Reframing Problems | Roy Rosin | TEDxRadnorHighSchool
Summary
TLDRIn this insightful talk, Roy Rosen, Chief Innovations Officer at Penn Medical Center, explores the power of problem reframing to unlock innovation. Through anecdotes and examples from various industries, he illustrates how redefining the problem statement can lead to unexpected and impactful solutions. From improving car rental experiences to addressing anemia in Cambodia, Rosen emphasizes the importance of deep immersion and the 'five so what's' technique to uncover the root cause and catalyze meaningful change.
Takeaways
- 🔑 The importance of problem framing: Mr. Rosen emphasized that how a problem is framed can unlock innovation and reveal solutions in unexpected places.
- 🚗 The anecdote about the high school student: A personal story illustrates how a simple observation can lead to a deeper understanding of the underlying issues, like the need to leave earlier rather than driving faster.
- 🔍 The use of 'five whys' and 'five so what's': These problem-solving techniques help to dig deeper into the root cause of an issue and to explore the implications of different problem statements.
- 🚍 The car rental industry example: Shows how changing the problem statement from 'the line is too slow' to 'time from plane to car' can lead to innovative solutions like Hertz NeverLost.
- 🪒 The Gillette example: Demonstrates how reframing the problem from 'the blade isn't sharp enough' to 'how quickly hair comes back' can lead to the invention of multi-blade razors.
- 🩺 The healthcare industry: Mr. Rosen shares his experience in healthcare, where reframing the problem statement can lead to more effective solutions, like online scheduling for doctor's appointments.
- 🐟 Lucky Iron Fish: An example of how reframing the problem of anemia from dietary change to iron leaching from cooking utensils led to a simple and effective solution.
- 🧿 Life-Saving Dot: Shows how reframing the problem of iodine deficiency from dietary change to skin absorption through a bindi led to a life-saving innovation.
- 👶 Embrace Baby Warmer: An example from healthcare where reframing the problem of keeping premature babies warm from incubators to body heat led to a cost-effective solution.
- 🏥 Discharges in healthcare: The story of how reframing the problem from 'discharges are too late' to 'time to treatment' can lead to innovative solutions that don't necessarily involve beds or discharge times.
- 🌐 The impact of deep immersion: Mr. Rosen explains that immersing oneself in the context of a problem can lead to a better understanding and innovative solutions, as illustrated by the stories of heart failure and cholera prevention.
- 🚢 The history of containerization: Concludes with the story of how a trucker's observation led to the invention of containerization, revolutionizing the shipping industry and demonstrating the power of reframing problems.
Q & A
Who is the speaker in the provided transcript?
-The speaker is Mr. Roy Rosen, the Chief Innovations Officer at the Penn Medical Center.
What is the main topic of Mr. Rosen's talk?
-The main topic of Mr. Rosen's talk is 'Reframing Problems' and how it can unlock innovation and reveal solutions in unexpected places.
What is the significance of the story about Mr. Rosen's son and the car ride to school?
-The story illustrates the importance of proper problem framing, showing how incorrect framing can lead to ineffective solutions.
What is the 'five whys' technique mentioned in the script?
-The 'five whys' is a problem-solving technique that involves asking 'why' five times to get to the root cause of a problem.
How does Mr. Rosen use the car rental industry example to explain problem framing?
-Mr. Rosen compares the traditional approach of speeding up the car rental line with the innovative approach of Hertz's 'NeverLost' service, which reframes the problem from speed of service to time from plane landing to being in the car.
What is the 'five so what's' technique that Mr. Rosen refers to?
-The 'five so what's' technique is a method of exploring the implications of a problem statement, asking 'so what' to understand the underlying issues and potential benefits of different outcomes.
How does the story of the Lucky Iron Fish relate to problem reframing?
-The Lucky Iron Fish story demonstrates how reframing the problem from dietary iron intake to iron leaching from cooking utensils led to an innovative solution for anemia.
What is the significance of the 'Embrace Baby Warmer' in the context of problem reframing?
