This is part of a series on problem solving and innovation process

1. Problem Statements

General Strategy
• How to Write a Problem Statement: Avoid These Common Mistakes
• Problem Statement Worksheet: 30 Minute Exercise to Clarity
• Problem Statement Template

Innovation Strategy
• Ideal Client Profile: Understand Who You’re Serving First
• North Star Framework: Target Where Your Customers Are Getting Stuck
• North Star Framework: Member Retention

2. Solution Statements
• How to Prevent Scope Creep in Your Innovation Strategy
• Voice of Customer Surveys: Quick & Effective Feedback

3. Team and Execution
• How to Build Accountability in a Team: The Key to Innovation Strategy
• Strategy is Useless Without Internal Alignment

Problem Statement Worksheet: A Three Step Guide

Struggling to turn vague challenges into actionable solutions?

This problem statement worksheet is your roadmap to alignment, focus, and measurable progress. In this guide, you’ll learn how to use this tool to dissect your organization’s biggest bottlenecks and craft solutions that stick.

At Joyful Ventures, our innovation advisors specialize in helping social impact leaders like you create people-first innovation that maximize your and your organization’s impact.

Step 1: Copy the Problem Statement Worksheet

The worksheet features concrete examples illustrating the steps below. Download it to follow along and enhance your learning.

📌 To get access to the sheet:

Fill this out. Provide comments on the prior Problem Statement article

Request access. I give access to those who fill the form out above.

Tip: Hit the untoggle button in the sheet to see the running example

Step 2: Fill out the Problem Statement Worksheet

Here’s an overview of each component in the tab and consult the examples in the worksheet.

For more context on why this is important and mistakes to avoid, check out the prior post in our series here:

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How to Write a Problem Statement: Avoid These Common Mistakes

A) Evidence Quality in Your Problem Statement Worksheet

This sheet includes references to confidence and evidence supporting your conclusions. As highlighted in the previous article, a major flaw is addressing non-existent problems based solely on intuition.

These sections encourage you to critically evaluate whether your statements are genuinely significant and supported by evidence, helping to mitigate bias in your entries.

Use 🔴 High, 🟡 Medium, or 🟢 Low in the appropriate sections as seen by the example.

B) Mission

Your mission anchors your problem statement, ensuring alignment with your core purpose.

Describe your work in 2–3 sentences.

Highlight your target population, services, and values.

Incorporate the emotional and social dimensions of your work if applicable

C) #1 Goal

Ambiguous goals lead to wasted effort. Use this section to pinpoint your top priority.

Define a specific, measurable outcome (e.g., “[Number] [type of outcome] for [target client] by [Date]”).

Clarify why this is your top goal by sharing your current status, confidence level in achieving the goal, and data on organizational and community level impacts of the goal isn’t met.

D) Current Workflow

Break down your process to identify bottlenecks

List your top 3–5 concrete steps that you take to get from the start to your desired outcome.

Include tools or partners you work with to help outsiders understand what each step involves.

E) #1 Challenge

Pinpoint the biggest bottleneck and root causes to it blocking goal achievement

Start with the biggest bottleneck in your current workflow to your process — where are you gettin the stuck the most.

Identify root causes. (1) Reflect on success & failure toward your primary goal and why the goal remains unmet. (2) cluster reasons into 1-3 root causes.

Identify drivers behind that root cause. Take into account efforts to address the root cause and share the perspective of dependencies, such as partners you need to work with to achieve your outcome.

F) Solution Criteria

Solutions must fit your capacity and stakeholder needs.

Define solution criteria, such as feasibility requirements for a solution to succeed

List who must approve/participate (i.e., stakeholders) and their requirements for a solution.

Step 3: Send Me Your Problem Statement Worksheet

That way I can take a look and give you feedback.

📌 To get access to the sheet:

Fill this out. Provide comments on the prior Problem Statement article

Request access. I give access to those who fill the form out above.

Next Steps

Utilizing this problem statement worksheet, you will clarify the key inputs necessary for crafting an effective problem statement. This will help you avoid previously identified mistakes and produce a clear, compelling output for the problem statement template.

In the next installment of this series, we'll guide you in transforming your insights from this worksheet into a concise one-pager using our problem statement template. Stay tuned!

What is your biggest challenge in this process? Share your feedback here or hit the toggle button (+) on the left.

Sleep / Parenting Metadata (Ratings, Phases)

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This is part of a series on problem solving and innovation process

1. Problem Statements

General Strategy
• How to Write a Problem Statement: Avoid These Common Mistakes
• Problem Statement Worksheet: 30 Minute Exercise to Clarity
• Problem Statement Template

Innovation Strategy
• Ideal Client Profile: Understand Who You’re Serving First
• North Star Framework: Target Where Your Customers Are Getting Stuck
• North Star Framework: Member Retention

2. Solution Statements
• How to Prevent Scope Creep in Your Innovation Strategy
• Voice of Customer Surveys: Quick & Effective Feedback

3. Team and Execution
• How to Build Accountability in a Team: The Key to Innovation Strategy
• Strategy is Useless Without Internal Alignment

Three Opportunities with Joyful Ventures

• Want a Template? Request one here
• Looking for guidance? Get your free innovation audit
• Want updates? Subscribe below 👇

This Problem Statement Template Delivers Results Workflow Redesign: Overcoming Objections to Your Positioning

Dan Wu, JD/PhD

Problem Statement Worksheet: 30 Minute Exercise to Clarity