Setting the Stage: The Making of a Great Problem-Solving Team

Abstract

Building teams within organizations begins with leadership. The following is a paraphrased conversation I had with a CEO many years ago, just after we had completed a very complex pricing model for his industrial products company:

CEO: “Thanks for coming to see me, George.”

George: “Thank you for inviting me. I’ll have to admit that I am a little nervous here. Is there something wrong with the model we built for you?”

CEO: “That is just what I wanted to talk about. No, there’s nothing wrong with the model. I’ve been following its progress … It has really helped us develop some insights, and it solved a particularly important problem for us. It was just what we needed.”

George: “Wow, that is good to hear.”

CEO: “But …” (long pause)

George: “Yes, go on …”

CEO: “… the insights from running the model gave me a new way of thinking about how our company should operate. We asked you to streamline our pricing process and you did, and we are happy about that. But it also left me a bit unsettled … why can’t our company build models to solve problems in the way that you did? On any given day, we have dozens of problems to solve that are of the same importance as the one that you worked on. How do I channel my own talent here to do that?”