That’s exactly what I’ve been thinking 6 You’ve put your finger on the root problem.

Listening Questions

Answer 4: If we can pinpoint the flaw, we can improve the product Answer 5: This project is something you can really sink your teeth into.

B. Supporting a Point

5. That’s exactly what I’ve been thinking 6 You’ve put your finger on the root problem.

7. That’s right, we used to do it differently. 8. I couldn’t agree with you more.

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Unit 213 - Discussing a Problem (Part 2)

In the first part of this meeting, the team spent time answering the question: “What is the problem?” In today’s episode, we’re going to focus on how to brainstorm solutions to a problem through discussion, how to evaluate and eliminate suggestions and then agree a plan of action.

Kathryn, the head of Human Resources at a medium-sized company, is meeting with department heads to discuss a problem they are having with low staff morale. The team has identified the root cause of the problem as the separation of staff across 3 different office locations.

Kathryn wants everyone to critique the ideas that the group has brought forward, in order to eliminate impractical suggestions. We’ll see how she confirms the best solution and how her team suggests points for action. As the dialog starts, Kathryn closes the brainstorming session and sums up the input that has been received.

While you listen, try to answer the following questions.

Listening Questions

1) How many ideas does the group come up with for solving the staff morale problem?

2) Which idea does the group agree is the best one to try?

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Vocabulary

To outdo oneself: to perform better than in the past. “She’s really outdone

herself this time. Five new clients in one day is an incredible record!”

To keep in mind: to remember while doing something else. “We have to keep

our goals in mind when negotiating the new contract.”

There’s no way: impossible. “There’s no way we can wait another week for the

parts.”

To not do (any) good: to not produce a good result, to be a waste of time. “It

won’t do any good to complain to the boss; he never listens to staff on these issues.”

To show up: to arrive. “They showed up 45 minutes late and expected us to

welcome them!”

To make it: to be able to do something, such as attending a meeting. “She

called to say she can’t make it because there’s a snow storm and planes aren’t being allowed to take off.”

Given that: similar to “because”, the reason for something. “We can’t expect

them to help us, given that we didn’t help them last month when they had that delivery problem.”

Virtually no…: almost nothing, a very small amount. “There’s virtually no

communication between the two offices.”

To be able to see something + ing: to imagine something as feasible. Usually

used in the negative as in, “I can’t see (something) happening”, to express skepticism that something will not occur or is not feasible. “I can’t really see them investing in such a large project with the economy so bad.”

Gonna: slang abbreviation of “going to”. “He’s gonna get fired if he keeps

coming late to work.”

Go for that: to agree to something. “A: What about breaking for lunch at 12

o’clock? B: Yes, I’ll go for that.”

Twenty-something: a person or people aged in their twenties. “There were a lot

of twenty-somethings at the retreat.”

To be stripped to the bare bones: to be down to the basics. “We just can’t cut

anything else from the budget; it’s stripped to the bare bones already.”

The way to go: the best choice. “I can’t see that there’s any other way to go; all

the other suggestions cost too much.”

The idea is to…: the intention of an action. “The idea is to earn more on each sale, rather than increase numbers of sales.”

Actually: difficult to believe but true. “He’s actually been promoted to district

manager, which is surprising after the problems they’ve had with him.”

Cost-benefit analysis: a financial evaluation of a particular project or plan. “It’s

essential to conduct a cost-benefit-analysis before we buy the new computers to make sure they will actually save money in the long term.”

Lease: a legal document stating the terms under which a property is rented. “We

extended the lease on our office for another 5-years.”

Action plan (plan of action): a series of actions or activities designed to achieve

a specific goal. “We need a plan of action to tackle the problem of low staff morale.”

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Dialog

Kathryn: …good, thank you everybody. I think we’ve outdone ourselves brainstorming solutions to the staff morale problem. Natalie, can you read the main ideas back to us?

Natalie: Sure thing. Uh, number 1: team-building exercises, Number 2: consolidating offices, Number 3: social activities, and Number 4: internal social- networking website and/or blog.

