"When a complex problem in your organization comes up, it's natural to want to start talking about solutions. To fix it, fast. Slow down though, says Corey Phelps, who's the dean of Penn State's College of Business. He says even smart, experienced leaders rush in, with all their cognitive biases, to their detriment. He hopes you'll be more methodical than that; and in the conversation you're about to hear, he describes a method that brings structure and rigor to problem solving."
"And especially I would say it happens in organizations because in organizations when you layer on these time pressures and you layer on these concerns about efficiency and productivity, it creates enormous, I would say incentive to say "I don't have time to carefully define and analyze the problem. I got to get a solution. I got to implement it as quick as possible.""
Leaders frequently jump to solutions without fully defining problems, driven by evolved cognitive shortcuts and organizational pressures. Time constraints and emphasis on efficiency push teams toward quick fixes rather than rigorous diagnosis. Premature solutions increase the risk of addressing symptoms instead of root causes and reduce the effectiveness of implementation. A methodical approach that begins with careful problem definition, structured analysis, and deliberate deliberation counters these biases and improves outcomes. Applying rigorous frameworks and slowing down enables clearer understanding, better-aligned solutions, and more successful execution across complex organizational challenges.
Read at Harvard Business Review
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