem analysis exercises that I run on my Creative Leadership workshops is called Why, Why?  You state the problem or challenge and then ask the group why.  You write down their answers and for each one you ask why.  You keep asking why – just like a little child.  This carries on and in the process you gradually reach deeper and deeper into the underlying issues.  The object of the exercise is not to solve the problem but to unpack it and to reach a fuller understanding of the causes.  You then prioritise the causes and brainstorm to find solutions for the most pressing.

At work we tend to ask one or two questions and then plunge into ideas and discussion.  But by asking more questions, and more basic even childish questions, we can discover insights that challenge our assumptions and allow us to reach deeper issues and better solutions – just as Edwin Land did.

Paul Sloane

Most managers ask these kinds of questions:

o Why are sales down?
o What is holding up production?
o What can we do about customer complaints?
o What can I do about difficult staff?
o What is wrong with the current process?
o Where can we speed things up?
o How can we stop all these problems?

These are good questions and the problems have to be addressed. However, by focussing our attention on the negative we miss the innovation opportunities presented by the positive. We should also spend some time asking questions like these:

o What are our key strengths?
o What do customers like about us?
o What is going well?
o What unexpectedly good things have happened here recently?
o What new customers have we won?
o In what ways have we delighted customers?
o What is it that only we can do?

By focussing on our strengths and capabilities we can see positive opportunities. If we concentrate on fixing the current model then we can easily miss new possibilities. All our energies are going into alleviating problems and weaknesses – this denies us the chance to create new initiatives.

It is the same with people. When we are toddlers everyone praises us and tells us how wonderful all the things we do are. Then as we go through the school process things change and the emphasis switches, the errors in our work are pointed out and teachers tell us all the things we could better. This is well meant but the impact on fragile egos can be severe.

When we get to work we are at first acutely aware of our lack of experience and authority. At our annual appraisal we are told the things we need to focus on to improve. We plan training and coaching to improve our weak areas. Our strengths are taken for granted and development focuses on our weaknesses in order to make us ‘more rounded’.

In business we have to figure out what the true assets of the business are – what are our core strengths and abilities? What can we excel at? If we are great at marketing but lousy at administration then we should probably stop spending time and energy trying to get our administrative systems fixed. Outsource it to someone who is good at that and let’s concentrate on playing the game we are good at – marketing.

In addition to fixing what is wrong we should spend time examining what is right. Look for success stories, talk to delighted customers, ask them what makes us better than the others and then build on that. Find the right partners to compensate the areas where we are ordinary or weak and free up time to find creative new ways to exploit our strengths. We need to find unexpected and unusual things that we do really well because they can give us the competitive advantage we need. Let’s focus on what our organisation is really good at and build our success on that.

Paul Sloane

The CEO of Black and Decker once said, ‘People don’t go into a DIY store because they need one of our drills. They go because they need a hole in the wall.’ Wonderbra in their internal communications to staff say this, ‘We do not sell underwear. We do not sell lingerie. What we sell is self-confidence for women.’ Harley Davidson does not sell motorbikes. It sells the concept of freedom to middle-aged men.

What is it that your business really sells? What is the true value that customers get from your products or services? When you know the answers to these questions you can start to conceive new ways to provide that value. It is the starting point for real innovation.

Many companies make the mistake of defining what they do in terms of their products or services rather than by the benefit that the client derives from those. Here are some examples

• Companies that thought they were in the horse-drawn carriage business but were really in transportation were wiped out by automobiles.

• Companies that thought they were in the ice supply business but were really in food and drink storage were eliminated by refrigerators.

• Companies that made slide rules failed to realise they were in the technical calculation business and were made obsolete by graphics calculators.

• Companies that thought they were in the CD business but were really in music were replaced by digital downloads.

• Companies that thought they were in the typewriter business but were really in communications were put out of business by the word processor.

What business are you in? Why do your customers buy the goods or services you provide? There are several ways to find out:

1. Ask your customers.
2. Ask people who consider your product but do not buy it.
3. Observe your customers and see how they use your product.

And of course the answer may well be different for different customers. Some people choose a certain marque of car to make them look good, others to feel safe and others to enjoy the ride. Unless you know exactly why prospective customers will buy your product you are unable to properly market or sell. Worse still you will be blind to the alternatives, the opportunities and the threats which exist.

Change how you define your business from your product to your product’s benefits for the customer. So instead of saying, ‘We make typewriters,’ say, ‘We help people communicate effectively.’ Instead of saying, ‘We are an innovation management consultancy,’ say, ‘We help clients develop new sources of revenue and profit.’

One definition of innovation in business is an action that extends customer value. So if we want to innovate we need to understand what it is that the customer really values. Then we can set our minds to the task of how to extend that value. Start every week by asking these questions:

• What business are we in?
• What do customers really value?
• In what other ways could that value be delivered?

These questions are always worth asking. The insights they lead to can be the source of potent innovation in your products and services.

Paul Sloane