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Free Root Cause Analysis Template PowerPoint & Google Slides

About the Template

Are you tired of grappling with persistent problems and uncertainties within your projects or processes? Then download our comprehensive Free Root Cause Analysis Template which acts like your guiding compass to uncover the underlying issues and pave the way for effective solutions.

Here in this Root Cause Analysis Template, you will find

• Tree Diagram: Begin your problem-solving excellence with the Tree Diagram. Using a creative tree diagram you can break down complex issues into manageable components. Start with the overarching problem and branch out into its underlying causes and contributing factors. This systematic approach ensures you leave no stone unturned in your quest for solutions.
• Fishbone Template: Dive deeper into the heart of the matter with the Fishbone Template, also known as the Ishikawa diagram. Using the Ishikawa diagram one can identify potential root causes and then categorize them into key areas such as People, Process, Equipment, Materials, Environment, and Management (the 6M’s). By structuring your analysis around these categories, you gain a holistic view of the problem’s origins.
• Root Cause Analysis Timeline: Root Cause Analysis Timeline allows you to create a chronological record of events, actions, or incidents leading up to the issue at hand. This timeline helps you pinpoint when and where things went awry, providing valuable insights into the root causes.

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Root Cause Analysis PowerPoint Template

Number of slides: 10

Mistakes happen, but how you deal with them is what really matters. Manufacturing failures, maintenance problems, productivity issues in the workplace… all of them look like disastrous events at first but you can turn them into opportunities for improvement. Root Cause Analysis provides a systematic process for identifying the root causes of any given problem or incident in the company. This will help you explore cause-and-effect relationships and find a way to prevent those problems from occurring again. Use the Root Cause Analysis PowerPoint Template to lead your company’s continuous improvement efforts.

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Free Root Cause Analysis PowerPoint Template

Root cause analysis method.

Root Cause Analysis is more than just discovering the causes of problems. It is about learning more about the company incidents and finding a way to prevent them. First, define the problem, then gather information about the events or incidents that contributed to the central issue. After analyzing the evidence, you will be able to determine root causes. Finally, add recommendations to prevent the problem from happening again. Use the Root Cause Analysis Method horizontal four-step diagram to showcase the process.

Root Cause Analysis Slide

Wh-questions are valuable tools for Root Cause Analysis. What happened? When did it happen? How did it happen? Why did it happen? Ask all these questions with the problem in mind. Wh-questions will help you collect important information for your Root Cause Analysis.

Root Cause Tree Diagram

Once you’ve identified the main problem and root causes, it is time to communicate the results of your analysis in an engaging Root cause tree diagram. You should place the evidence of the problem in the upper side of the tree, and the root causes in the lower area. At the end, you will get a fantastic root cause tree to visually support your analysis.

Continuous improvement

Root-cause analysis focuses on why the event occurred, instead of who is responsible. This approach encourages open communication in the team which is crucial to find the best solutions to a problem.

Another way to conduct a deeper analysis and get to the origin of the problem is with the five whys technique. Confront each answer to a why question and dig into the problem symptoms.

Corporate Presentation

Use the Root Cause Analysis Template to present your results or guide your team in the process.

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Root Cause Analysis Template

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Let’s get to the bottom of the problem with this root cause analysis template. This form of analysis is performed when a problem or issue has occurred and its cause needs to be uncovered. For companies experiencing growing pains or well-established enterprises adapting to market shifts, this template is perfect for understanding why a specific problem came about. Ultimately, in understanding the “5 whys” you can then fix the underlying causes and symptoms for the short-term and long-term.

This visually rich RCA template offers nine different design variations for you to choose from. Colorful layouts, simple iconography, cascading effects and causes, and sequential reasoning — you will be pleasantly surprised with the flexibility of each template. Several slides feature a fun tree graphic, which is a playful take on root analysis.

