The document discusses problem solving and leadership skills for supervisors. It begins by describing a scenario where employee performance is declining. It then discusses perspectives on why, barriers to effective problem solving, and a 5-step problem solving process. Finally it covers various problem solving tools that can be used, including SWOT analysis, decision trees, and the 6 Thinking Hats method.

2. Scenario More employees are failing their jobs this year compared to last year. Who is to blame?

3. Managers’ Perspective? Employees KNOW NOTHING ! They are both LAZY and STUPID ! What a perfect combination to become an employable graduate! Yeah! Blame it on us!

5. “ Problems call forth our courage and our wisdom; indeed, they create our courage and our wisdom . It is only because of problems that we grow mentally and spiritually.” - M. Scott Peck What is Problem Solving?

7. Barriers to Effective Problem Solving “ He who asks a question may be a fool for five minutes, but he who never asks a question remains a fool forever. ” - Tom Connelly

8. 2. Barriers to Effective Problem Solving

10. “ It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer.” - Albert Einstein Problem Solving Process

11. Creative Problem Solving is not a destination….. It is a journey….

12. 3. Problem Solving Process Accepting the Problem Step 1: What is the Problem? Step 2: What Are the Alternatives? Step 3: What Are the Advantages and/or Disadvantages of Each Alternative? Step 4: What Is the Solution? Step 5: How Well Is the Solution Working?

19. Problem Solving Tools “ Because I'm thinking in a broader way, I feel like I am able to make better decisions.” - Takafumi Horie

20. Same tools that help rocket scientists, Disney, Pixar, gaming, marketing – home of some of the most creative minds in the world – use thinking tools – why wouldn’t you (why didn’t I?) 4. Problem Solving Tools

22. 6 Thinking Hats Edward de Bono “ The six thinking hats is a method for doing one sort of thinking at a time.”

23. 6 Thinking Hats 6 Thinking Hats Creative Positive Objective Feelings Negative Process

31. Sequence Use – Seeking an Idea White Gather available information. Green Explore and generate alternatives. Yellow Assess the benefits and feasibility of each alternative. Black Assess the weaknesses of each alternative. Green Further develop the most promising alternatives and make a choice. Blue Summarize and assess what has been achieved so far. Black Make the final judgment on the chosen alternative. Red Find out the feelings on the outcome.

32. Sequence Use – Reacting to a Presented Idea Red Find out the existing feelings about the idea. Yellow Find out the benefits in the idea. Black Point out the weaknesses, problems and dangers in the idea. Green See if the idea can be modified to strengthen the yellow-hat benefits and to overcome the black-hat problems. White See if available information can help in modifying the idea to make it more acceptable. Green Develop the final suggestion. Black Judge the final suggestion. Red Find out the feeling on the outcome.