SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR FORMULATING A PROBLEM

1 . A method for formulating a problem using a computational system, the method comprising:

determining an initial problem statement that characterizes the problem;

identifying a plurality of factors affecting the problem;

generating a plurality of hypotheses associated with the problem based upon the identified factors;

updating the initial problem statement to an updated problem statement using the initial problem statement, identified factors and the plurality of hypotheses.

2 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 1 , further comprising representing the initial and updated problem statements using a current state of the problem, a desired solution of the problem, gaps between the current state and the desired solution, and combinations thereof.

3 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 2 , further comprising:

conducting a survey/assessment related to the gaps between the current state and the desired solution; and

identifying and/or updating at least one of the plurality of factors and the plurality of hypotheses based upon corresponding responses to the survey/assessment.

4 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 1 , further comprising assigning each of the identified factors to one or more factor categories and determining attributes corresponding to each of the pre-determined factor categories.

5 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of hypotheses comprise mutually exclusive and completely exhaustive (MECE) hypotheses.

6 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 1 , wherein generating the plurality of hypotheses comprises determining a plurality of associated component questions corresponding to each of the plurality of hypotheses and identifying a plurality of data elements associated with the component questions.

7 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 6 , further comprising classifying the plurality of data elements based upon availability and/or accessibility of data corresponding to the data elements.

8 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 7 , further comprising prioritizing the analysis of the plurality of component questions based upon the availability and/or accessibility of the data.

9 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 6 , further comprising assigning a hypothesis validation test to each of the plurality of hypotheses.

10 . The method for formulating a problem of claim 1 , wherein updating the initial problem statement comprises iteratively updating the initial problem statement using the factors and the plurality of hypotheses.

11 . A system for formulating a problem, the system comprising:

a user interface for providing input data associated with the problem;

memory circuitry configured to store the input data; and

processing circuitry configured to access the memory circuitry, wherein the processing circuitry comprises:

a definer module configured to define an initial problem statement using the input data and to represent the initial problem statement using a current state of the problem, a desired solution of the problem and gaps between the current state and the desired solution of the problem; and

an analysis module configured to identify a plurality of factors that affect the problem and to generate a plurality of hypotheses based upon the identified factors.

12 . The system of claim 11 , wherein the memory circuitry is configured to store the identified factors and the plurality of hypotheses.

13 . The system of claim 11 , wherein the processing circuitry is configured to iteratively update the initial problem statement using the identified factors and the hypotheses to generate an updated problem statement.

14 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the analysis module is further configured to generate a plurality of component questions corresponding to each of the plurality of hypotheses and identify a plurality of data elements associated with the component questions, wherein the responses to the component questions and the corresponding data elements are utilized to generate the updated problem statement.

15 . The system of claim 11 , wherein the analysis module is configured to validate each of the plurality of hypotheses using pre-determined hypothesis validation tests.

16 . The system of claim 11 , further comprising a display module to display the initial problem statement, the identified factors, the hypotheses and the updated problem statement.

17 . A method for formulating a problem using a computational system, the method comprising:

determining an initial problem statement that characterizes the problem based upon input data associated with the problem;

representing the initial problem statement using a current state of the problem, a desired solution of the problem and gaps between the current state and the desired solution of the problem;

identifying a plurality of factors affecting the problem using the initial problem statement;

generating a plurality of hypotheses associated with the problem based upon the identified factors and the input data;

determining a plurality of associated component questions corresponding to each of the plurality of hypotheses and identifying a plurality of data elements associated with the component questions;

validating each of the plurality of hypotheses through pre-determined hypothesis validation tests using the data elements; and

iteratively updating the initial problem statement to an updated problem statement using the initial problem statement, identified factors and the plurality of hypotheses.

18 . The method of formulating a problem of claim 17 , further comprising performing exploratory data analysis (EDA) for generating the plurality of hypotheses.

19 . The method of formulating a problem of claim 17 , further comprising classifying the data elements and selecting data elements for the hypotheses based upon an estimated analytical effort and effectiveness of the data elements in solving the problem.

20 . The method of formulating a problem of claim 17 , further comprising analyzing the updated problem statement and developing action items to achieve the desired solution of the problem.