In every strategy session, funding application, pitch deck, program logic, and impact framework, there's one question that should always come first:

What problem are you trying to solve?

It’s deceptively simple. Yet in our work - across governments, NGOs, businesses, and social enterprises - we regularly encounter initiatives that are well-intentioned, thoughtfully delivered, even well-received by participants, which fall short of making a meaningful difference.

When we unpack why, one cause comes up again and again: the underlying problem wasn’t clearly defined - or was misunderstood altogether.

Why It Matters

A poorly defined problem leads to poorly targeted solutions. If you don’t know exactly what you’re trying to change, how can you design an effective response? How can you know whether you’re making a difference? The consequences of weak problem definition ripple through every part of the process:

Design becomes generic.
Measurement becomes misaligned.
Impact becomes accidental, absent - or even harmful.

If you haven’t articulated the problem, you're building on shaky ground.

Good Intentions Aren’t Enough

We’ve all seen programs, services, or products that sound great. The brochure is polished. The branding is compelling. The participants are engaged. There are moving testimonials or touching human stories. But scratch the surface and the outcomes don’t stack up. There’s little evidence of long-term or system-level change. Maybe the needle hasn’t moved on key indicators. Maybe the same issues keep recurring despite rounds of "innovation."

This isn’t because the people involved don’t care - they do. It’s often because the initiative, for all its strengths, wasn’t designed to solve the real problem. And so, it doesn’t.

Programs, Products, and Services - All Need the Same Foundation.

Whether you’re launching a new digital tool, running a community program, or offering a human service, the principle is the same: impact requires clarity of purpose. We sometimes fall into the trap of thinking product design is different from service design, or that nonprofit programs are fundamentally different from commercial ventures. But when it comes to solving problems and achieving impact, they all need the same foundation: a clearly articulated problem, grounded in evidence and insight. Without this, your initiative might succeed in implementation, but fail in relevance.

Common Pitfalls of Poor Problem Definition

Here are some patterns we see in our work when the problem hasn’t been clearly defined:

1. Solving for Symptoms, Not Causes. Sometimes initiatives focus on what’s visible or urgent — without interrogating the deeper issue. For instance, an organisation might respond to rising hospital admissions by increasing after-hours clinics. But if the underlying issue is poor access to primary care or housing insecurity, then those clinics won’t fix the problem — they’ll just patch over it.

2. Confusing Activity with Impact. Just because something is being delivered - workshops, consultations, toolkits - doesn’t mean it’s making a difference. Without understanding the problem you're solving, it’s easy to confuse “we’re doing something” with “we’re changing something.”

3. Designing Based on Assumptions. Many teams launch initiatives based on what they think the problem is, without testing those assumptions. This is especially risky when the team is far removed from the people experiencing the issue - for example, a tech company designing an app for youth mental health without talking to young people, or a policy team developing responses to poverty without community engagement.

Case in Point: When Education Isn't Enough

Let’s take a well-known example: the U.S. D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program. Rolled out in the 1980s and 1990s, D.A.R.E. was designed to reduce drug use among youth through school-based education. It was widely implemented and politically popular.
The problem? Rigorous evaluations found it had no significant impact on drug use. Despite years of effort and investment, the needle didn’t move. Why? Because it was built on a flawed understanding of the problem. It assumed that drug use among young people was primarily a knowledge issue - that if you just told kids drugs were bad, they wouldn’t use them.
But behavioural science has shown us time and again that knowledge is rarely the sole driver of behaviour. In fact, interventions that rely solely on education - whether for smoking, healthy eating, environmental action, or financial literacy - often underperform because they misdiagnose the problem.
Effective behaviour change requires addressing motivation, social norms, environmental cues, economic incentives, and structural barriers - not just providing information. D.A.R.E. missed the mark because it mistook a symptom (lack of knowledge) for the root cause.

Let’s Not Mistake Movement for Progress

In social change, there’s often a strong appetite for action. Everyone wants to make a difference - and quickly. But starting with design or delivery before defining the problem is like setting out on a journey without knowing your destination. You might be moving - but are you moving in the right direction?

Einstein reportedly said: “If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.” Whether or not he actually said it, the wisdom holds: defining the problem is the most important step in solving it.

Final Thoughts

If there’s one thing we’d encourage every team, every founder, every policymaker or program manager to do, it’s this: invest in understanding your problem. Don’t rush past it. Don’t assume you know it. Don’t accept the first answer that sounds good.

Interrogate it. Challenge it. Understand it from multiple angles. Let the problem guide the solution - not the other way around.
Because if you get this right, everything else becomes possible. And your impact will speak for itself. Want to Make a Real Impact? Start with the Problem.

We’ve created a resource that outlines what strong problem definition looks like - and how we help our clients get there. Download the guide now below.

Want to Know More?

We’ve helped clients across sectors strengthen their understanding of the problems they’re trying to solve - and design products, programs, and services that make a measurable difference. Whether you’re just starting out or refining an existing initiative, we can support you to:

Clarify your problem and purpose

Align stakeholders around a shared “why”

Build strategies and designs that deliver on intent

Set up meaningful measurement of progress and impact

Get in touch here to explore how we can work together.

Are You Building on Shaky Ground?: Why defining your problem is the first step to real impact

Why It Matters

Good Intentions Aren’t Enough

Programs, Products, and Services - All Need the Same Foundation.

Common Pitfalls of Poor Problem Definition

Case in Point: When Education Isn't Enough

Let’s Not Mistake Movement for Progress

Final Thoughts

A Guide to Strong Problem Definition

Want to Know More?

Are You Building on Shaky Ground?: Why defining your problem is the first step to real impact

Why It Matters

Good Intentions Aren’t Enough

Programs, Products, and Services - All Need the Same Foundation.

Common Pitfalls of Poor Problem Definition

Case in Point: When Education Isn't Enough

Let’s Not Mistake Movement for Progress

Final Thoughts

A Guide to Strong Problem Definition

Want to Know More?

Locally Led Development: Shifting the system will require new perspectives and renewed commitment