Introduction
As a business owner, problem-solving is a crucial part of your daily routine. However, not all problems are the same. While most business owners are skilled at addressing day-to-day operational challenges, solving structural issues or barriers requires a deeper level of strategic analysis and insight.
What are structural challenges?
Structural problems may not manifest as visibly or urgently as operational issues, making them easier to overlook or dismiss. Potential indicators or such issues can be:
- Struggling to sell more and assuming that the issue is skill-related
- Focusing on growth by doing rather than building sustainable growth
- Accepting increased mental tiredness as a given
- Increased dependence on a set of core customers
- Ineffective communication due to data or number silos
Difficult to solve
Business owners sometimes find it challenging to understand structural problems or issues within their business due to various factors:
- They may be too involved in day-to-day operations
- Lacking the necessary perspective or experience to identify underlying structural issues
- Are primarily focused on short-term goals or immediate tasks
- Limited resources, both in terms of time and expertise, can hinder their ability to conduct thorough assessments
- May be reluctant to confront structural issues as it may disrupt established routines or require additional investments
Our advice
To help solve or address these issues, we recommend the following approach:
- Look for wisdom, insight, and experience instead of conventional strategic planning approaches and recommendations that don't make sense
- Be willing to accept a level of uncertainty and a lack of immediate solutions
- Fixing structural issues or barriers requires a different framework of thinking and doing
- Find an approach that elevates and empowers what you have rather than being disruptive and descriptive.
