How Leaders Use Four Workarounds To Tackle Complex Problems

“Workarounds are effective, versatile, and accessible methods for tackling complex problems,” shares the author of the new book, The Four Workarounds. “They are a creative, flexible, imperfection-loving, problem-solving approach. A method that ignores or even challenges conventions on how, and by whom a problem is meant to be solved.”

In Part 1 of this fascinating and instructional book, author and Oxford University professor, Paulo Savaget, explains what workarounds are and how to come up with them. And, then in Part 2, he digs into how to cultivate a workaround attitude and mindset, including how to reflect on the ways you typically see, judge, and approach obstacles.

“I also show you how you can systematically conceive workarounds to your problems and how your workplace can become more workaround friendly,” adds Savaget.

You’ll read intriguing and revealing stories of how some of the largest and scrappiest companies and organizations used one or more of the four workarounds to accomplish their objectives.

Those four workarounds are:

The Piggyback: Capitalizing on pre-existing but seemingly unrelated systems or relationships. Whether they are mutually beneficial or parasitic, they rely on looking for possibilities that might have gone unnoticed.

The Loophole: Exploiting technicalities and ambiguities in what rules do and don’t say.

The Roundabout: Disrupting self-reinforced behaviors.

The Next Best: Repurposing resources. They can be a temporary patch to allow people to achieve goals more quickly, provide the opportunity to explore options outside the mainstream, or create a new precedent.

Paulo Savaget

Today, the author shares these additional insights with us:

Question: What is a workaround?

Savaget: A workaround is a creative, flexible, imperfection-loving, problem-solving approach. At its core, a workaround is a method that ignores or even challenges conventions on how, and by whom, a problem is meant to be solved.

Let me illustrate with an example I learned from Zambia: many medicines cannot be found in remote regions of Sub-Saharan Africa because of hard-to-solve bottlenecks in healthcare, such as poor infrastructure and logistics systems.

A workaround doesn’t try to tackle these bottlenecks; it circumvents them instead. The organization I studied in Zambia worked around them by piggybacking on Coca-Cola’s distribution channels. They realized Coca-Cola can be found even in the remotest places on earth – so why can’t medicines take a free ride with soda bottles?

Question: When might you need a workaround?

Savaget: Workarounds thrive in complex situations – when stakes are high, resources are scarce, and there’s no time for the usual drawn-out decision-making processes. They are well suited because they embrace uncertainty and imperfection and address our most urgent needs while exploring more robust alternatives.

Question: What does it mean to be a “scrappy organization?”

Savaget: I call “scrappy” small organizations that are feisty, resourceful, and operate at the fringes of power. They think quickly out of necessity, and despite some apparent clumsiness they often persist and succeed because of their unconventional methods. They don’t get paralyzed by what is lacking in a context; they see a world of possibilities by looking at unexplored places, finding unconventional pairings, and repurposing resources.

Question: Why do you think we should value scrappy organizations?

Savaget: The research behind The Four Workarounds builds on the knowledge and experiences of scrappy organizations – not from big businesses or global powerhouses, but from the little guys with limited resources, often scraping by on the periphery. I get deeply annoyed with the conventional wisdom that large companies are inherently superior, better run, and better equipped than scrappy organizations. This book shows how the business world can learn from the innovative wit and practical ingenuity of these “ugly ducklings.”

Question: What is a workaround mindset?

Savaget: A workaround mindset challenges the conventional wisdom that the best course of action is always to understand the full picture and remove visible obstacles. The three principles are recognizing the limits of your knowledge, adjusting lenses, and thinking like an outsider. These principles help us embrace complexity and find opportunities for workarounds.

Question: How can organizations become more workaround friendly?

Savaget: My book shows how organizations of all sizes can become more workaround friendly. That involves recommendations for strategy, culture, leadership, and teamwork. It also offers a sort of playbook for individuals who want to come up with workarounds for the personal problems they face.

Thank you to the book’s publisher for sending me an advance copy of the book.

