8 Steps to Solving “Wicked” Problems

The world is complex and interconnected. When we pull one lever in the system it ripples throughout. Pull the right levers and you can solve some of the most complex problems, pull the wrong one and it can be disastrous.

This is why it is critical to take a systems approach when solving complex, or what Sally Uren, CEO of Forum of the Future , calls “wicked” problems.

Some of the greatest challenges we face today — climate change, extreme ocean stress, global poverty — fall into this category.

Sally Uren, CEO of Forum of the Future guides a systems thinking deep-dive.

I was lucky to attend a two-hour, deep dive “The School of System Change:Growing a Global Community of Change Agents” at Sustainable Brands ’18 Vancouver this week. During the session Uren and her colleague Georgia Rubenstein, Lead System Change Designer U.S., walked us through a systems thinking approach and shared some of their favourite tools. I’ve captured their approach here.

Step 1: Determine if you are dealing with a wicked problem

If your problem meets the following criteria it requires systems thinking to bring about positive change. Wicked problems….

• are difficult to address and are continuously evolving
• aren’t fully understood and no clear criteria for when the problem is ‘solved’
• unique, with no precedent for a known solution
• involve many stakeholders and perspectives, with potentially conflicting views
• have interconnected causes and driver, and are part of a dynamic ecosystem
• aim to make sustained change at a broad scale

Step 2: Understand the end game

Systems thinking seeks to create system change. But what is systems change exactly? It is…

• the emergence of a new pattern of organization or system structure. That pattern being the physical structure, the flows and relationships or the mindsets or paradigms of a system, it is also a pattern that results in new goals of the system.
• a process of change that both recognizes the world is complex and systemic and therefore any change process operates from a systemic perspective. A perspective is a worldview that informs action.
• values free, however many change agents see system change as a way to accelerate sustainability, social and ecological well-being.

Now that you know what you are trying to achieve, pull together the key players.

Step 3: Convene key stakeholders

If we are to solve the world’s most complex problems we can’t do it alone. As you begin to address the challenge convene key stakeholders — any people, groups, or organizations who might affect or be affected by the outcome of your work. Having diverse viewpoints, sensitivities and biases enriches strategy development.

Step 4: Do a check-in

Rather than the typical, formal introduction, go around the room popcorn style and have folks share who they are as well as where they are that day. Excited, exhausted, interested, eager, frustrated. By sharing feelings as well as mental state your team will have a clearer picture of the energy in the room. Once everyone has shared summarize trends for the group.

Step 5: Develop a “How might we …” statement

When you frame a problem in the form of a “How Might We….” it sparks creativity and innovation. During the workshop we developed our own questions and then shared them with other participants but ideally this is done as a group exercise. IDEO, leaders in human-centered design have great resources to walk you through this process. Getting clear on the problem statement is critical.

Step 6: Diagnose your system + think about it from a multi-level perspective

Multi-level perspective was developed as a way of understanding the different levels at which change happens:

• Landscape: includes the natural environment, the demographics of society, the socio-political trends, as well as the cultural values or paradigm.
• Regime: social networks where markets, infrastructures, technology, and policy have coalesced into stable configurations. There is usually a set of shared rules within the community that describes the current pattern or structure of the status quo.
• Niche: small networks of dedicated actors, often outside or on the edge of these regimes where radical or disruptive innovations develop.

Systems change analysis tool developed by Forum of the Future.

Forum of the Future created a tool to guide this process. By using it, you’re forced to consider your problem at the landscape, regime and niche level. The next step is creating a blend of strategies to drive change across each which ultimately optimizes your chances of success. But it’s certainly not bullet proof.

“It isn’t like if you use this tool you can magically find a solution that makes everyone happy. It is hard, so you need to find people who are committed and ready to make a big change.” — Georgia Rubenstein

Step 7: Design a Strategy + Implement

Once you have gone through the tool to analyze your problem on all three levels, design to these same levels. By creating strategies that drive change across landscape, regime and niche your chances of success will be exponentially greater.

Change happens on three levels — landscape, regime and niche. To increase chances of success design strategies at all three levels as shown in the diagram.

Step 8: Ensure Constant Learning

Systems are constantly changing and therefore require constant reassessment and iterative action. Determine the impact of your actions, and ask yourself how can we do things better and how can we do better things.

Continuous improvement can happen when you review, learn and then iterate.

Admittedly learning how to truly apply systems thinking requires far more time than this two hour workshop allowed. You can sign up for an in-depth course with Forum for the Future to deepen your skills, or check out the amazing resources IDEO has in their DesignKit.