Kathryn: Great, thanks. Let’s look at each of these, keeping in mind our definition of the root cause of low morale - the separation of staff into 3 locations.

Neil: Well there’s no way that social activities will do any good. Nobody will show up, even if the company pays. It’s hard enough for us to make it to the Christmas party.

Paul: I agree that social activities are a poor choice. Also, given that we have virtually no money to spend on this, I can’t see us hiring a consultant to do team-building exercises.

Kathryn: Okay. So, can we eliminate these two possibilities? All: (Murmurs of agreement)

Bill: Then there’s social-networking. Interesting idea, but there’s no way old guys like me are gonna go for that. Maybe the twenty-somethings…

Neil: Plus, if we contract it out, we’ll spend money. We can’t build a site in- house, because the IT department is stripped to the bare bones now as it is. Kathryn: Then it seems to me that moving everyone back to this location is the way to go. What’s our first step if we want to implement this?

Paul: Well, the idea was that this solution would actually save us money, so we’d better check that out first with a cost-benefit analysis.

Natalie: We have the same landlord for all locations, so let’s look at those empty offices below us here, and see if we can get out of the existing leases for the other locations.

Kathryn: Okay, it sounds like we’re already putting together an action plan.

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Debrief

By defining the problem, brainstorming solutions and deciding on a course of action, our team looks to have found their solution. Let’s take a closer look at the language they used to facilitate the problem-solving process.

First of all, how does Kathryn indicate that the brainstorming session is finished? She doesn’t want it to go on for too long and some good ideas have been put forth. Listen to how she thanks everybody and then compliments the team on their work.

Kathryn: …good, thank you everybody. I think we’ve outdone ourselves brainstorming solutions to the staff morale problem. Natalie, can you read the main ideas back to us?

Saying “thank you” is a good way to stop a discussion because it is a polite way for someone in a leadership position to say that they have heard enough. When Kathryn says “we’ve outdone ourselves”, she compliments the group on their good work, by saying that the group has performed better than ever before. Then she asks Natalie, who has been taking notes during brainstorming, to remind them of the main ideas discussed.

What else can you say to close a discussion in a positive way? Here are a few more examples.

 Well done, team. I think we’ve got a grip on this.

 Excellent work, everybody. I’d say we’ve really managed to pull it off.  Outstanding teamwork, folks. Let’s wrap it up.

 Nice work, everyone. It looks like we’ve got it.

Now listen to how Kathryn encourages the team to evaluate and critique the results of the brainstorming session:

Kathryn: Let’s look at each of these, keeping in mind our definition of the root cause of low morale - the separation of staff into 3 locations.

When you critique something, you analyze it and then express your views. Kathryn wants everybody to evaluate the suggestions, but she wants their analysis to have a clear relation to the exact problem they defined in the earlier part of the meeting. She wants them to remember what the problem is, so that the solution will directly address the real problem.

Let’s listen to some alternative ways to encourage discussion and evaluation, while focusing on the defined problem:

 I’d like to hear your comments on this issue, taking into account our previous discussion.

 I’m open to feedback on these points, keeping in mind how we’ve defined the problem.

 Can we consider each point, bearing in mind how little time we have?

 Let’s take a look at the solutions one by one, considering what our objective is.

110 When you’re asked to critique ideas, it’s wise to support your evaluation with evidence of why you believe something is a good idea or a bad idea. Notice how Paul gives a contrasting reason for why they cannot hire a consultant. He states that they have virtually no money, meaning almost no money or very little money. This is obviously in contrast to the fact that consultants are expensive.

Paul: … a poor choice. Also, given that we have virtually no money to spend on this, I can’t see us hiring a consultant to do team-building exercises.

When Paul says that he “can’t see them hiring a consultant”, he means that he cannot imagine that this is possible. His statement has two parts; a part which says what cannot be done and a part which tells why it cannot be done. He uses “given that” to introduce the reason why something cannot be done.

