Root Cause Determination and the Never-ending Search for Answers

The search for the root cause of a nonconformity defines the path of continual improvement. Organizations that take the effort in patiently determining the root cause of a problem stand a greater chance of uncovering the weaker parts of their system and uprooting the cause of their problems.  The determination of the root cause requires careful consideration and acknowledgement of the facts.  There should be no shortcuts.

Organizations that are into ISO 9001 quality management system have a great use for good root cause analysis tools. The more popular tools include the 5-Whys Technique, Why-Why Diagram, Cause Mapping and the use of the Fishbone or Ishikawa Diagram. The usefulness of any one of the previously mentioned root cause analysis tools requires ample preparation and deliberation.

The Why-Why and 5-Whys Technique


Beginners may start with the Why-Why or the 5-Whys because of the seeming portability and ease of use of the tools. This belief can be misleading especially when the activity is done in a haphazard manner and the wrong "Whys" are asked. An example scenario will be:

This practice limits the opportunity for the organization to benefit from its continual improvement process. It is also possible to arrive at a completely different corrective action when the subsequent answers take a different turn, such as shown in the example below:

To improve on the usefulness of the Why-Why or the 5-Whys as tool for root cause analysis, the organization may want to conduct the root cause analysis activity by conducting CauseMapping by ThinkReliability. The site has extensive tools and materials for this method.

Another tool is the Fishbone or the Ishikawa Diagram. The link below is a presentation from the NASA website on the use of the Fishbone Diagram for root cause analysis.
process.nasa.gov/documents/RootCauseAnalysis.pdf