Bitesize training courses → Personal effectiveness → Creative problem solving
Training course: Creative problem solving
Every team has a go-to approach for solving problems. The trouble is, a go-to approach tends to produce go-to results. When teams get stuck in familiar thinking patterns, the same challenges keep resurfacing, the same solutions get proposed, and the same people dominate the conversation.
This practical session breaks that cycle. Participants discover a structured approach to creative problem solving, from defining what the real problem actually is, through to generating fresh ideas and selecting the most powerful solutions to take forward. It’s one of those sessions where people leave thinking differently, not just about work problems, but about how they think in general.
Two hours • In-person or remote • 4-15 participants
Rated 4.7/5★★★★½ from 33 recent reviews
About this bitesize training course
Most problem-solving goes wrong before it even gets started, because teams rush to solutions before they’ve properly defined the problem. This session addresses that from the outset.
Participants work through a clear, structured process: understanding and redefining the problem, enabling the right creative conditions, generating new ideas, and then selecting the most promising solutions with confidence. At each stage, they’re given practical tools they can apply immediately, not theoretical models that gather dust after the session.
Rather than looking for one perfect answer, participants learn to explore widely, think laterally, and then narrow down intelligently. This mirrors how good innovative thinking works, and is a significant shift for teams used to jumping straight to the most obvious solution.
We also pay attention to creating an environment that drives creativity. Good ideas don’t happen by accident. Participants leave understanding how to set the right conditions for creative thinking within their own teams.
Key details
this bitesize training course is two hours long and packed with powerful ideas for identifying solutions to complex challenges
designed for groups of 4 – 15
delivered by an expert trainer at your workplace, or virtually
interactive, with plenty of exercises that get people talking
customisable, to connect with your organisation’s values
Download the full course outline
Who this course is for
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Teams that keep running into the same problems and want a better way to solve them
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Professionals who want to think more creatively and contribute more original ideas
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Organisations facing complex challenges that need structured, imaginative thinking
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Managers looking to build a more innovative, collaborative team culture
“Maximal learning in a short, but intense, session. This is definitely the way forward for management training, as far as I am concerned.”
Professor Niamh Moran, Royal College of Surgeons Ireland ★★★★★
What participants will learn
By the end of this BiteSize training course, participants will be able to:
Use a range of tools for creative problem-solving in real working situations
Use mind-maps to organise their thinking and explore multiple possible approaches simultaneously
Introduce alternative ideas and strategies to resolve problems as a group, playing to the strengths and preferences of colleagues and team members
Approach problems freshly and originally, moving beyond habitual thinking patterns
Choose intelligently from a range of potential solutions, identifying those most likely to work in practice
💡This is a practical, interactive session designed to create lightbulb moments that participants can take back to the workplace immediately.
Core topics covered
Defining the problem
Good solutions start with a clear problem statement. Participants learn how to distinguish between the presenting problem and the real one, using techniques aiming to get beneath the surface and ensure the team is solving the right thing.
Enabling creativity
Creative thinking doesn’t just happen because someone calls a brainstorm. This section looks at what genuinely fosters creative thinking, such as the right environment, and encourages experimentation rather than premature judgment.
Selecting solutions
Participants learn how to narrow down their options objectively, identifying the solutions with the strongest combination of practicality and impact, and building the case for taking them forward.
Generating new ideas
Participants work with structured techniques and lateral thinking approaches that help surface creative, original solutions, including ideas that would not have emerged from a conventional discussion.
Recent reviews of the ‘Creative Problem Solving’ training course
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"The course was brilliant. Lots of really useful information, delivered in a way that kept everyone engaged throughout. The interactive elements of the course really added to the enjoyment too."
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"It gave me an insight in to how to look at things differently when challenged with a problem and provided some useful tools to assist. The mind mapping particularly stood out and it will be something I will use not only in problem solving but generally as part of my job, training and presentations."
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"I liked the format: explaining the context followed by applying it to a specific context. The proposed examples were inclusive so they worked well. The number of participants was right, we had a lot of interactions. I really enjoyed it."
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"Very interesting content that could be usable / applicable in real life situations. Excellent trainer - knowledgeable, engaging and entertaining."
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"Fun with lots of real life examples of powerful benefits these tools have had, for instance the creators of the tools and what they achieved."
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"Really engaging facilitator, brought examples to life, session was interactive and lots of tangible take-aways."
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"A very good course, full of things that I will use in my professional and personal life."
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"Our trainer is always engaging when they are delivering, and they understands the dynamics of a law firm too. I really enjoyed learning about the different processes of problem solving."
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Course Delivery
Our personal effectiveness training courses are designed to be short, powerful, and easy to fit into busy schedules.
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2 hours, packed with high-impact learning
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Delivered in-person anywhere in the world, or virtually for remote teams
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Best for 4–15 participants to maximise engagement
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Live, interactive, discussion-based with no long lectures or death by powerpoint
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All our courses can be tailored to your organisation’s values, culture, and goals
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Individual contributors and professionals
Team leaders and managers
Project leads and business analysts
HR and L&D professionals
Provide useful creative problem solving training for your team.
Pair this with
Business skills toolbox
Broaden the toolkit with frameworks for analysis, prioritisation and decision-making that complement the creative thinking skills covered here.
Successful teamwork
Combine creative problem-solving with the collaboration and communication skills teams need to put good ideas into practice together.
Stakeholder management
Once you have found the right solution, this session helps teams build the influencing and communication strategies needed to get it supported and implemented.
Outcomes you can expect
Organisations choose this course to help teams:
Break out of repetitive thinking patterns and find creative new approaches
Define problems more precisely before jumping to solutions
Generate a wider range of ideas in group settings, with better quality output
Select solutions more confidently, with clearer reasoning behind the final decision
Build a more creative, collaborative culture where original thinking is encouraged
💡Ask about a connected programme that’s built around your needs. We’ll help you shape a high-impact sequence that fits your calendar.
Ready to Get Started?
Empower your team with effective problem-solving skills.
Frequently asked questions
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The session covers fishbone diagrams and root cause analysis for problem definition, structured techniques and lateral thinking approaches for idea generation, mind-mapping for organising and exploring possibilities, and a practical framework for narrowing down and selecting the strongest solutions. Each tool is practised during the session, so participants leave ready to use them.
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The Business Skills Toolbox is broader, covering analysis, prioritisation, risk assessment and decision-making alongside creative thinking. Creative Problem Solving goes deeper into the problem-solving process, with more time spent on defining the real problem, generating original ideas and choosing between solutions. The two sessions complement each other well and are often booked together.
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Yes, and this is one of the most common patterns we see. The session begins with problem definition precisely because most problem-solving fails at this stage. Participants learn how to slow down at the start in order to move faster and more confidently later, using fishbone diagrams and root cause analysis to ensure they’re addressing the right problem before any solutions are discussed.
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Yes. The part of the session asks each participant to identify a current challenge and commit to applying the most relevant techniques to it. We also build the case study exercises around realistic working scenarios. The result is a session that feels directly relevant to your workplace.
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Yes. We tailor the examples, case studies and problem scenarios to reflect your team's context. If there’s a specific type of challenge your team regularly faces, we can shape the session around it so the tools feel immediately applicable.
