The ability to effectively solve problems is currently one of the most sought-after skills by organizations, and the reason is simple: the new reality they face is marked by recurring changes where unforeseen events abound, and adaptation has gone from a choice to a necessity to survive and keep up with trends. In other words, in this context, decisions must be made quickly, adaptively, and efficiently. However, for this to happen, it is necessary to understand what a problem is, why it occurs, and what methodologies exist for resolving it, including the most complex ones. One of the factors that hinders the process and decision-making in the organizational context is what the U.S. Army War College would define as VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous) at the end of a 20th century marked by multiple global changes.
In a VUCA context, the external factors affecting organizations are increasingly uncertain and difficult to predict; therefore, without good identification tools and sound risk management for each of them, it becomes difficult to address the problems that arise. The Portuguese Public Administration (APP) is no exception to this new reality, finding itself forced to keep pace with this paradigm shift by realizing that predefined procedures are meaningless when faced with atypical, unknown, and unprecedented circumstances, such as the COVID-19 pandemic or the rapid digitalization and unbridled advancement of Artificial Intelligence.

In order to obtain a detailed and accurate understanding of public servants' perceptions and experiences regarding problem-solving and decision-making in the APP, an anonymous, individual questionnaire was conducted with them as participants. Data collection was conducted using the Google Forms platform and consisted of thirty (30) statements, answered using a Likert scale, where 1 means "completely disagree" and 5 means "completely agree." The statements were organized into three main groups.

This survey is justified by the detailed analysis of the deficiencies and needs in problem-solving and decision-making within the APP. The correlation between the questionnaire's conclusions and the proposed methodologies demonstrates that the correct application of the tools meets the expectations and experiences of employees. Thus:
- It clearly identifies problem areas and existing barriers to decision-making, allowing for a thorough analysis of current deficiencies in decision-making processes and exposing problems (such as lack of transparency, resistance to change, or inefficiency in prioritizing problems). It also identifies the APP's weaknesses and areas requiring priority intervention, based on the direct perception of employees, who, it should be emphasized, were the sole participants in the survey.
- It highlights the importance of ongoing training and critical thinking, crucial in an increasingly demanding world where knowing how to manage new technologies and interpret data is crucial for more efficient and productive management.
- Promotes a collaborative culture, emphasizing interdepartmental work.

One of the main limitations of this work is that it cannot offer a long-term evaluation of the application of the methodologies under consideration. For example, a more exhaustive and time-consuming comparison could be made between traditional and more modern methodologies to determine which would be most appropriate in the context of APP.

Keywords: Portuguese Public Administration (APP), Problem Solving, Decision Making, Innovation.