-The 'Embrace Baby Warmer' is an example of how reframing the problem from providing incubators to maintaining stable body temperature led to a cost-effective solution for premature babies.
What does Mr. Rosen suggest as a method for identifying the root problem in healthcare?
-Mr. Rosen suggests deep immersion in the patient's world and context as a method for identifying the root problem, rather than assuming the problem based on superficial observations.
How does the story of Rita Colwell and the cholera solution exemplify problem reframing?
-Rita Colwell's story shows how understanding the local culture and environment led to a simple and effective solution for cholera by using a sari cloth filter, rather than focusing on boiling water which was impractical for the locals.
What is the lesson from the brief history of the shipping industry that Mr. Rosen concludes with?
-The lesson is the importance of recognizing and reframing the real problem, as demonstrated by the trucker who redefined the problem from the speed of shipping to the efficiency of loading and unloading, leading to the invention of containerization.
Outlines
🔍 The Power of Problem Framing
In this paragraph, Mr. Roy Rosen, the Chief Innovations Officer at Penn Medical Center, introduces the concept of problem framing as a key to unlocking innovation. He uses a personal anecdote about his son's tardiness due to slow driving to illustrate how reframing a problem can lead to unexpected solutions. Rosen explains that instead of focusing on the superficial issue of driving speed, a deeper analysis might reveal underlying causes such as the time spent on morning routines or other activities. He emphasizes the importance of looking beyond the obvious to find the root cause, which can lead to more effective and innovative solutions.
🚗 Innovations in Transportation and Healthcare
This paragraph delves into how problem reframing can revolutionize industries such as car rental services and healthcare. Rosen discusses the transformation of the car rental industry from a slow, line-based process to the introduction of services like Hertz 24/7, which allows customers to bypass lines and have a car ready upon arrival. He also touches on the evolution of shaving products, where understanding the customer's desire for a closer shave led to the invention of multi-blade razors. In healthcare, Rosen shares his experience with online doctor appointment scheduling, highlighting the importance of understanding the true problem—access to appointments—rather than just making the scheduling process more convenient.
💉 Addressing Global Health Challenges with Innovation
The focus of this paragraph is on innovative solutions to global health issues, such as anemia and iodine deficiency. Rosen describes how the Lucky Iron Fish, a simple iron cooking tool, effectively reduced anemia rates in Cambodia by increasing iron intake through everyday cooking. Similarly, the Life-Saving Dot, a bindi soaked in iodine, addressed iodine deficiency in rural India by providing a simple, behaviorally compatible solution. He also discusses the Embrace Baby Warmer, a low-cost alternative to incubators, which has saved thousands of premature babies by providing warmth and reducing mortality rates.
🏥 Rethinking Hospital Discharges and Treatment Access
This paragraph examines the issue of late hospital discharges and the importance of reframing the problem to find a more effective solution. Rosen shares a story where the initial problem of late discharges was reframed to focus on the time to treatment rather than the time of day. This shift in perspective opened up new opportunities for innovation, such as improving the availability of chemotherapy beds. He also discusses the importance of deep immersion in the context of a problem, using the example of heart failure patients and the need for a tasty low-sodium diet rather than just education and reminders.
🚢 The Impact of Problem Reframing in the Shipping Industry
The final paragraph concludes with a historical perspective on the shipping industry, illustrating the profound impact of problem reframing. Rosen recounts how the industry was on the brink of collapse due to rising costs and inefficiencies. The conventional approach to speed up shipping across water proved ineffective. However, a trucker's observation led to the invention of containerization, which revolutionized the industry by focusing on the time ships spent idle in ports. This reframing not only saved the shipping industry but also significantly reduced shipping costs and expanded global trade.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Innovation
💡Problem Framing
💡Root Cause Analysis
💡Five Whys
💡Five So What's
💡Healthcare
💡Anemia
💡Iodine Deficiency
💡Premature Babies
💡Containerization
Highlights
Roy Rosen, Chief Innovations Officer at Penn Medical Center, discusses the power of problem framing in innovation.
