Problem Framing
Turning a complaint into a solvable problem
Customers don't arrive with problems. They arrive with requests, and the request is usually a guess at a solution. Your job is to find the problem underneath it, which often means declining to build the thing you were asked for. This is the competency that separates an FDE from a contractor.
Progression
What changes at each level.
- FDE I
Deployed
Asks clarifying questions instead of building straight from a ticket. Can describe who uses the thing they are building and what it replaces. Flags to their lead when a request seems to miss the point.
- FDE II
Embedded
Reframes requests within their workstream and gets the customer to agree to the reframing. Defines measurable acceptance for their own work. Pushes back on scope that does not serve the stated outcome, and offers a smaller alternative rather than a flat refusal.
- FDE III
Trusted
Takes a vague executive-level goal and decomposes it into a sequence of deliverables that produce visible value early. Regularly kills proposed work that would not have moved the outcome, and is thanked for it. Separates what the customer wants from what the customer needs without condescension.
- FDE IV
Principal
Reframes at the level of the engagement itself, including recommending against a deal or a direction when the underlying problem is not one this product should solve. Teaches the framing method to others rather than applying it personally. Trusted to tell an executive their premise is wrong.