When an operational failure hits our Issues List, our leaders immediately start debating solutions before we have even defined the root breakdown. How do we discipline our team to spend the majority of IDS® strictly on the Identify step?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Most leadership teams spend eighty percent of their IDS time in discussion and five percent on identifying the problem. They jump immediately to brainstorming solutions for what is merely a visible symptom. As a result, the same issue reappears on the list four weeks later under a slightly different title.

Real problem-solving requires spending the majority of your time digging into the Identify phase. You cannot solve a problem until everyone around the table agrees on what the actual breakdown is. If someone states that our sales team is not closing deals, that is not an issue; it is a symptom. The real issue might be an unclarified pricing model, an unqualified lead handoff from marketing, or a salesperson lacking the GWC for their seat.

To discipline your team around the Identify step:
- Ask the five whys. When an issue is read aloud, ask why three to five times until you reach a specific root cause tied to a person, seat, or process.
- Restate the issue in one clear sentence. The Integrator should challenge the team by asking: What is the specific issue we are solving right now?
- Separate the issue from the emotional narrative. Strip away interpersonal frustration and locate the broken handoff or missing accountability.
- Do not allow any proposed solutions until every member of the leadership team nods agreement on the identified root problem.

When you properly isolate the root cause, the Discussion phase shrinks dramatically. The Solve step becomes an obvious, binary To-Do assigned to a single owner with a seven-day deadline.