Problem framing can reveal solutions in unexpected places, as illustrated by a personal story about getting to school on time.
Common problem-solving tools like root cause analysis can lead to incorrect conclusions if applied to the wrong problem statement.
The importance of considering other factors beyond the obvious when analyzing problems, such as the role of pet interactions in morning routines.
The impact of changing problem statements on the solution set in commercial and innovation contexts.
The evolution of car rental services and the shift from focusing on line speed to overall customer experience.
The significance of the 'five so what's' technique in understanding the underlying problem before applying the 'five whys'.
Gillette's customer-centric approach and the shift from focusing on blade sharpness to achieving a closer shave.
In healthcare, the realization that online scheduling of doctor's appointments may not address the core issue of access to care.
The Lucky Iron Fish project as an example of reframing the problem of anemia through a cultural and behavioral lens.
The Life-Saving Dot's innovative approach to addressing iodine deficiency by leveraging existing cultural practices.
The importance of deep immersion in the context of a problem to uncover the right problem statement, as shown in the case of heart failure patients.
Rita Colwell's story of combating cholera in Bangladesh through a culturally embedded solution of using sari cloth as a filter.
The history of the shipping industry and the pivotal moment when containerization was invented, revolutionizing global trade.
The critical role of observing and understanding the full context of a problem, as demonstrated by the trucker who redefined shipping efficiency.
The overarching theme that reframing problems can lead to innovative solutions that might have been missed with traditional problem-solving approaches.
A call to action for juniors with cars to help with the school transportation issue, highlighting the speaker's personal touch and engagement with the audience.
Transcripts
please welcome to the stage mr. Roy
Rosen Roy Rosen is the chief innovations
officer at the Penn Medical Center and
has three kids in the Radner School
District one here at the high school
tonight mr. Rosen will be exploring how
problem framing unlocks innovation and
reveals solutions in the most unlikely
of places so join me in welcoming mr.
Rosen with the talk entitled reframing
problems we're going to go at the
virtual clicker this means quick not
working so occasionally in my life I am
referred to as mr. Rosen at madnes High
School I very proudly go by mr. wilson's
little brother so I'll keep that with
pride and so I'm a freshman here at
Radnor and he is generally on time and
he's on time because of our wonderful
neighbor Claire who is a senior with a
car the other day Claire wasn't able to
drive and my wife gave our freshmen a
ride and they did not make it by 7:35
that evening my son said something
interesting he said mom drove too slowly
it's a really interesting pump statement
because it basically says well if the
problem is the speed of transit then the
solution clearly is drive faster and now
we can use very common tools about
problem analysis root cause analysis
five wise so we're not going after the
symptoms but the root but if you do
these common tools on the wrong problem
statement something interesting happens
so so why were we not going faster oh
well we weren't pressing hard enough on
the pedal okay
so pressed hard on the pedal why weren't
we pressing harder on the pedal maybe we
didn't want to get a ticket
oh so the solution now is get a better
lawyer so so maybe not the most
constructive in the instead you could
say well there are other factors going
on here and this is where problem
reframing gets so interesting maybe it
was what time you got out of bed how
long did you spend brushing your teeth
did you have your backpack the night
before and how long did you spend
petting the puppy which is probably the
real issue
so I've been fascinated by problem
framing for a long time especially
because you start to see out in the
world and a commercial world what an
incredible difference it can make how
the solution set changes when the
problem statement or the problem framing
changes so I went to high school in the
80s and in the 80s if you wanted to rent
a car in a big airport you were going to
face the worst line ever invented by
humankind you'd be in that car that line
that meant a line for absolutely hours
and you can imagine a place like Kurt's
trying to fix this and wanting to
improve the experience and studying it
and most obvious thing you would see in
this end-to-end experience is the speed
of the line so you're most likely
problem a statement or initial problem
solution is framing is the line is too
slow
so if the problem statement is the line
of too slow what's better faster right
so that's interesting right you say why
does it want line to slow maybe our
staffing model is wrong maybe maybe the
paper work is such that it takes too
long to process each person in line so
that normal problem analysis of route
