Great article about defining the root causes of the problem before trying to solve them. I use the block diagram method extensively in my daily work. People think its slow and painstaking at first, but after a few successful iterations they begin the make it part of their daily work as well.

Similarly, Larry Burns, outgoing Chief of R&D at General Motors, who is credited with GM’s massive leap forward in the area of fuel cell hybrid powertrains and vehicle communications was recently quoted:

“…focus as hard on defining the questions as you do on trying to answer them. I have found that once you really understand the question, you are 90 percent of the way home. In addition, you need to recognize that in the real world, the questions are often ill-defined, data are often messy and methods frequently do not apply exactly as they have been taught. You will need to learn to deal with this ambiguity. Finally, great opportunities lie at the interface between disciplines, so be sure to take a systems approach in your work.”

Thanks again for writing.