Tutorial PROBLEM SOLVING | Langkah CEPAT atasi SEMUA kesulitan dalam BISNIS

Business Problem-Solving Approach (Symptoms vs. Root Cause)

• Many business meetings focus on symptoms (e.g., sales down, employee turnover, customer complaints).
• The goal is to identify the root cause behind those symptoms.
• Analogy: “Cold vs. Virus/Bacteria”
  • Symptoms = what you observe
  • Root cause = the underlying cause (the “virus/bacteria” → deeper business/system issues)

Framework / Playbook: Fishbone (Ishikawa) / Ka(u)sa Diagram

A structured method for cause-and-effect / root-cause analysis.

Process

1. Define the problem clearly (place it in the “fish head”).
2. Draw fishbone branches for the main categories of causes.
3. Brainstorm causes per branch until you exhaust possibilities.
4. Drill down with “Why” questions to connect cause → effect.
5. Apply validation logic:
   • If the cause is removed/fixed, the symptom should disappear.

Six Cause Categories (Fishbone Branches)

The approach uses six classic Ishikawa-style categories:

• Manpower (Man): people/capability, culture fit, team compatibility
• Method (Method): how work is performed (process consistency, SOPs, clarity)
• Machine / Tools (Machine): adequacy of work tools/facilities
• Material (Material): inputs/materials used (resource quality/availability)
• Measurement (Measurement): how performance is measured/tracked (metrics, instrumentation)
• Policy (Policy / Rules): company rules/regulations (e.g., compensation rules)

Concrete Example: Employee Turnover

Example problem statement

• “In 2019, employee turnover / came-and-go rate reached 50%.”

Potential root causes mapped to categories

• Policy: pay set too low / not aligned with minimum wage requirements → leads to high turnover
• Method: messy work methods / no clear system → employees leave
• Manpower: team members not compatible / misaligned in culture → turnover increases
• (The remaining branches imply additional possibilities such as machines/facilities, measurement gaps, or incomplete materials.)

Actionable Recommendation (Running the Team Discussion)

• Have the team brainstorm per fishbone branch, then connect each idea to the effect (the symptom) using repeated “why” questioning.
• Clarity matters: the clearer the problem definition, the easier it is to identify root causes.
• Closing logic:
  • Fixing the root cause(s) should eliminate the symptoms.

Key Metrics / KPIs Mentioned

• Employee turnover (came-and-go) in 2019: 50%
• No other quantified KPIs (e.g., revenue, CAC, LTV, churn, margins) or timelines were provided besides the 2019 reference.

Presenter / Source

• Tom McIle (Tom Tom Mcile) — Founder of Top Coach Indonesia.