calls and five wise can get you to a new
staffing model or it can get you to a
better paper work that makes people go
through the line faster but try the
other thing for us this is the essence
to unlocking veel innovation with palm
framing before you do the five why's we
do what's called the five so what's you
go the other way the top the line is too
slow so what what would be good about
that well if the line is faster I get to
my car more quickly now you have an
interesting problem framing right so
it's not the speed of the line it's the
time from when the plane lands to when
you're in the car on the way now you can
invent hertz goal and this is an
interesting thing as you look around the
world in in other situations if you go
back to the beginning of gillette long
before they became a multibillion-dollar
company but by Procter & Gamble they
wanted to be customer customer centric
and so they went to the customers and
said how do we make a better blade and
the customer said well the blades not
sharp enough and if you go back to your
team and say the problem is the blade
isn't sharp enough what do you get a
sharper blade right if you try this five
so what's before the five why's
something in
testing happens so what would be good
about a sharper blade oh I'd get a
closer shave and this is where it starts
to get annoying and difficult if you're
supposed to have any expertise you have
to keep going
well what would be good about a closer
shave now don't forget you're supposed
to be an expert in shaving you work for
Gillette and your customers are looking
at your funny going what would be good
about a closer shave and they'll tell
you they'll say look I hate shaving I
want an outcome I want to set an outcome
without all the shaving so it's actually
not the sharpness of the blade it's
probably something more like how quickly
the hair comes back right so if you
start to understand this problem
statement you actually can do something
interesting via now up to seven blades
at last count the way this works is the
first plate actually picks up the hair
the next blade cuts at a point below
your skin I don't care how sharp your
blade is you can't normally cut below my
skin but if you realize that this is
about how long before the hair returns
you might invent electrolysis
it's not about sharpness it's not even
about blades anymore
I moved recently to the healthcare
industry and install this again in
spades so one of the first projects that
lands on my desk is a bunch of people
who are really adamant about online
scheduling of doctor's appointments and
they asked me to go and help them
implement this way of doing online
scheduling of doctors appointments like
OpenTable I notice there's so many
people here tonight all the tables even
every time slot is available in our
local restaurants so must have a good
pull here at Radnor so I sat with this
team and I said okay we can do this this
is a it's not hard to imagine how we do
online scheduling it seems like a great
idea hey tell me what would be good
about that why is that important to you
again the five sowhat's and starting
just with which narrative with the
stories every single story was about the
same thing
access I need a dermatology appointment
I can't get in for three months I need a
neurologist I can't get in for five
months had we gone forward and done
online scheduling the only thing that
would have changed would how fast and
easy it would be to see that you can't
get in which I don't think actually
solves the problem very well so as I
look beyond in healthcare some of my
favorite innovations now reveal this
wonderful opportunity for
I'm reframing I'll just hit to hear so
lucky iron fish in life-saving dot which
you may have heard of they've gotten
some great news coverage so lucky iron
fish is a Canadian guy up in Cambodia
who notices an extreme incidence of
anemia low iron in the blood and so you
can start to imagine what the initial
problem statement is what the X would
say the problem is here right so if you
have anemia they say change your diet
you need more iron or take supplements
in the lifesaving dot in the lower right
you have women in rural India who are
very poor who are not having enough
iodine again it's a dietary problem
change your diet change what you eat
take your supplements so very very
similar in nature the reality is people
aren't going to change their diets and
we all know they're not going to take
their medications compliance is low
tastes aren't gonna change income isn't
going to change access to different
foods isn't going to change it's just
not going to work this way up in the in
the upper left the gentlemen in Cambodia
starts to realize that people who cook
with heavy iron skillets iron skillets
the iron actually can leach into the
food and start to address and make the
incidence of anemia go down
he tried this couple different times he
started with iron blocks that didn't
work in fact people not only thought
they're ugly they were worried they'd
scratched the pots when he came back to
see what was happening with them people
using his doorstops so that was not a
very effective solution but then he
