Design solutions for wicked problems

You have to love this kind of brief because after fitting all the mandatory requirements in the box there really is no other space available other than outside the box. Unless management provides you with a bigger box, then you can put Jack in there and pleasantly surprise everyone at the debrief.

What is fascinating is this idea that everyone is looking for the next big idea but only if is very similar to the last big idea or the one big idea that has worked for our main competitor. Because we all are looking for certainty and find ways to mitigate risk and still lay claim to the next big thing.

It is like wanting the thrill and bragging rights of a bungee jump without experiencing the scary bits. Consider this quote from Howard Aiken, a former IBM engineer: "Don't worry about other people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats." So why is it so difficult to convince people of the merits of a fresh approach?

Could it be that brand problems became so complex that there is just no clear solution in sight? And we all know that no marketing director has ever been fired for suggesting a TV ad.

A wicked problem

A wicked problem is defined as a problem that is so complex that there is no definitive statement to it; in fact, there is a broad disagreement of what the problem is. There may be no agreement on the problem, its nature, its goals, and its consequences among its multiple stakeholders. Obviously, without a definitive statement of the problem there is no definitive solution either.

Wicked problem force us to work "outside the box." We do not really "solve" wicked problems; rather we "design" more or less effective solutions based on how we define the problem.

Increasingly, today's CEOs, Strategists and Marketers face wicked problems for which they are ill equipped.

In a survey sponsored by Neutron and Stanford University, 1,500 top executives were asked to identify the wickedest problems plaguing their companies:

1. Balancing long-term goals with short-term demands.
2. Predicting the returns on innovative concepts
3. Innovating at the increasing speed of change - organisational agility
4. Winning the war by world-class talent
5. Combining profitability with social responsibility
6. Protecting margins in a commoditising industry
7. Multiplying success by collaborating across silos
8. Finding unclaimed yet profitable market space
9. Addressing the challenge of eco-sustainability
10. Aligning strategy with customer experience

These are wicked problems and some of them were not on a radar 10 years ago so the chances of solving them through experience and everyday business resources alone has got limited chance of success.

This looks like pretty dreary territory for brands to be in and how do you even begin to address this?

The best way

The best way is to collaborate with objective opinion based parties that will bring the following characteristics to the party...

1. Independence and objectivity with no allegiance to any specific service provider
2. Cross functional (because marketing is too important to leave to marketers)
3. Brave. Because if it doesn't scare you, it will not change the game.
4. Collaboration. Are you willing to park that ego at the door?
5. Willing to lead with why you exist as oppose to what you do.

Service providers like advertising agencies and marketing consultancies will have to take heed of the ever chancing complex Brand environments we navigate. The focus need to shift towards solving business and Brand challenges through intelligent and purposeful design through collaboration beyond traditional means.

Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes... the ones who see things differently ... Steve Jobs.

Steve understood that design can create solutions. He knew how to address wicked problems. He was brave and brave people and brave Brands leave legacies.