The first slide of the template is presented as a tree at the top of the slide and its roots at the bottom of the slide. The hidden part of the tree symbolizes seemingly invisible causes of negative factors that affect the final result. This slide will primarily be useful for risk managers, company directors, heads of planning and economic departments. Each problem on the slide is related to the cause that caused it. For example, you can indicate a decrease in sales in one of your branches and indicate the reason that caused this – your competitor began to sell a similar product at a lower price in this region. The next slide is represented by tree roots only. You can also indicate here the reasons that prevented you from completing the project or extended its completion period. For example, your lead programmer fell ill and work on a project was suspended. Having analyzed the reasons that led to such consequences, for the next project you will have a programmer in the team who can replace another in case of illness. The next two slides are presented as dependency blocks. This slide will be helpful in preparing the project roadmap. The project manager can indicate possible risks at each stage of the project. For example, an increase in the delivery time of products due to the COVID-19 epidemic, which in the future will lead to a failure in the entire equipment assembly chain. The next slide can be used by production workers in their work when preparing instructions for the operation of equipment. For example, you can indicate possible equipment malfunctions and the reasons that may have caused the malfunction. It is very convenient to have ready-made solutions for eliminating simple breakdowns, which in turn will reduce the downtime of both equipment and workers. Also, this slide can be used in their work by medical workers who can explain the causes of a patient’s disease. The slides of this template can be used by school teachers and university teachers when explaining causality in nature or science.

For teams in operations, finance, procurement, technology and finance, this is the ideal format for uncovering the “big why” and providing a viable solution for these issues. This can also be used in conjunction with our gap analysis template that highlights the gap between as-is current state versus the to-be desired state. Root Cause Analysis Template will be a great addition to your collection of presentation templates.

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How to Perform a Root Cause Analysis (Free Template)

If you’re chronically ill, pain medication will help but not solve the issue. Just like if you’re experiencing abnormally high customer churn , the last thing you want is to spend all your time firefighting.

You need to find the cause.

That’s exactly why root cause analysis is a vital process. It helps you to understand the causal focus and underlying issues behind your biggest business problems.

For example, Eastman Chemical ‘s customer complaint numbers were cut in half after conducting a logic tree root cause analysis to pinpoint their deeper issues. Clipper Windpower saved $1 million in lost revenue by identifying the underlying causes of their turbine malfunction.

In this Process Street article, we have a root cause analysis template for you to follow. Our aim is to give you a comprehensive overview of the root cause analysis process, from a simple introduction and break down of the key principles to when and why you’d want to perform a root cause analysis.

We’ll be covering:

Root cause analysis template

What is root cause analysis (rca), why conduct a root cause analysis, key principles of root cause analysis, how to conduct a root cause analysis that actually works.

• Root cause analysis tips

Using Process Street to conduct a root cause analysis

Let’s take a quick look at the root cause analysis template.

This Root Cause Analysis Template was made in Process Street. Process Street is a BPM software that allows you to build, maintain, and optimize your business processes . This process was built completely from scratch and uses Process Street features like:

• Role assignments (for seamless collaboration)
• Approvals (to ensure work is done properly and to the highest quality)
• Stop tasks (to enforce process adherence and reduce error)

Here are some other checklists you may be interested in:

• SWOT Analysis Template
• FMEA Template: Failure Mode and Effects Analysis
• Gap Analysis Template
• Prioritization Matrix Checklist Template

So, back to root cause analysis. In simple terms, what exactly is a root cause analysis?

Root cause analysis (RCA) involves pinpointing the root cause of problems to be able to find the best solutions for them. This methodology highlights the importance of taking preventative and corrective measures, as opposed to just treating the symptoms of problems, as so often is the case.

There are various techniques and principles that can be used to perform root cause analysis to help identify underlying issues. RCA attempts to look past what may seem like the obvious cause and effect, and help find exactly where systems failed to begin with.

There are generally three goals when conducting a root cause analysis:

• To pinpoint the root cause of a problem
• To gain a full understanding of how to correct the underlying problems
• To implement what was learned to fix the current problem and to prevent it from happening again in the future

The third goal is arguably the most important, because what good is conducting an analysis if nothing is done with the information?

RCA can be used to optimize company processes and set preventative measures to mitigate any future issues. For example, instead of constantly responding to support tickets, you could ask why your customers are making those requests in the first place. Could the onboarding process be improved? Is the product experience confusing? Are you properly educating your customers on how to use your product?

