Thinking Skills For Solving Organizational Needs

Over the years, I heard people mention creative thinking, critical thinking, and other types of
thinking, but I never gave it a second thought till recently. What most organizations pay people
to do for them is to solve problems, and we solve most problems by our thoughts. In fact, no aspect of development and civilization did not come through a well-thought-out process. There is no successful business today that is deficient in manpower competence in thinking out the solutions to their problems. Even where physical strength is needed to carry out a task, more than half the energy has gone into thinking about the process, planning and possibly envisaging the outcome.
In a professional environment as a case study, we have largely four types of thinking processes used to achieve organizational demands and solve problems found at workplaces. They are;

Thinking Skills For Solving Organizational Needs

– Ikenna M. Okafor,
(SmeDoctor)

The acronym for easy remembrance is SICC. It is instructive to note that some of these could be inherent traits certain people are born with. At other times, there is a conscious effort by
individuals to develop their thinking skills into any of these. Note also that someone can have
more than one of these thinking skills. 

CRITICAL THINKING
Critical Thinking for me is a must-have for everyone. It is the skills that enable one to look at a second look at an object or situation to detect that something is not adding up. Critical thinking enables one to be meticulous and diligent. When you have tasks to deliver through this set of people, be rest assured that the tasks or documents has little or no error. Critical-minded people double-check whatever they put their signature on, Such kind of thinking skills are needed fo people that are where physical strength is not required to perform their tasks.
Most people in Finance, Accounts, Audit, Compliance, and mid-level management find themselves as critical thinkers. When you apply critical thinking to your job, it keeps you outstanding and trusted by your Line Manager as it is believed that you have or would naturally do a thorough job before passing it on. 

CREATIVE THINKING
This skill gives one the ability to modernize and improve on a system already existing. When critical thinking has been used to identify a problem or a gap, it is Creative thinking that is used to solve it. What is imperative here implies that in Creative thinking, it is not an entirely new system that is introduced rather, the system that is already in existence is improved upon. This is where Design Thinking also falls under. For instance, where you want to reduce turnaround time in your business process, critical thinking will help you understand the cause while creative thinking will help you identify what needs to be improved on.
People in this category are mostly those in the technological space. Being here does not demand much of a job to be outstanding. More so, working with such people in your team can be comforting, as they always strive to improve anywhere they find themselves.

INNOVATIVE THINKING
This category deals with maiden or novel ideas. Just like in the book, The Blue Ocean Strategy and innovation are associated with bringing something new into the business atmosphere. In some cases, to achieve Innovative Thinking, one must be deep in critical thinking as innovative thinking is an advanced level of creative thinking. While innovative thinking is creating something new, it does not in any way suggest that creative thinking does not play a role in its actualization. This is because, before it gets to the stage of creating something new, the existing one may not be serving its purpose, and improving on it will not be cost-effective. The best option then will be geared towards Innovative Thinking.
Most technical people are at this level of thinking. One answer such people do not take is that nothing can be done. Such statements push them to become inventive and think about redesigning something more workable or that will solve the current problem. Just that in most cases, they do not think of the implications of the solution they invented or brought before the table and what it will become in the next few months or years.

STRATEGIC THINKING
Most people who fall under this category are those who sit on the board of companies, executive management, and other top managerial staff. Another group of people who almost at the lowest level could find themselves using this strategy are those in Business Development, Sales, Marketing, and Branding. At this level of thinking, it is difficult for now not to be a critical thinker by default. People at this level of thought may not be good at Creative and Innovative thinking, but they can tell you the outcome of any level of thought brought to the table.
Strategic thinkers do not just think out solutions, but also the outcome and implications of any solution with practicability. They are also very good critiques but play it better in a diplomatic way than a Critical Thinker.

SUMMARY
In summary, I do not think there is anyone who does not possess at least one of these levels of thinking mentioned above. Therefore, there is a call for self-assessment to determine which level you fall under. It is also worthy of note that where there are underperformance complaints, it will imply that the said individual has refused to apply any of these thinking he/she may possess.
More so, when your colleagues, business associates, or leaders around you notice your work is filled with errors, there is a high tendency to get skeptical about your work each time.
The ability to apply one or more of these thinking strategies will place you on the pedestal of being solution-oriented. You will be seen as a think-tank and naturally, everyone will love to associate themselves with you. When you apply your thinking faculty very well, you will be seen as a solution center and will be almost indispensable in any organization you find yourself. 

So if you are in a team, and you want to achieve success, you have to first identify members of your team with each thinking skill and ability. This will help you understand how best to relate with them at an individual level. If you are a Team Lead or a Manager or Supervising people, your ability to channel tasks and responsibilities according to the individual capacity of your subordinates will basically determine the level of success to be achieved. Lastly, as a member of a team, you must push yourself out of the docile zone to the thinking zone, the zone that is solution-driven/result-oriented. This is how you can identify yourself as a performer.

Ikenna M. Okafor,
(SmeDoctor)

Human Resource Professional and a Management Consultant

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