found that this try can't drop the fish
shown there oh it's the symbol of health
and luck in Cambodia was something
people like they left in their pot they
didn't change behavior they cooked as
they did before and the iron leached in
and the incidence of anemia went down in
in the case of the life-saving dot again
it wasn't about education was about diet
change it wasn't about medication
adherence in fact iodine is something
that can be absorbed through the skin
it's about delivery of iodine so they I
took the bindi every woman in this area
pretty much wears a bindi on her
forehead they took the bindi they soaked
the bindi in iodine you do the same
thing you're doing before every morning
you put your bindi on $0.16 for 30 of
them to last a month and now you getting
the iodine that you need just absorb
through your skin no change in behavior
so this problem if aiming is critical
and if I keep going again actually let's
go to the other coast here back to back
to America now
couple kids this dancer who see a very
interesting problem premature low birth
weight babies have a very high mortality
rate unfortunately about 4 million
babies around the world are still dying
within the first month so they're very
very early very small can't regulate
their body temperatures at some point
someone invented an incubator saved a
lot of kids but as they go around the
world they actually start to see that
there are still all these babies dying
they're being born in places that often
don't have an incubator you think your
babies cost $20,000 and they require a
continuous supply of electricity so as
they start to think about how do we get
these babies to the incubators because
that is a good solution you can use this
technique of the five why's to change
that problem statement and it changes
what you're able to do right so what
would be good about getting these low
birth weight premature babies to an
incubator faster the answer is they'd
get to that appropriate stable
temperature more quickly so that's
really what you're trying to do and in
that case instead of $20,000 in requires
electricity you can have something
that's three hundred dollars and has now
saved about 150 thousand babies the
embraced baby warmer absolutely
wonderful invention that changed the way
you actually have to think about what
women will will do to save their
children women actually don't want in
these areas to put their baby inside a
machine they want the baby against their
body so actually the one on the right
not only is much much less but it
actually is something people will use to
get the outcome and so here's an example
in healthcare of how painful and
difficult like in the shaving example
this really can be we were approached by
the senior executive to solve this
problem that discharges were getting too
late in the day people leaving the
hospital too late in the day and it's a
great example that sometimes we solve
the wrong problem because we're asked or
told to solve the wrong problem so
discharge is later in the day that's go
through the stories well what would be
good about that not why but what would
be good about earlier in the day well
what ends up that we have 50 people who
need chemotherapy we only have 10 beds
okay I need to get those guys out to get
the new people in got it oh that's
interesting so it's not time of day it's
like this day in other words earlier the
next day isn't better than later the day
before it's how long they're in the
hospital right god
okay well what would be good about a
shorter length instead really well okay
let's think I just told you I need to
get those people out to get these people
into the bed to the chemo oh so it's not
Lanka's day it's actually time to a bed
well what the heck is the difference
you're just playing around with words
right well no not at all because again
every time you change the problem the
solution set changes in one of those
cases time to a bed versus length to
stay in one of those cases the number of
beds you have matters and the other one
the number of beds you have doesn't
change Mike to stay at all right okay so
it's time to get your bed I get it but
what would be good about time to a bed I
just told you three times right they
need their chemo oh it's not time to bed
but it's time to get your chemo and so
every time you change the problem your
solutions that does change in fact now
when you get to time to treatment not
only do you not necessarily need a bed
you know it may not be in the hospital
they may not be no discharge whatsoever
so the whole thing now reveals
opportunities for innovation you never
had so how do you do this other than the
storytelling and the five sowhat's
instead of the five was the best way
I've ever found to get to the wheel
problem is solving is deep immersion in
the world you have to go embed yourself
contextually right so if you have heart
failure this is a good example you
usually come back to the hospital you
admitted back to the hospital because
you didn't take your meds or you didn't
stick to your low sodium diet or
something along those lines it's
generally seen that the problem here is
