WHAT’S YOUR PROBLEM?
FIGURE 1
“Provide the U.S. Army with a cost- effective precision mortar cartridge to de- feat enemy targets.” Tis is not a complete problem statement: It is too ambiguous, system goals are undefined, there is no ex- planation of the “why” or the stakeholder’s intent, and there are no clear metrics.
STAYING INSIDE THE BOX
Judiciously build the “how” statement with solution-neutral verbs to spur divergent thinking that will create ideas for solving the problem. Selecting verbs that unintentionally limit possible solutions could mean missing valuable opportunities for better capabilities. (Image courtesy of the authors)
and converges on a smaller set of pos- sible actions. For example, if a hospital is looking for ways to improve the speed of care to car accident victims, insert- ing the word “driving” into its problem statement can shut out many other pos- sibilities such as air, rail or water trans- port, or even virtual care applied at the scene by first responders.
Had the original problem statement for the Copperhead included goals address- ing the training of field artillery units in this new capability, such as, “while ensur- ing that a realistic and affordable training system for unit home station and nation- al training centers (less than $1,000 per training mission) is completed prior to production,” the warfighter might have gotten more value from the large invest- ment made in its development and pro- duction program.
Including “live or die” goals, key metrics that will guide thinking during develop- ment, ensures that the team understands what is most important to the user. An easy place to start is in the key perfor-
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mance parameters (KPPs) of require- ments documents. In the case of the Cop- perhead, had a KPP included a defined goal (with a clear metric for measuring achievement of the goal) for an affordable and realistic training system, the round might have been put to more widespread usage in combat. Once these metrics are inserted into the problem statement, all team members will know what the guiding, tangible goals are, which will influence their thinking. For example, the phrase “average unit cost of $5,000 (FY16 dollars)” is much more powerful than a nebulous term like “low cost.” A clear dollar amount will shape material selection, manufacturing processes, tech- nology maturity and design complexity for the remainder of the program.
Te following system problem statement is an example of a poor start for the PM’s materiel solution development phase. (In this example, assume that an analysis of alternatives has been completed, and a materiel solution, a new mortar cartridge, is the most effective approach.)
A much better statement would be, “Pro- vide the U.S. Army a system to quickly de- feat personnel with low collateral damage, by destroying enemy combatants with XX percent expected fractional casualties in Y rounds or less, using a mortar car- tridge with a program average unit cost of $ZZ,zzz.” Tis statement includes the key facets to focus the team’s attention and creativity, as it includes: “To …” (in- tent) + “By …” (solution-neutral process) + “Using …” (process attribute + object) + “While …” (object attribute).
THE ANTIDOTES • Challenge problem statements con- tinuously. Almost without exception, the initial articulation of the problem will be insufficient or even flat-out wrong. Asking a series of “why” ques- tions will help continue to refine the overall intent and desired functionality of the solution. A good problem state- ment requires an iterative process with multiple passes to get the scope, level of detail and solution concept right.
• Watch for unspoken assumptions by people framing the problem in solution-specific terms. For example, using functional verbs such as “tape” that drive the team in one direction may too narrowly frame solution sets, especially in the early phases of the effort. A better verb for keeping options open would be “attach.” Force addi- tional rigor in the process to begin with solution-neutral functional statements. Tis will naturally turn the dialogue to clear statements of what creates value
Army AL&T Magazine October-December 2016
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