Problem statement sharpener

What it does

Takes a rough problem description and sharpens it into a properly framed problem statement, user, root cause, what's out of scope, and a clear signal for done.

When to use

• At the start of a discovery phase when the brief is still fuzzy
• When a client says "we need X" but you suspect the real problem is something else
• Before writing a brief, a roadmap entry, or a sprint goal

The skill

I'm going to describe a problem. Your job is to sharpen it.

Work through this in order:

1. Restate the problem in one sentence. No solution, no cause, just the problem as it is.
2. Who has it? Name the person or group experiencing this. Be specific.
3. What are they doing now? Current behaviour, workaround, or default.
4. Why does it matter? What's the cost of not solving it, for them, for the business?
5. What are we NOT trying to solve? Name at least two things out of scope.
6. How would we know we'd solved it? One measurable or observable signal.

Then write a final statement in this format: "[Person] struggles to [do thing] because [root cause], which means [consequence]. We'll know it's solved when [signal]."

If my description is missing something for any step, ask before you proceed.

Here's the problem:

[paste here]