that people either didn't understand how
important those things were or they
forgot in which case then the solutions
if that's the problem framing the
solutions would be education and
reminders what if those are the wrong
problems altogether right so in this
case you go into their home you embed
yourself in their life and you see
something like this right you see this
Trader Joe's favorites what's going on
here it ends up if you spent your life
eating high sodium foods you like the
taste of salt things that don't have
sodium taste terrible these are the two
only two things that this patient has
tried that she might try again so when
you start to see artifacts like that you
say you know what I would do better to
invent a tasty low sodium diet than
education and reminders I was going
after the wrong problem and these things
this approach can change the world
one of my favorite stories happened in
Bangladesh Rita Colwell as a biologist
he was going after cholera in Bangladesh
and it's a terrible disease it was still
you know not that long ago killing
thousands of children mostly others as
well and it's it's a kind of disease
that is understandable if you emerge you
immerse yourself in the culture so Rita
as this file just Dovan right she
understands it's driven by bacteria that
live in the fresh water supplies where
they gather the water she understands
that the bacteria hitches a ride along
with these plankton that bloom at
certain times of the year in particular
she understands the jugs that the women
used on how they dumped them under water
the wall under the water the water goes
into the jug she sees the dress the
clothes and she has an idea she says you
know what this is interesting I think I
can create a filter what if because the
plankton is a sizable that the bacteria
is attached to what if I can filter it
out into the experiments and finds that
if you fold sari cloth over four to
eight times in the soy cloth these women
are wearing or have around the house you
actually let the water come into the jug
you see how the cloth is over the top of
the jug so you dunk it the water goes in
but the plankton carrying the bacteria
don't go in fact you can strain out 99%
of it and it's an amazing solution at
the time the experts were saying oh you
have bacteria in the water simple what
we need to do the problem is that people
aren't boiling their water we need to
get them to boil their water but because
she was embedded in most of this culture
she knew not possible they need fuel to
boil the water fuel is Wood Wood is
scarce and very expensive they're not
going to be able to do it this solution
cut cholera by 50 percent absolutely
remarkable and I'll end on this story a
very brief history of the shipping
industry it's one of my favorite stories
that kind of gives you this idea that
you have to be able to see what people
have missed there it is the very brief
history of the shipping industry and
right there in the 1950s you have this
great ship right and so in the 1950s
everyone said shipping was going to die
no more right it's the only way anything
got around the world up into that point
but the cost were going through the roof
the shaft was going through the roof
delivery times were going through the
roof and it wasn't for wanting people
innovating there were thousands of
people innovating to try to solve this
really urgent problem because this was
commerce right and at the same time they
said well now these newfangled airplanes
they're going to
everything by ear so people studied this
problem and they said what's simple
right the ship goes from port a
thousands and thousands of miles across
the water to put be so 99.9999% of this
journey is across the water let's
innovate they're the fastest ship to get
across fastest the first nuclear
freighter to save on fuel ships designed
for small crews right because there's a
lot of human cost to getting across that
water all failed the way the story goes
is one day a trucker from North Carolina
was sitting there watching the work
immersed in the work he didn't dump his
load and leave he stuck and watched the
unloading and unpacking of his truck
down onto the dock and the reloading
repacking up onto the ship and he had an
epiphany it was the wrong problem
framing the real problem was the week
that the ship's at idle in the port and
so he of course realized just take the
back of my truck off my truck put it on
the ship he invented containerization
not only the shipping not die 90% of
everything goes around the world today
the cost of shipping is 5% of what it
was in the 1950s and this is responsible
for the breadth of goods and prices we
have the United States and the
livelihood of most developing nations
around the world because of the ability
to see what other people missed and
reframe the problem and get to a much
better solution so back to getting to
school on time
I know there's a lot of different ways
we could frame it and solve it but I
leave you with this request if there are
any juniors in the audience you have a
car and it could be driving next year
please get in touch with me thank you
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