Some problems persist despite years of attention.
Strategies are written. Programmes are launched. Governance is strengthened. New initiatives replace old ones. People work hard.
And yet the problem remains.
The Wicked Problems Clinic creates structured space to step out of the cycle of action and ask:
What is it about this problem — and the system around it — that makes it so difficult to shift?
A complicated problem can be difficult and still have an answer. A complex problem may require experimentation, learning and adaptation.
A wicked problem is different. The problem itself may be contested, causes and consequences become entangled, and attempts to intervene can change the problem you’re trying to address.
Treating them all in the same way can create a lot of activity without much progress.
That’s why the Clinic starts with diagnosis, not solutions.
The Clinic is particularly useful when:
You don’t need to decide whether your problem is wicked before coming to us.
That’s part of the diagnosis.
That’s why the Clinic starts with diagnosis, not solutions.
START WITH THE PROBLEM → DIAGNOSE → EXPLORE STUCKNESS → REFRAME → WHAT NEXT?
The Clinic combines structured diagnostic methods with facilitated inquiry to understand the problem, the system around it and what may be preventing progress.
We begin with the problem as you currently understand it: what is happening, why it matters, what has already been tried and why progress has become difficult.
We don’t assume every difficult challenge is a wicked problem.
We examine its characteristics and context to understand what kind of challenge you’re actually dealing with — because different kinds of problems require different responses.
We look beyond the presenting problem to explore what may be maintaining it.
That might include how the problem has been framed, the actors involved, relationships and competing interests, wider system conditions, previous interventions and the history that brought the system to where it is today.
Sometimes progress begins when the question changes.
We surface assumptions and different perspectives, looking for aspects of the problem that have been overlooked or taken for granted.
Diagnosis needs to lead somewhere.
We translate what we’ve learned into practical implications: what might need to change, what could be tested, what perhaps needs to stop, and where further work is needed.
The Clinic won’t promise a simple answer to a problem that doesn’t have one.
It will give you something more useful:
a clearer understanding of the problem you’re actually dealing with — and what that means for what you do next.
Depending on the challenge:
Sometimes the conclusion will be that the problem isn’t wicked at all — and that a simpler approach is appropriate.
That’s a useful diagnosis too.
Leaders, organisations and partnerships dealing with difficult public service challenges — particularly where responsibility, influence and knowledge are distributed across organisational boundaries.
The Clinic can work with a leadership team, an organisation or people drawn from across a wider system.
It can stand alone or provide the diagnostic foundation for further design or development work.
We won’t assume that further consultancy is required. Sometimes a better understanding of the problem is enough to unblock what you’re already doing.
You don’t need to know whether it’s wicked. And you don’t need a perfect brief.
Tell us what’s happening. We’ll start there.
Currently offered at an introductory rate while we pilot and refine the Clinic format.
A Clinic for a single organisation typically costs £750–£950 + VAT.
Get in touch for current pricing.