I-SOAR

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I find myself to be a systems person and one who like to create things. As such, I would usually find myself trying to make sense of things and life and translating these insights I get into easily comprehensible formats. That is also the spirit behind codfishy's blog... a blog on my reflections of life and lessons learnt.

Anyway, had always wanted to write this down but never had the chance to sit down and think through and write it... now comes the chance :)

How I-SOAR Came About
I-SOAR is a problem-solving model that I have devised with some of my friends at an alumni meeting (and was further refined by me). We were facing some challenges and were trying to strategize to address these challenges. By the end of the meeting, we realized that there seem to be a pattern that we used in the meeting. We traced the line of thought and discovered that the discussion was carried out in the following manner...

Situation-Objectives-Approach-Resources-Inertia

Hence, the 1st version of the model was out... SOARI but then we found out that the model sounded horrible... like "SORRY". So we agreed that "I" (Inertia) is important and that every project should also look into potential problems that will hamper the progress of the project; failing which would just cause the whole project to fail, despite having a good understanding of the Situation, being focused on the Objectives, having well-thought through and tested Approaches and having garnered the needed Resources. Hence, we moved the "I" to the front and it became ISOAR...

Inertia-Situation-Objectives-Approach-Resources

A few months later, I was asked to prepare a presentation for my job interview and I used this model to structure my presentation. Interestingly enough, I managed to impress my interviewers who were impressed with the model and who further suggested that I add a dash in between the "I" and "SOAR" or else it would sound like "EYESORE", not a pretty sight... Hence, version 3 was born: I-SOAR.

Soaring High
Miami Seagulls by tycity

I-SOAR - The Problem-Solving Approach
I have used this model for problem-solving and it has so far served me well. Let's look into it in detail:

Situation (S) - Before attempting to solve a problem, we need to first establish what the problem / issue is that warrants our attention. Failing to correctly assess the problem to address would only mean wasting time, effort and resources trying to solve something which is not even the problem in the first place and this can bring about great fustration. Other subpoints to pay attention to:

1. What is the current situation? Both the presenting & underlying problem(s)?
   
2. If there are many problems to address, what are their priorities?
   
3. Despite being a situation which needs to be addressed, what are some of the positive aspects and opportunities?
4. Who are the ones affected by this situation or problem(s)?

Objectives (O) - The next step is to identify the end point; the objective(s) of the project. If the problem is solved, what would it look like? "Begin with the end in mind", says Stephen Covey. This is especially important because different people will have different perspectives of the same situation and how it should be addressed. Ensuring that the objective(s) of the project are clearly spelled out ensures that everyone in the project team is aligned in terms of understanding why the project is initiated and what it aims to do. Other subpoints to consider include:

1. Who are the stakeholders?
   
2. What are the stakeholders' (e.g. team or organization) "philosophy" and whether is the project in line with it?
3. What are the stakeholders' vision and how does the project contribute to that?
4. What are the goals and are these goals SMART (Specific, Measureable, Acceptable, Realistic, Time-limited)?
5. Principle of "underpromising" and "overperforming"
   

Approach (A) - After considering and being clear about the situation and the objectives, the team can now collaboratively work on the solutions. Consider the following:

1. What are some possible solutions to address the situation and underlying issues?
2. What are some attempted solutions used to address the situation or similar situations by the team and/or other people?
3. Use Mind-mapping to help chart some of the solutions, be creative
4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of some of the approaches?
5. Use De Bono's 6 thinking hats to think through
6. What are some of the work processes needed?
7. What kind of timeline (including review and evaluation processes) is needed?
   
8. How do you track progress?

Resources (R) - What are some of the resources needed to address the situation and to implement the interventions. Subpoints include:

1. What partnership(s) needs to be forged, remembering the concept of "win-win" for all parties involved? Everyone will bring with them certain strengths and resources which would be useful in addressing the situation. The challenge remains to match-make everyone and ensure that everyone is happy and that the situation is solved.
   
2. What specific resources (both existing and new) are needed e.g. manpower, financial, logistical etc?
3. What are some of the existing strengths that can be tapped on?
4. How does the current working culture help to make things better?
5. Task allocation considering the fit between person, skills and talents and task
   

Inertia (I) - Lastly, we need to be prepare for things that will go wrong so that we will not be caught unaware and know how to address potential obstacles that may appear along the way. Looking at inertia ensures that all that could hamper the progress of the project is avoided:

1. What are some of the possible threats?
2. What are some of the possible solutions to these threats?

And there we have it... hope this model is useful :) Just sharing this model with you and hope no one "steals" it and call it their own.

May you soar... fly without effort and ride the wind.