Solving the Right Problem
Learning to Work with Complexity Through Action, AI, and Play
ByAlexander de HaanPieter ter Doest
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Solve the right problem.
Not faster. But better. Together.
In a world of dashboards, deadlines, and constant pressure to act, it is tempting to move to solutions as quickly as possible. Often, that feels productive. But in complex situations, fast answers can narrow the field too soon, create new problems, and make it harder to see what is really going on.
This book helps you slow down without losing momentum.
It is a practical guide for people who have to work and decide in situations where there is no single right answer: professionals, students, advisors, leaders, and anyone dealing with uncertainty, multiple perspectives, and collaboration that does not always run smoothly.
You will not learn how to eliminate complexity. You will learn how to work with it.
Through hands-on exercises, shared models, structured decision practices, generative AI, and Serious Games, this book shows how to recognize when solutions are making things worse, build shared understanding before forcing agreement, explore options without pretending certainty, and take defensible next steps while staying open to feedback, resistance, and change.
Throughout the book, generative AI is used in a clear and careful role: not as an authority, and not as a substitute for judgment, but as a thinking partner that can widen attention, surface alternatives, test assumptions, and support reflection. Serious Games are used in the same spirit: not to simplify reality, but to help make patterns, interactions, and meanings visible in situations that are difficult to grasp from discussion alone.
These are not tricks or shortcuts. They are part of a coherent way of working that helps you stay oriented when things are messy, act without pretending control, and keep learning as the situation responds.
This is a book to return to with each new challenge. To use on your own or together with others. It does not promise closure or certainty. What it offers is something more durable: guidance, structure, and a repeatable practice for working thoughtfully in a world that talks back.
Details
- Publication Date
- Apr 22, 2026
- Language
- English
- Category
- Business & Economics
- Copyright
- All Rights Reserved - Standard Copyright License
- Contributors
- By (author): Alexander de Haan, By (author): Pieter ter Doest
Specifications
- Pages
- 288
- Binding Type
- Hardcover Case Wrap
- Interior Color
- Black & White
- Dimensions
- US Trade (6 x 9 in / 152 x 229 mm)