Decision Making - How to Choose the Right Problem to Solve (Coursera)

Defining a problem is the first step to developing a solution and so you will explore methods that will help you define the real issues. You will then experiment with decision-making techniques such as a SWOT analysis to help you quickly evaluate your options clearly and set priorities when everything seems urgent. Once you can identify a problem and understand it, you’ll learn how to explore the benefits and drawbacks of various solutions and methods to minimise risks.

You will then apply all the skills you learnt and discover how to create a detailed plan to persuade others that your ideas will work. By the end of this course, you’ll be able to tackle real-world problems and have the confidence to pitch your ideas and get your colleagues on board.

What You Will Learn

- Evaluate personal skills for problem solving and describe how problems exist in wider contexts

- Develop an idea to approach a real life problem and explore methods to minimise risk and turn ideas into plans

- Explain the importance of the wider impact when proposing solutions and produce a plan that persuades others your solution will work

Syllabus

Week 1 - Finding and defining problems

During the first week of this course, you will be introduced to the experts who will be guiding you through the course and begin to unpick what problem-solving actually means. You will start by reflecting on the last problem you encountered. During the activities this week, you will identify the kinds of skills that help people to solve problems, and reflect on your own problem-solving strengths and talents. You will explore a five-step method to help you approach a problem you might have and reflect on how this relates to your current experience. Defining your problem is crucial to developing a solution. This week looks at ways to define the real problem and analyse the context in which you're developing solutions. At the end of the week, you’ll reflect on what you’ve covered, and assess what you can learn from the SWOT analysis you've completed.

Week 2 - Assessing your solutions

This week you will look at how to assess the solutions you come up with. You'll follow Shona as she analyses which idea would be best to help solve her problem. During the activities you will look at how you can develop more ideas for solving the problems you’ve identified, and how you can evaluate the best ideas. You will explore how evaluating risk can help your solutions be successful. At the end of the week, you’ll reflect on what you’ve covered, and identify what you can learn from your SWOT analysis.

Week 3 - Understanding and selling your solution

This week you’ll investigate how to think about the wider impact of your ideas, and produce a strong plan to show how your idea will work in the real world. You’ll consider how you can make a persuasive case for your solution. During the activities, you’ll explore how to estimate resources and measure success and make your own plan to solve a problem, and take part in a peer review exercise to get and give feedback on your work. You’ve nearly reached the end of the course, so the final steps will help you reflect on what you’ve learned.