Though treating the symptoms of deeper issues may seem quick and effective at the time, it only leads to future repetition of the same problems. In the long run, you’d save significantly more time and effort by addressing the root cause straight on.

Some of the key principles to keep in mind when conducting a RCA include:

• Make efforts to look past the symptoms to identify the root cause
• Know that there may be more than one root cause
• Don’t focus on who was responsible, focus on why it happened
• Always look for definitive evidence to support the hypothesized root cause
• Gather enough information to devise a plan of action and correct the issues
• Decide how best to prevent similar problems from occurring in the future

These key principles highlight the value of looking at the bigger picture, building context, and taking direct action when addressing systemic issues. Following these principles will ensure your analysis is high quality and offers valuable, actionable results.

So, you’ve decided to conduct a root cause analysis, but don’t know where to begin. There are many techniques and approaches that you can use for this, so we’ll cover some of the most popular methods out there.

The 5 Whys method is one of the most popular techniques used when conducting a root cause analysis. In principle, this method is very straightforward. It entails asking ‘why’ over and over, until the core issues are exposed. On average, it takes five whys until you get to your root cause, but the range varies from company to company and problem to problem.

Stephen Spear has a great example of the 5 Whys process in his book, The High-Velocity Edge: How Market Leaders Leverage Operational Excellence to Beat the Competition :

The scenario is: A vehicle will not start.

First why? Answer: The vehicle’s battery is dead.

Second why? Answer: The alternator isn’t working.

Third why? Answer: The alternator belt is broken.

Fourth why? Answer: The alternator belt was beyond its service life and wasn’t replaced.

Fifth why? Answer: The vehicle hasn’t been maintained according to the recommended service schedule. (Root cause)

In this example we can see that, after these five questions, the root cause of the vehicle’s dead battery is a lack of maintenance. So, to address this issue and mitigate any future problems, all vehicles need to be serviced properly according to their schedules.

The 5 Whys method helps to not jump to conclusions by focusing on digging deeper and deeper until the core answers are revealed. Also, keep in mind, your final answer should lead to actionable conclusions.

Here’s a template we built following the 5 Whys method:

Fishbone diagram

A fishbone diagram, also known as an Ishikawa diagram, is another very popular RCA method. It involves creating a visual cause-and-effect map to help pinpoint root causes by asking you to follow various potential paths until you arrive at the correct one. It’s kind of like a visual representation of the 5 Whys method.

You begin with recording the problem in the center of the diagram (the fish spine), and then jotting down several possible causes for the problem, placing them around the main problem in branches (the fish rib bones). The initial branch categories begin as very broad ideas, such as “environment” or “communication”, and then each of those categories branch out further into smaller, more specific categories. For instance, “communication” may branch out into subcategories like “internal communication tools”, “company communication policies,” or “workplace politics.”

It’s basically using a process of elimination, where you dig deeper and deeper into each potential cause until you arrive at the root cause. This method is more efficient if you take the time to carefully choose your initial categories to better focus on the main problems.

Some commonly used categories in a Fishbone diagram include:

• Physical labor
• Employee expectations
• Product/service
• Maintenance
• Employee performance
• Environment
• Employee skills

These are both examples of continuous improvement. We’ve written a lot about continuous improvement at Process Street. If you’re interested in more relevant resources, then check out these articles:

• What Continuous Improvement Is (and How to Use It)
• Kaizen: How to Deploy Continuous Improvement to Rocket Your Success
• How to Use The Deming Cycle for Continuous Quality Improvement
• What is VRIO? The 4-Step Framework for Continuous Business Success
• Agile ISO: How to Combine Compliance with Rapid Process Improvement
• PDCA: How to Eliminate Error in Your Processes and Products

Tips for an effective root cause analysis

1. ask a lot of questions.

The more questions you ask, the more likely you are to identify the root cause. Continue to ask questions even if you think you’ve arrived at the underlying problem. For example, ask questions like, “How can we be sure this is the root cause and not something else? How can we prevent this from happening again in the future?”

Use these questions to help guide you towards a better understanding of your problem.

