Analytical Skills for Managers

Introduction

This 2-day course covers the performance outcomes, skills, and knowledge required to successfully develop skills that enable individuals and organizations to make better business judgments, set business objectives, and seek solutions to problems.

In more detail, the course focuses on identifying the cause of problems, implementing tools and techniques to develop solutions and make better decisions and judgments,  as well as developing a systematic approach to evaluating and monitoring the success of the actions taken.

Learning Outcomes

• Comprehend the importance of a structured and analytical approach to business problems and problem-solving process
• Learn and practice analytical problem solving and decision-making techniques to enable you to overcome problems and make difficult business judgments
• Understand the different stages of effective decision making
• Develop evaluation and monitoring systems within your organization

Benefits

• Identifying and clarifying the nature of problems
• Identify possible causes of problems
• Using and practicing a range of formal analytical problem-solving techniques
• Understand the process and levels of decision making
• Developing analytical thinking skills
• Solving difficult business problems and making better business decisions

Course Outline

Day 1

• Introduction to problem-solving and analytical decision making
• Creative vs. analytical problem solving
• Understand the nature of problems  and the complexity of problems
• Deviation, improvement, and open-ended problems
• Reactive vs. proactive problem solving
• Identify existing problem finding strategies in the organization
• Uncover who is affected by problems and the decision-making processes
• Brainstorming techniques

Day 2

• Forms of decision making
• The problem-solving process in 6 steps
• Analytical problem-solving methodologies and decision-making tools
• Root cause analysis 
• Ishikawa Model
• The 5 Why questions
• SWOT analysis
• Identifying standards to assess solutions
• Develop and assess alternatives
• The four-speed thinking tools
• The decision-making process
• Levels and Types of decision making
• The Six Thinking Hats – decision making in a group
• Communicating and implementing strategies
• Monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness