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Chapter 18: Building Alternatives That Actually Solve the Problem

Chapter 18: Building Alternatives That Actually Solve the Problem

Video: Alternatives That Win: MECE Options + Decision Criteria That Make Your Recommendation Obvious

Video: Turn Your SWOT into Strategic Alternatives: The TOWS Method That Actually Builds Solutions

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to:

  • develop alternatives from case analysis
  • distinguish alternatives from tactics
  • create realistic and implementable options
  • use MECE thinking to structure alternatives
  • ensure alternatives are meaningfully different
  • avoid premature selection of a favourite solution

Why This Matters

One of the most common weaknesses in case competitions is a lack of alternatives. Teams often create:

  • Option A: Improve marketing.
  • Option B: Improve operations.
  • Option C: Expand internationally.

Then they choose Option B.

The problem is that these aren't necessarily alternatives to the same decision. They may be different initiatives. A common failure is teams create three or four random ideas, choose one because it "feels right," and leave gaps in the logic. Winning teams instead develop realistic, MECE alternatives and evaluate them against clear decision criteria.

Discover Your Mad Skills Principle

Alternatives should represent different strategic choices—not different collections of tactics.

If the decision is "How should we enter the market?" then alternatives might be:

  • acquire an existing player;
  • build organically;
  • partner with a local organisation;
  • enter through a limited pilot.

Those are strategic choices.

Start With the Decision

Before generating alternatives, complete this sentence: The decision we need to make is…

For example: "How should Company X expand into the Canadian market?" Now your alternatives can be built around that decision.

What Makes a Strong Alternative?

A strong alternative should be:

  • Realistic: Could the organisation actually do it?
  • Implementable: Could it be executed with available or attainable resources?
  • Meaningfully Different: Would choosing it lead to a different strategic path?
  • Complete: Does it actually address the problem?
  • MECE: Are the alternatives mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive?

MECE

MECE means:

  • Mutually Exclusive: The alternatives should not substantially overlap.
  • Collectively Exhaustive: Together, they should cover the meaningful strategic choices.

MECE is not about creating artificial categories. It is about making sure you aren't comparing three versions of the same idea while overlooking another legitimate path.

Where Alternatives Should Come From

Your alternatives should emerge from your analysis. For example:

  • PESTLE: reveals a regulatory opportunity.
  • Five Forces: reveals intense competitive pressure.
  • Value Chain: reveals a distribution weakness.
  • VRIO: reveals a strong internal capability.
  • Persona: reveals a customer pain point.

These insights can combine to create strategic alternatives. This is why frameworks should be treated as lenses rather than checkboxes.

TOWS as an Alternative Generator

Video: Turn Your SWOT into Strategic Alternatives: The TOWS Method That Actually Builds Solutions

SWOT can also generate alternatives through TOWS.

  • SO: Use strengths to capture opportunities.
  • ST: Use strengths to respond to threats.
  • WO: Use opportunities to address weaknesses.
  • WT: Reduce weaknesses and avoid threats.

The video explains how TOWS turns SWOT into strategic alternatives, keeping the analysis connected to the eventual solution.

Coach's Lens

Don't decide too early. Teams often fall in love with an idea during the first hour. Then the rest of the analysis becomes an attempt to prove that idea is correct. That's confirmation bias.

Instead: Generate first. Evaluate second. Choose third.

This creates a healthier team dynamic and usually produces a stronger recommendation.

Common Mistakes

  • Alternatives That Are Actually Tactics
  • "Launch social media campaign" is probably a tactic rather than a strategic alternative.
  • Alternatives That Overlap
  • If Options A and B are almost identical, they aren't useful comparisons.
  • Unrealistic Alternatives
  • A $100 million acquisition may not be realistic for a cash-constrained organisation.
  • Too Few Options
  • You may miss a meaningful strategic path.
  • Too Many Options
  • Five or six weak options create noise.

Mad Skills Drill

Write the central decision for your case. Then generate five possible strategic choices. Reduce them to three. For each, write:

  • what it means;
  • why it solves the problem;
  • what it requires;
  • its biggest advantage;
  • its biggest disadvantage.

Do not choose a winner yet.

Chapter Summary

Alternatives create the strategic choice set. The strongest alternatives emerge from your analysis and represent genuinely different paths forward.

Key Takeaways

✓ Start with the decision.

✓ Generate alternatives from insights.

✓ Make alternatives realistic.

✓ Make them meaningfully different.

✓ Use MECE where appropriate.

✓ Delay judgment until the alternatives are developed.

Looking Ahead

Once you have several credible alternatives, the question becomes: How do we decide which one is best? That requires decision criteria.

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