Solve Problems Upstream

Problems are often more simply and better solved if dealt with earlier in the pipeline of the problem. This means examining the reasons an issue exists, moving up the causal chain to find the most fundamental cause of the issue, and solving the problem there.

When building any system, inevitably there will be unforeseen challenges or issues that come up. Understanding the “stream” of causality

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When we look upstream for a solution to a problem, it forces us to look at the whole system rather than at just a single symptom. This allows us to potentially bundle what would be multiple band-aids for individual symptoms into single systematic solutions.

Any modifications to the system architecture should always aim to find the root cause of these issues and solve the problem at their source. Another way of describing this is by saying that the system architecture should address the cause, not the symptom, of discovered issues.

If a system architecture only addresses known issues via band-aids directed towards the most visible symptoms, there will often be other manifestations of the root cause issue down the line.

In more complex systems, System Dynamics analysis is one way that these types of complex system interactions can be discovered and resolved in a way that accounts for the difference between addressing the symptom and the cause. How can we best fix unemployment

However, solving problems downstream is often easier because the symptoms may be clearer to see, and prescriptions faster to verify in a short period of time. For example, it’s easier to see how seatbelts save lives than it is to see how lower speed limits save lives (crash tests vs large datasets).