It wasn’t very long ago that I was unfamiliar with the importance of a problem statement while starting any new initiative. Obviously, things have changed for good and that’s the reason for writing this article. A problem statement is essentially a concise description of an issue to be
Ever wondered what’s the problem statement for Uber. The most common answers that I’ve received were in the lines of convenience, comfort, and transparency of commute whereas for Uber it’s the ways to reduce the idle time(the time between a passenger deboarding and a new passenger boarding) for a cab. Around this problem statement, a different set of technologies are used to design the solution.
Now let’s talk about the problem statement for Flipkart or Amazon. The most common answers lie in the range of varieties of a product, convenience of shopping, and trackable shipping. Essentially Amazon or Flipkart is like courier companies and their prime problem statement is to increase the effectiveness of their warehouses.
Finally, what’s common between the problem statements of Uber and Flipkart? Idle Resource Utilization. Now if we’re to treat; idle resource utilization as a yardstick then we realize that Airbnb is also doing the same thing.
A startup could be solving multiple problems but clearly selecting the one carrying the most relevance at an early stage helps in gaining momentum leading to eventual success. Many times, it is advised to place the human in the centre of problem-solving to forge effective solutions.
I’m hopeful that this post gave you some enlightenment regarding the role and importance of a problem statement. Looking forward to hearing your responses and views.