Step 4: Solutioning and Roadmapping

You understand the system. Now it is time to change it. Solutioning is the process of finding individual measures to move the system from its current state to a better one. Roadmapping is the process of combining those measures into a coherent plan that unfolds over time. Together, they form the bridge between understanding and action.

In earlier cycles, you will focus on individual solutions. In later cycles, you combine solutions into a roadmap that forms your theory of change. The solutioning and roadmapping phases are typically addressed in different method cycles. First you harvest solutions. Then you assemble and sequence them.

Three Levels of Solutioning

Solutions can operate at three levels. You generally work top-down, starting with the most powerful and ending with the most concrete.

System-level solutioning looks at impulses that move the system as a whole. These are by far the most powerful and most effective interventions. If you find one, it will dominate any strategy. System-level approaches include:

• Block transition strategy. Imagine blocks on a table connected by rubber bands. You can move blocks individually (pull, push), lubricate the table (reduce friction), or tilt the table (change the entire playing field). Systemic actions tilt the table.
• Before/after system maps. Create a system map of the current state and another of the desired future state. Then design the transition pathway between them.
• Largest factor approach. Identify which elements have the most impact on the system. Treat them first.
• Internalizing external resources. When a system depends critically on external inputs, find ways to internalize them, increasing autonomy.
• Re-visioning. Work with stakeholders to revision the future into a more resilient, harmonious, and autonomous system.
• Training the system. Treat the system as an organic entity. Find learning pathways that help it understand itself, why it needs to change, and allow it to change through its own internal processes.

Network-level solutioning targets the individual parameters of resilience, autonomy, and harmony. You can perform a resilience analysis by scoring CRAFTDCCV parameters qualitatively, or go further with quantitative optimization. Ask: where is the network weakest? Which parameter, if strengthened, would produce the greatest systemic benefit?

Object-level solutioning works on the concrete, physical layer. Closed-loop resource management within a building or neighborhood. Object culling: shedding unnecessary weight, simplifying, cutting what the system does not need. Circular economy approaches. Biomimicry. Embedded design strategies that integrate sustainability at the material level.

Why Overstating Goals Matters

There is a fundamental dynamic in systems change that every practitioner must understand. If your system is currently in state A and will drift to A' if you do nothing, and your desired sustainable state is B, you might think aiming for B is sufficient. It is not.

Historic momentum, stakeholder resistance, competing priorities, and other system dynamics resist change. If you aim for B, you will end up somewhere between A' and B. Just as an archer compensates for wind to hit the target, you must overshoot to account for systemic drag.

This is why SiD promotes ambitious goals. You will always have to compromise. You will always face pressure to reduce scope. If you start at B (100% sustainable), the compromises bring you to a strong outcome. If you start at something modest, the compromises bring you to mediocrity. The ambition is not expressed by the height of the goal (the goal should always be 100% sustainable), but by the timeline. Making the world run on renewable energy by 2150 is unimpressive. By 2040 is ambitious. The timeline is what sets the ambition, not the goal itself.

Building a Theory of Change

Once you have a collection of solutions, plot them on a timeline from the present to the desired end state. Some solutions are quick to implement. Others require years of preparation. Different solutions address different layers of the system: energy cycles, social dynamics, governance structures, material flows.

Divide the roadmap into layers (channels) corresponding to system domains, and plot solutions within each layer. This reveals how solutions interact across domains and where gaps exist. A circular product does not appear from nowhere; someone must design it, and perhaps an investor must be found. Each gap becomes a new item on the roadmap.

The roadmap zooms into the near term for an action plan. Take the first segment (perhaps three years) and expand it to show individual actions, responsibilities, and milestones. This provides the concrete detail needed for budgeting and execution, while maintaining the long-term trajectory as a guide.

Symbiotic Planning

SiD planning combines top-down systemic goals with bottom-up solution discovery. You set a long-term goal (the system at 100% sustainable). That goal defines your boundary. You analyze where you are today. Then through the method, you discover solutions that can move different parts of the system from current state to desired state. You plot these on a roadmap and add incentives along the way to keep the system moving in the right direction.

The ambition of a project is expressed by when you place the end-goal. If you say "the whole world needs to be sustainable in 10 years," that is extremely ambitious. If you say "in 100 years," you could use more ambition. A goal without a deadline is a dream.

Ten Steps to a Roadmap

For practical roadmapping, follow these ten steps:

1. Draw the global timeline. From today to 100% success. Mark years or months.
2. Place the end-goal. This defines the project's ambition level.
3. Review end-goal ambition. Reflect with the group. Is the timeline realistic? Do you want to lead or follow? Consider overstating.
4. Map solutions on the timeline. Write solutions on post-its and place them where appropriate. This is a great group exercise.
5. Cluster solutions into channels. Group by ELSI categories or other logical divisions. Eliminate duplicates and outliers.
6. Identify and solve missing steps. Review the sequence. What critical steps are missing? What preparations are needed before each solution can be implemented?
7. Identify transition phases. For each channel, determine the transition type: start, stop, change, or replace. Consider assigning teams with expertise in the relevant transition type.
8. Identify responsible parties. Without accountability, nothing happens. Assign responsibility for each channel or solution. For large projects, this alone can take multiple sessions.
9. Set milestones and reporting intervals. Hook into existing management cycles. Set performance milestones (e.g., 33% at first milestone, 66% at second). Use front-loading to allow ease-in.
10. Make an action plan and evaluate. Create a short-term action plan (3 months to 3 years) to kick off the roadmap. Set a gathering to evaluate the action plan and set a new one.

Planning Flexibility

Roadmaps span years or decades. You cannot predict what will happen. Map near-future actions with firmness, and far-future actions with flexibility. Program in review and update cycles. The roadmap is a living document that adapts to system responses, new technologies, shifting perspectives, and external developments.

Start a roadmap on paper or a whiteboard. Digital tools like Gantt charts restrict in ways you may not notice. Paper invites collaboration. Once the main structure is set, digitize. In practice, maintain both versions throughout the project.