2. Work together with others

Sometimes it’s easy to miss something even if it’s right under your nose. If you work with a fellow colleague or a team , it will help identify solutions quicker because you have access to a fresh perspective. They can also offer alternative solutions you may not have thought of on your own.

3. Perfect your root cause analysis with practice

When you’re conducting your root cause analysis, don’t just blindly jump in and run through it. It’s important to be aware of the process as you’re moving through it. Consider what could be changed or improved for next time. Doing this means that your RCAs will be more efficient and effective each time.

4. Conduct a root cause analysis for successes as well

Though RCA is typically used to determine the root cause of problems, it can also be used to identify the root cause of successes. This gives you the tools necessary to be able to intentionally repeat these successes in future or adapt them to other areas of your business to make improvements .

There are a few ways you might perform a root cause analysis. Maybe you have an in-person brainstorming session with a good, ol’ fashioned whiteboard, maybe you knock together a Microsoft Word document which you’ll distribute to your team via print or email, or maybe you use a BPM software like Process Street.

You’ve already seen our Root Cause Analysis Template . Maybe you’ve already signed up for a free Process Street account. If you’re not sure what Process Street is about, check out this quick video:

We mentioned that the Root Cause Analysis Template uses role assignments, approvals , and stop tasks: that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Depending on how complex you want to make your process, you can effortlessly edit the template in this article to include even more functionality, like:

• Conditional logic (for dealing with complex and variable outcomes)
• Dynamic due dates (for time sensitive tasks)
• Automations (to make recurring tasks even more efficient)

Process Street integrates (via Zapier , Webhooks , and API) with 1500+ different apps. So, you can hook up all of your internal processes to the tools you already use on a daily basis. My colleague, Blake, has a great webinar on how to get started (and succeed) with Process Street’s automations:

Check out these related articles for more information on business process management:

• 9 Benefits of Business Process Management (BPM) and Why You’ll Love It
• What is BPM Software? The Best Business Process Management Software (BPMS)
• The Complete Guide to Business Process Management is Here!
• What is Business Process Management? A Really Simple Introduction
• Process Management Explained: How to Combat Poor Processes in Your Business
• Maintenance Management: 6 Steps for Scaled Production and Growth

If you’re wondering about best practices for performing a root cause analysis with Process Street, just drop us a comment below! We’ll be happy to give you tips and help walk you through the process.

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Oliver Peterson

Oliver Peterson is a content writer for Process Street with an interest in systems and processes, attempting to use them as tools for taking apart problems and gaining insight into building robust, lasting solutions.

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Root Cause Analysis: What It Is & How to Perform One

• 07 Mar 2023

The problems that affect a company’s success don’t always result from not understanding how to solve them. In many cases, their root causes aren’t easily identified. That’s why root cause analysis is vital to organizational leadership .

According to research described in the Harvard Business Review , 85 percent of executives believe their organizations are bad at diagnosing problems, and 87 percent think that flaw carries significant costs. As a result, more businesses seek organizational leaders who avoid costly mistakes.

If you’re a leader who wants to problem-solve effectively, here’s an overview of root cause analysis and why it’s important in organizational leadership.

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Root Cause Analysis?

According to the online course Organizational Leadership —taught by Harvard Business School professors Joshua Margolis and Anthony Mayo— root cause analysis is the process of articulating problems’ causes to suggest specific solutions.

“Leaders must perform as beacons,” Margolis says in the course. “Namely, scanning and analyzing the landscape around the organization and identifying current and emerging trends, pressures, threats, and opportunities.”

By working with others to understand a problem’s root cause, you can generate a solution. If you’re interested in performing a root cause analysis for your organization, here are eight steps you must take.

8 Essential Steps of an Organizational Root Cause Analysis

1. identify performance or opportunity gaps.

The first step in a root cause analysis is identifying the most important performance or opportunity gaps facing your team, department, or organization. Performance gaps are the ways in which your organization falls short or fails to deliver on its capabilities; opportunity gaps reflect something new or innovative it can do to create value.

Finding those gaps requires leveraging the “leader as beacon” form of leadership.

