522: Stop the stupid using proactive problem solving – with Doug Hall

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Product Mastery Now with host Chad McAllister, PhD. Please find future episodes on your podcast player, searching for Product Mastery Now or at https://productmasterynow.com/mastery/. Blog Talk Radio is ending in Jan, 2025.

The podcast is all about helping people involved in innovation and managing products become more successful, grow their careers, and STANDOUT from their peers.

About the Episode: 

In my recent conversation with Doug Hall, master of turning chaos into clarity, we explored how product managers and innovation leaders can break free from reactive problem-solving and create more value through proactive innovation. Doug shared that the average manager wastes 3.5 hours daily fixing problems, with 75% of issues stemming from broken systems rather than employee mistakes. Even more concerning, products typically lose 50% of their innovative value during development as unique ideas get compromised to fit existing systems. Doug offered practical solutions through three powerful frameworks that can transform how teams approach innovation and problem-solving.

Key Topics:

• How to define problems effectively using the Yellow Card method, inspired by military Commander’s Intent principle
• Creating solutions through structured “Create Sessions” that leverage stimulus, diversity of thought, and fear reduction
• Six types of innovation stimulus, including patent mining and wisdom mining from academic sources
• Using the Deming Cycle (Plan-Do-Study-Act) to systematically reduce risks in product development
• Transforming organizational culture by focusing on system improvement rather than individual blame