Beyond Surface Fixes: Alvin Huang on Diagnosing Root Causes in Business

In a recent LinkedIn post, Alvin Huang addresses a common pitfall for founders and leaders: the tendency to fix the visible symptoms of a problem rather than its underlying cause. Huang argues that this approach, while offering temporary relief, ultimately leads to recurring issues and wasted resources.

Huang’s post, inspired by a contribution from Lise Kuecker, highlights how leaders often default to hiring new personnel or implementing additional processes when a team underperforms. However, he contends that these actions frequently miss the mark, failing to address core issues like unclear ownership or unmade decisions further up the organizational hierarchy.

“The instinct is always the same; either hire someone new or add another process. But none of this touches the actual issue, for usually it’s unclear ownership, or a decision that never got made further up the chain.”

The Trap of Quick Fixes

The core of Huang’s message revolves around the inefficiency of superficial solutions. He explains that while these ‘quick fixes’ might provide a temporary improvement, the fundamental problem remains unresolved, forcing leaders back to square one. This cycle, as Huang points out, depletes valuable time and financial capital without achieving lasting results.

“Founders see a problem and reach for the obvious fix, when all the while the cause underneath it stays untouched,” Huang writes. This pattern, he emphasizes, is not limited to team performance but is a broader tendency to address immediate issues without understanding their origins.

Strategies for Deeper Problem-Solving

To counter this tendency, Huang outlines five distinct methodologies designed to uncover and address the root causes of problems:

1. The Five Whys

This technique involves repeatedly asking “why” to peel back layers of symptoms until the fundamental cause is identified. Huang suggests starting with the visible problem, asking why it occurred, and continuing the inquiry for each subsequent answer until the core issue is revealed. The principle is to fix this root cause, building solutions from a solid foundation.

2. The Pre-Mortem

Huang proposes imagining a project or initiative has already failed. By defining success upfront and then projecting failure six months later, leaders can prompt their teams to identify the specific reasons for this hypothetical downfall. This exercise uncovers potential risks that can then be proactively mitigated before the project begins.

3. The Impact vs. Effort Matrix

This framework helps prioritize tasks by assessing their potential impact and the effort required. Huang categorizes actions into four quadrants: high impact/low effort (do first), high impact/high effort (plan carefully), low impact/low effort (delegate), and low impact/high effort (eliminate). This ensures energy is focused on the most valuable activities.

4. First Principles Thinking

Huang advocates for breaking down a problem into its most basic, fundamental truths, stripping away all assumptions. By questioning these foundational elements, one can rebuild solutions from the ground up, ensuring they are based on reality rather than preconceived notions.

5. C.O.A.C.H.

This mnemonic stands for Clarify the goal, Open the problem to the team, Align on a path, Commit to action, and Hold each other accountable. Huang presents this as a method that simultaneously solves problems and develops the team involved, fostering a collaborative and accountable environment.

Ultimately, Huang concludes that while addressing the root cause requires more time and effort upfront, it leads to more sustainable solutions. “Founders who patch it are back here again in six months. Founders who dig for the cause only have to fix it once,” he states, underscoring the long-term benefits of thorough diagnosis over superficial fixes.