Comments

A Playbook For Authentic Human Leadership

Julie Averill , the CIO behind lululemon’s rapid growth from $2 billion to $10 billion shares in her new book, Chief Impact Officer , a roadmap for executives and technology leaders navigating today's AI revolution and reveals why authentic human leadership is your competitive advantage. Prior to lululemon, she led omni-channel and digital transformations at Nordstrom and REI, navigating system failures, crises, and the complicated work of integrating technology with business strategy at scale. “Technology doesn’t transform companies. People do,” says Averill. “AI will amplify whatever leadership exists, strong or weak. The goal isn’t to build better workers. It’s to develop better humans who happen to do extraordinary work because you helped them become more capable, more confident, more fully themselves. That’s what this book is about.” In the highly personal Chief Impact Officer , Averill pulls back the curtain on what happens when you try to transform a compan...

How To Work With Difficult Coworkers

Nearly everyone I know has shared a story about a difficult person they’ve encountered in their workplace. Experiencing difficult individuals in the workplace is common. So common that author Amy Gallo identifies eight archetypes , each representing a common type of “difficult” person likely found in most workplaces. “We might lie awake at night worrying, withdraw from work, or react in ways we later regret—rolling our eyes in a meeting, snapping at colleagues, or staying silent when we should speak up,” says Gallo. "Too often we grin and bear it as if we have no choice. Or throw up our hands because one-size-fits-all solutions haven't worked. But you can only endure so much thoughtless, irrational, or malicious behavior—there's your sanity to consider, and your career,” adds Gallo. Fortunately, Gallo shares in her book, Getting Along , practical insights, tools, and techniques for how to get along with each type of difficult co-worker you’ll likely encounter....

The Fundamentals Of Market Engineering

“Most companies don’t fail because their product is substandard. They fail because the market doesn’t understand, care, or believe in what they’re selling,” explains Bruce Cleveland , author of the new book, Market Engineering . He adds that this dilemma is “because somewhere between the product development and the customer, the story got lost, the positioning drifted, or their category was defined by somebody else and the market went to another company.” That means, every year, startups and enterprises pour millions into building world-class products--only to watch them disappear into obscurity. In the book, Silicon Valley veteran Cleveland reveals the discipline behind market-dominating companies like Salesforce, Marketo, and C3 AI. Drawing on decades of experience as an operator, investor, and board member, Cleveland demonstrates how leaders can apply the same rigor to markets that they bring to products. You'll discover how to: Compel markets to come to you instead of c...

How To Do Great Work In A Fast-Changing World

Today brings the new book, Effective: How To Do Great Work In A Fast-Changing World , by Melissa Swift . “Effectiveness is where employer and employee interests come together—you want to be great at accomplishing the goals of your job, and your employer wants that too,” explains Swift. “It’s also a place where we can bring together different organizational and developmental thinking to help move people to action.” In the book, Swift, founder of Anthrome Insight , draws on current research and provocative interviews with business and academic leaders to help readers understand how to be amazing in a working world seemingly designed to make us feel incompetent. Each chapter in Effective delivers actionable approaches, enabling readers to improve their daily work life immediately with a paradigm-shifting framework for thriving rather than merely coping in modern professional environments. The book serves professionals at every level of seniority, from e...

How To Harness Your Experiential Intelligence

“Experiential Intelligence provides a new lens from which to view what makes you, you—and what makes your team and organization unique,” says Soren Kaplan , author of the book, Experiential Intelligence . Kaplan explains that over 100 years ago, we established IQ (Intelligence Quotient) to predict success. Then we explored Emotional Intelligence (EQ), the theory of multiple intelligences, and mindsets that broaden the definition of smarts. “Today, Experiential Intelligence ( XQ ) expands our understanding of what's needed to thrive in a disruptive world. While you can't change the past, your unique experiences and stories contain hidden strengths and untapped potential for the future,” explains Kaplan. Experiential Intelligence is the combination of mindsets, abilities, and know-how gained from your unique life experiences that empowers you to achieve your goals. It allows you to get in touch with the accumulated wisdom and talents you have gained over time through your ...

