Guest blog by Ellen Bonadio Benedetti, IPP ’24
For years, I have practiced the traditional approach of planning and control, which is crucial for supporting public agents in their daily responsibilities. However, public issues are often complex, marked by uncertainties and limited information, which can compromise the effectiveness of the planning process. The PDIA (Problem-Driven Iterative Adaptation) approach introduced me to an entirely new perspective on tackling complex challenges in public policy.
Planning Context in Niteroi and the Problem Statement
In Niteroi, we have a strong culture of planning and control. In 2013, we developed a long-term strategic plan (2013-2033) through extensive public consultation, setting objectives and goals for the short, medium, and long terms. We also rely on planning instruments established by Brazilian legislation, covering periods from one to four years, and an annual goal plan to monitor the performance of various municipal departments. This framework ensures alignment across planning instruments and includes a delivery unit directly linked to the mayor’s office, dedicated to monitoring and accelerating projects by mobilizing resources and personnel to achieve our objectives. The mayor’s involvement in planning and direct oversight of senior management provides the authority needed to implement data-driven public policies. Additionally, we have a municipal data management system that aggregates information on services and registered users, along with a network connecting various public administration departments.
However, while the Strategic Plan provides valuable guidance, our main challenge is the absence of a sustainable, long-term economic development strategy that could help the city identify and leverage growth opportunities, attract businesses, foster public-private partnerships, and secure resources for public services. This challenge is complex, with no single solution or root cause, and it became clear that a purely planning and control approach would not be sufficient, even though it remains a strength of our administration.
With these challenges in mind, I sought a new approach. Confronting these obstacles led me to Harvard’s expertise on PDIA through the Implementing Public Policies (IPP) executive course. This experience not only met but also exceeded my highest expectations.
Lessons from PDIA Applied to Niteroi Case
Throughout the PDIA process, I gained valuable insights into our problem and achieved significant progress. Our primary challenge was realizing that establishing a large institute, as initially planned, would be difficult — not only due to political factors but also because we currently lack the capabilities and depth of understanding needed to tackle such a complex issue. By breaking down the problem, we determined that beginning with a smaller, more focused institute would be more practical, allowing us to start with an economic focus and gradually expand toward the robust institution we envision as our long-term goal.
This journey of IPP team has been a valuable experience. Some of the most critical lessons I learned include:
- Complex issues inherently involve uncertainties, which make a ‘plan and control’ approach challenging. Without sufficient knowledge of the problem, the required resources, or the context in which a policy will be implemented, effective planning becomes difficult, potentially compromising the intended outcomes. Uncertainties about the problem, the methods of resolution, and the necessary resources all hinder traditional planning. A lack of understanding regarding the context and environment in which a public policy is applied further complicates planning, increasing the likelihood that actions will fall short of achieving their goals
- PDIA provides a strategy to Try, Learn, Iterate, and Adapt, enabling us to manage the uncertainty inherent in complex problems. The core of PDIA lies in its cycle of acting, learning, and adapting, which allows us to address complex issues while making necessary adjustments as new insights emerge. By breaking down challenges into smaller, manageable parts, PDIA enables us to tackle solutions incrementally. For Niteroi’s challenges, this approach proved invaluable in helping my authorizer, team, and me see the broader picture (the ‘head’ of the fishbone), refine our problem statement, and identify which ‘bones’ we could address immediately and which would require more time. This process deepened our understanding of the issue significantly and led us to revise our initial strategy.
- Small wins matter and have be celebrated: I must admit that celebrating small wins was once difficult for me, as I tended to focus more on the final outcome than on the steps along the way. PDIA, however, taught me the value of recognizing small victories throughout the process. By breaking down large problems into manageable parts, we can acknowledge progress through “learnings and leads,” which serve as meaningful indicators of advancement and help sustain motivation. I now appreciate how these “learnings and leads” act as key progress markers, guiding us through each challenge step by step.
- Communicating ‘Learnings and Leads’ to build authorization and reinforce team engagement: Incremental progress and sharing insights at each step strengthen our credibility and authority. In complex problem-solving, these small wins are crucial for building trust and maintaining team engagement. The PDIA toolkit has helped me maintain forward movement even when we face challenges in making significant strides due to the city election process. By identifying small, actionable steps during this period and reflecting on our learnings and leads, we have been able to sustain momentum and continue developing the bill that will be presented to the city council, forming a significant part of the project
- Diverse perspectives improve problem solving: PDIA has shown the importance of embracing diverse viewpoints. In establishing the Institute in Niteroi, which will address complex challenges, bringing together diverse skills and hiring people with varied backgrounds will be essential. Flexibility will also play a critical role. It’s important to have mechanisms that allow for structural adjustments as the plan develops, as outcomes may reveal new departmental needs we cannot currently anticipate, making adaptability a crucial component for success.
- Delegation is an essential strategy to develop capabilities: I have come to understand an intriguing aspect of delegation that I hadn’t previously considered: our reluctance to delegate often stems not only from a fear that tasks won’t be completed as we’d prefer but also from the difficulty of letting go. Professor Andrews emphasized the importance of “giving the work back” to the appropriate people—a more sustainable approach that builds long-term team capabilities. Additionally, Scott Stein’s insights on the steps to build trust and enable more effective delegation are highly relevant. Reviewing the framework’s four stages for building trust and practicing delegation helped me recognize the importance of guiding our teams through each step, demonstrating how tasks should be done, and consistently following up to build their skills and establish genuine trust before granting full autonomy.
- Leadership as an activity involving taking risks beyond formal authority: Leadership is not just a position but an active process that requires taking calculated risks, especially when addressing complex problems that call for innovative solutions. It also involves navigating challenging situations that others may be uncomfortable confronting, with a particular emphasis on raising difficult questions in a way that people can absorb and respond to constructively. Practicing leadership under PDIA taught me how to pose these challenging questions without losing team engagement—a valuable skill I applied during a pivotal shift in our project’s direction. This experience profoundly impacted my approach, shaping how I will lead from now on.
Impact of the IPP Group: A Real Gift
Finally, I cannot conclude without acknowledging the profound impact of the IPP team on my journey. The IPP group truly was a gift, as Salimah said in our first session. The discussions, insights, and shared experiences helped me navigate challenges and adjust our strategy. For instance, after changing the initial strategy for the Planning Institute, I sought advice on how to guide my team through this shift. They recommended presenting a “big-picture vision” to show that, although we would initially address only part of the problem, we could expand over time. By following this advice, I was able to unify the team and keep everyone fully engaged. It was important to improving team cohesion and alignment around the problem and the steps we need to take to address it.
Reflections
I would like to share this experience with my colleagues in Brazil and around the world, not only because I believe strongly in the power of the PDIA approach to address complex challenges but also because this experience taught me much more than just PDIA methodology. It opened my mind to new ideas and showed me the value of learning from others’ experiences, unique insights, and passions. Above all, I learned the importance of self-care, especially in leadership roles—a topic that was surprisingly included in our Harvard course and proved both inspiring and impactful
Thank you, IPP Team!
This is a blog series written by the alumni of the Implementing Public Policy Executive Education Program at the Harvard Kennedy School. 42 Participants successfully completed this 6-month hybrid program in November 2024. These are their learning journey stories.