Problem: Full Report and Conclusion
Purpose
To assess your ability to integrate selected decision-making and problem-solving tools into a comprehensive personal problem-solving process.
Overview
This final individual project assignment calls for you to reflect on how each of the decision-making tools has performed a role in impacting your assessment and resolution of the problem statement you defined in Week 1 and refined throughout the course. This is your opportunity to bring together and explain the key points you have learned from the various tools examined in this course. You are encouraged to refine the outcomes of your experiences with these tools and their impact on understanding and directing your thinking on your individual problem.
Action Items
This assignment is a culmination of the work you’ve done on your problem-solving process. The intent of this assignment is to compile all of the work you have done on your individual problem into a single report that would be worthy of submitting to your boss or their boss.
Re-use the diagrams and discussions from your previous assignments to compile this paper.
For each technique you used, be sure you have adequately described its value and purpose in the problem-solving process. It may seem evident to you, but assume that your audience is someone 2-3 levels above you in the organization – your report needs to make sense to them the first time through. You want the audience to understand not only your problem but also the tools you used to solve it and why you used them. All the written work shows your rationale.
You should add new knowledge and incorporate any feedback you have received to improve where necessary. You’ll also need to add a discussion of the ethical implications involved in your problem and solution, a discussion of the Effective Solution formula and its applicability, and a brief discussion of the impact of your solution to the natural and social environment.
The paper should follow the outline below. Use the bolded words as section headings:
Introduction: Introduce the paper and the problem briefly (1-2 paragraphs).
Problem Background: 1-2 paragraphs.
Cause and Effect Analysis: Describe and demonstrate the use of this technique. Clearly discuss your findings as a result of using it. Place the written part in the body of the paper (1-2 pages of discussion), and put the diagram in the Appendix.
Defining the Problem: Describe the technique used to frame and define your problem (approximately 2-3 pages of discussion).
End this section with a very clear and distinct sentence that says, “The final problem statement is: _______.”
Divergent Thinking: Discuss your divergent thinking process and the results. Place the written part in the body of the paper (1-2 pages of discussion), and if you have a mind map, diagram, or long list of brainstorming results, put them in a separate document in the Appendix.
Convergent Thinking: Discuss your convergent thinking process and the results. Place the written part in the body of the paper (1-2 pages), and if you have a diagram or list, put it in a separate document in the Appendix.
Devil’s Advocate Thinking: Discuss your devil’s advocate thinking process and the results. Place the written part in the body of the paper (1-2 pages), and if you have a diagram or list, put it in a separate document in the Appendix. Be sure to clearly show how you used the Devil’s Advocate questioning technique to critically examine your solutions.
Weighted Ranking Matrix: Discuss the technique, including a description of the criteria you selected and the weights you assigned. Also describe the findings after working through the technique. Place the written part in the body of the paper (1-2 pages) and your weighted matrix chart in the Appendix.
After using this technique, declare a final solution: which solution will you choose to implement? Note it clearly at the end of this section.
Implementation Plan: Describe and discuss the PDPC technique. Describe your findings, noting any significant issues related to the implementation of your solution. Place the written part in the body of the paper (1-2 pages) and the diagram in the Appendix.
Ethical Considerations: Even if there are no apparent ethical considerations, note here that you have at least considered this fact (1-2 paragraphs).
Effective Solution Formula: Use Es=QxA to examine the potential effectiveness of your solution. Consider all stakeholders (1-2 paragraphs).
Environmental and Social Considerations: Identify any potentially harmful impacts on the environment or society/community (1-2 paragraphs).