TWELVE STAGES IN THE

CREATIVE PROBLEM-
SOVLING PROCESS

Dr. Alan Carsrud

Director
FIU Center for Global Entrepreneurial
Leadership & Innovation

Based on the work of Dr. Alan Carsrud & Dr. Ed Rockey

 KEYS TO EFFECTIVE
PROBLEM SOLVING
• Different tasks call for variations in the
phases,
• The 12 steps comprise the complete
cycle,
• You may bypass some phases or
recycle.
 AWARENESS OF
OPPORTUNITY OR A GOAL

• Divergent or imaginative thinkers

tend to note opportunities or
problems.
• Curiosity and attention are essential
for noticing what’s wrong or what is an
opportunity.
 DEFINING THE ISSUE

Go beyond mere symptoms to the

core issue.
Isolate what you’re looking for or
focus.
FOCUS, FOCUS, AND FOCUS
 ACCEPTANCE
This all-too-often-neglected aspect
involves allowing the issue to have a
life of its own.
Engage the problem.
Allow the problem or goal to become
your process.
 DATA-GATHERING
EXPERTISE

“Chance favors the expert” Pasteur.

Find pertinent facts.

Don’t expect certainty.
 ANALYZE DATA

Use well-established logical models,

Blend with intuitive techniques.

Don’t forget your MBA/Engineering

training, nor be imprisoned by it.
 GENERATE NEW IDEAS &
APPROACHES

• Unbundle your assumptions about

how things ought to be.
• Through brainstorming or other
methods, produce a large quantity of
possible solutions.
 INCUBATION

“Don’t just do something; stand there

for a while.”
Allow ideas time to hatch or ferment.
But, don’t stand forever waiting either.
 SYNTHESIS =
“AH HA!”=
ENLIGHTENMENT

In other words: The “Eureka” event.

SELECTING or DECIDING

Which solution will you implement?

 SIMULATION &
VERIFICATION

• What are the risks?

• In a low risk situation, you might
skip this step.
• When building a passenger
aircraft, you dare not skip.
 ORGANIZATIONAL
ACCEPTANCE
•People support what they help
create.
• Involve people early on.
•Fine ideas will die without the
support of key decision-makers.
 IMPLEMENTATION &
EVALUATION
• Take action on the chosen
solution, hence the meaning of
the term “Entrepreneur,” to enter
and to do.
• Determine the effects. What are
the potential outcomes: profits,
acceptance, etc.
 APPLY CREATIVE
DECISION MAKING TO
THE DEVELOPMENT OF
YOUR BUSINESS
CONCEPT