This is a really useful structure for expressing negative opinions, so let’s practice a few more examples:

 It’s impossible to see how hiring another person will have an effect, seeing as productivity is the problem.

 I can’t see him agreeing to that, given his resistance to change.

 I just can’t visualize three desks in each office, since it’s so cramped with just two.

 Asking the warehouse staff to do that is not an option, keeping in mind that it’s against union rules.

 Adding more tasks is out of the question, considering that they’re already working overtime.

As the meeting leader, Kathryn needs to keep everyone focused and ensure that the meeting is effective. When she hears that there is a good reason why an idea is not practical, she tries to eliminate the idea from their list as quickly as possible.

Kathryn: So, can we eliminate these two possibilities?

Two people have given reasons against two of the ideas and the contributors explained very clearly what is wrong with the ideas. Kathryn wants to eliminate these ideas, but she checks with the team first to make sure that everyone agrees. However, it is clear that she has the final decision on eliminating suggestions.

Notice how some of these examples restate the reason an idea is being eliminated, but that in every case the speaker remains polite:

 We’ll have to discard this idea, as there’s no way to implement it right now.  Is everyone agreed that we can reject the second suggestion?

 This contribution will have to be dropped for the moment, but we can keep it in mind for next year.

 While this is a great idea, we’ll have to exclude it under the circumstances.  I’m afraid that we have to rule out this suggestion due to its unpredictability. After impractical ideas are eliminated, there may be one or two ideas left to be evaluated. In our example, the team manages to eliminate three of the four

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ideas, leaving them with one solution. What does Kathryn say to confirm that this solution is the best one?

Kathryn: Then it seems to me that moving all staff back to this location is the way to go. What’s our…

Kathryn says that the solution they have chosen is the “way to go”, meaning the best choice. It is a solution that she thinks they should implement. It is clear that Kathryn is the final decision-maker in the group, but anyone can use this kind of language to support a point they feel strongly about.

Here are some examples of other expressions to use when you want to confirm the best course of action:

 There’s no doubt that eliminating the most unprofitable division is the best course of action.

 It’s clear that expanding the R & D department is the best option.  Relocating the staff room during the renovation is the obvious choice.  Clearly, closing that office is our best move at this point.

Now that the best solution has been confirmed, it’s time for the team to take action! Both Paul and Natalie have ideas about what the first steps should be in pursuing the chosen solution.

Paul: Well, the idea was that this solution would actually save us money, so we’d better check that out first with a cost-benefit analysis.

Natalie: We have the same landlord for all locations, so let’s look at those empty offices below us here, and see if we can get out of the existing leases for the other locations.

Notice how Paul and Natalie use expressions that show the relationship between the background information they have and an action to be taken. Paul says that the idea, or the intention, is for the solution to save them money. This is the background to the suggestion, and he says that the action they must take is to confirm that the company would, in reality, save money. Natalie also gives some background knowledge, that there is one landlord for all three offices, and suggests a related action.

Listen to these points for action, along with the background information that makes them necessary or appropriate:

 Our deadline is coming up quickly, so we need to get authorization for overtime.

 The replacement order is ready to be shipped, so one of us should re-check it immediately.

 Three containers have arrived, so if you authorize our broker to put a rush on it, we can get the toys out to stores right away.

 We can’t slow production, but we can ramp up inspections to make sure that quality doesn’t suffer.

Now, it’s your turn to practice some of the techniques we’ve looked at today. First, let’s review the language of critiquing a point with a contrasting reason. Imagine you are in a problem-solving meeting. You will hear a comment made

112 on a problem issue. You should critique the suggestion being made, by using the reason given.

For example, if you hear…

Example cue: Why don’t we just buy more desks and find space for them on

the 4th_floor?

Reason: already too crowded

You can say…

Example answer: I can’t see adding more desks, considering how crowded it is

on the 4th_{floor already.}

Are you ready? Let’s give it a try.

Cue 1: We could cut costs by eliminating the parking subsidy.

In document Meeting Essentials (Page 105-112)