Critical Questions To Ask New Hires

In Paul Falcone ’s book, 75 Ways For Managers To Hire, Develop And Keep Great Employees , he recommends asking new employees the following questions 30, 60 and 90 days after they were hired: 30-Day One-on-One Follow-Up Questions Why do you think we selected you as an employee? What do you like about the job and the organization so far? What’s been going well? What are the highlights of your experiences so far? Why? Tell me what you don’t understand about your job and about our organization now that you’ve had a month to roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. Have you faced any unforeseen surprises since joining us that you weren’t expecting? 60-Day One-on-One Follow-Up Questions Do you have enough, too much or too little time to do your work? Do you have access to the appropriate tools and resources? Do you feel you have been sufficiently trained in all aspects of your job to perform at a high level? How do you see your job relating to the organization’...

How to Be a Leader – 9 Principles from Dale Carnegie

Today, I welcome thought-leader Nathan Magnuson as guest blogger... Nathan writes : This is it, your first day in a formal leadership role. You’ve worked hard as an individual contributor at one or possibly several organizations. Now management has finally seen fit to promote you into a position as one of their own: a supervisor. You don’t care if your new team is only one person or ten, you’re just excited that now – finally – you will be in charge! Unfortunately the euphoria is short-lived. Almost immediately, you are not only overwhelmed with the responsibilities of a team, but you quickly find that your team members are not as experienced or adroit as you. Some aren’t even as committed. You find yourself having to repeat yourself, send their work back for corrections, and staying late to fill the gap. If something doesn’t change soon, you might just run yourself into the ground. How did something that looked so easy ...

The Science Of Dream Teams

Why do some teams succeed while others stumble? Because hiring, developing and engaging talent requires careful decisions that are too easy to get wrong without data. In The Science of Dream Teams: How Talent Optimization Can Drive Engagement, Productivity, and Happiness , author Mike Zani introduces the science of “ talent optimization ,” a new discipline that’s a far more reliable way to manage your employees than your gut instincts. “ Proper talent optimization lifts morale, builds teams, and turbocharges productivity ,” explains Zani. With simple steps, Zani (a former US Olympic sailing team coach) shows how companies of any size can collect and analyze voluntary data about their employees to purposefully align a company’s business and talent strategies. The book explores how CEOs and management teams can collect and use data to: Build effective teams of highly sought-after professionals while optimizing costs. Create a company culture based on coaching versus ...

Five Essential Principles For Sustaining Growth Through Innovation

Even though many companies strive for innovation, most struggle to achieve meaningful change. The largest reason for this disconnect? Playing it safe. Leaders and organizations want to implement new ideas, but too often they are held back by the fear of failure, even though setbacks are intrinsic to the innovation process. In the new book, No Fear, No Failure , by Lorraine H. Marchand (with John Hanc), readers will learn how to overcome the status quo that stifles creative thinking and how to create a culture that encourages innovation. Marchand provides a framework for sustained growth built on the “ 5 Cs ”: Customer First Culture Collaboration Change Chance She draws on more than 120 interviews with leaders across industries, real-world case studies, and her firsthand experience and shares step-by-step, field-tested strategies, tactics, and tools that practitioners can use to embed creativity within organizational cultures. Marchand is a former Big Tech and Big Pharma ex...

How To Uncover Your Blindspots To Become A Better Leader

What you don't see about yourself can hold you back as a leader. That's typical for many leaders. What we don't see is what we can't see: we have blindspots . Your blindspots prevent you from achieving your greatest success. “It turns out that we're often not great judges of ourselves, even when we think we are. Sometimes we're simply unaware of a behavior or trait that's causing problems,” explains Martin Dubin , author of the new book, Blindspotting: How To See What’s Holding You Back As A Leader . “Bottom line: until we uncover these blindspots, we can't move forward. The good news is that you can learn to do your own blindspotting .” “Most of us understand the idea of blindspots in a general sense—areas we can’t see, to take the term most literally, or places we have gaps that we may not even realize, to be a little more abstract,” says Dubin. “But in the context of this book, I’m defining blindspots quite specifically: They are...

Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

Search This Blog