Why do great solutions fail? Because we're solving the wrong problem
Most teams think they know the problem space really well, however what they usually know is their view of it, made up of meetings, assumptions, and internal debates.
They can spend weeks arguing over features, i've been there, it's a real waste - or worse no weeks arguing because now you can just build something immediately, any idea is a feature.
I have a different approach, which is to spend that time understanding why people aren't doing what they need/want to do in the first place.
In behavioral work, we spend time mapping the real jobs people are trying to get done, the environment and constraints they operate in, or the behavioral friction that blocks action - these layers are what gives us the right targets to focus on, but also it tell us where not to focus on (because we can't influence there)
Think about the savings a company can have if they knew what they could and could not change - and instead of wasting time on the unchangable, they focused efforts where it matters.
My team and I do this heavy work, so we can give actionable ways for companies to see real change.
If you ignore this, then the result is solutions that work perfectly in theory and get ignored in practice, which will lead to lack of adoption, low ROI, and ultimately credibility taking a hit.
If you want your initiatives, whether it's a product, a process change, or a patient program to get engagement, then start by understanding the behavioral context, and don't constrain yourself to a single way of doing it:
These are some of the things we have adopted and adapted for our clients work:
-Jobs to be Done: helps to show you what people are actually "hiring" your solution to do, not what you think they need.
-Behavioral Models help us see why people act the way they do, not just what they say they'll do, and then helps us really get the nuances without guessing.
-Service Design gives us tools to map the real experience, not the idealized journey.
At the end, even more so today with all the AI tools out there, the hardest part isn't building.
It's actually resisting the urge to build before you understand what needs to be solved.
Question for you
How much quality time does your team spend in the problem space before jumping to solutions?
Image credit (Erick Mohr)