“Leaders are called upon to illuminate what's going on outside and around the organization,” Margolis says in Organizational Leadership , “identifying both challenges and opportunities and how they inform the organization's future direction.”

Without those insights, you can’t reap the benefits an effective root cause analysis can produce because external forces—including industry trends, competitors, and the economy—can affect your company’s long-term success.

2. Create an Organizational Challenge Statement

The next step is writing an organizational challenge statement explaining what the gap is and why it’s important. The statement should be three to four sentences and encapsulate the challenge’s essence.

It’s crucial to explain where your organization falls short, what problems that poses, and why it matters. Describe the gap and why you must urgently address it.

A critical responsibility is deciding which gap requires the most attention, then focusing your analysis on it. Concentrating on too many problems at once can dilute positive results.

To prioritize issues, consider which are the most time-sensitive and mission-critical, followed by which can make stakeholders happy.

3. Analyze Findings with Colleagues

It's essential to work with colleagues to gain different perspectives on a problem and its root causes. This involves understanding the problem, gathering information, and developing a comprehensive analysis.

While this can be challenging when you’re a new organizational leader, using the double helix of leadership —the coevolutionary process of executing organizational leadership's responsibilities while developing the capabilities to perform them—can help foster collaboration.

Research shows diverse ideas improve high-level decision-making, which is why you should connect with colleagues with different opinions and expertise to enhance your root cause analysis’s outcome.

4. Formulate Value-Creating Activities

Next, determine what your company must do to address your organizational challenge statement. Establish three to five value-creating activities for your team, department, or organization to close the performance or opportunity gap you’ve identified.

This requires communicating organizational direction —a clear and compelling path forward that ensures stakeholders know and work toward the same goal.

“Setting direction is typically a reciprocal process,” Margolis says in Organizational Leadership . “You don't sit down and decide your direction, nor do you input your analysis of the external context into a formula and solve for a direction. Rather, setting direction is a back-and-forth process; you move between the value you'd like to create for customers, employees, investors, and your grasp of the context.”

5. Identify Necessary Behavior Changes

Once you’ve outlined activities that can provide value to your company, identify the behavior changes needed to address your organizational challenge statement.

“Your detective work throughout your root cause analysis exposes uncomfortable realities about employee competencies, organizational inefficiencies, departmental infighting, and unclear direction from leadership at multiple levels of the company,” Mayo says in Organizational Leadership .

Factors that can affect your company’s long-term success include:

• Ineffective communication skills
• Resistance to change
• Problematic workplace stereotypes

Not all root cause analyses reveal behaviors that must be eliminated. Sometimes you can identify behaviors to enhance or foster internally, such as:

• Collaboration
• Innovative thinking
• Creative problem-solving

6. Implement Behavior Changes

Although behaviors might be easy to pinpoint, putting them into practice can be challenging.

To ensure you implement the right changes, gauge whether they’ll have a positive or negative impact. According to Organizational Leadership , you should consider the following factors:

• Motivation: Do the people at your organization have a personal desire for and commitment to change?
• Competence: Do they have the skills and know-how to implement change effectively?
• Coordination: Are they willing to work collaboratively to enact change?

Based on your answers, decide what behavior changes are plausible for your root cause analysis.

7. Map Root Causes

The next step in your analysis is mapping the root causes you’ve identified to the components of organizational alignment. Doing so helps you determine which components to adjust or change to implement employee behavior changes successfully.

Three root cause categories unrelated to behavior changes are:

• Systems and structures: The formal organization component, including talent management, product development, and budget and accountability systems
• People: Individuals’ profiles and the workforce’s overall composition, including employees’ skills, experience, values, and attitudes
• Culture: The informal, intangible part of your organization, including the norms, values, attitudes, beliefs, preferences, common practices, and habits of its employees

8. Create an Action Plan

Using your findings from the previous steps, create an action plan for addressing your organizational problem’s root cause and consider your role in it.

To make the action plan achievable, ensure you:

• Identify the problem’s root cause
• Create measurable results
• Ensure clear communication among your team

“One useful way to assess your potential impact on the challenge is to understand your locus of control,” Mayo says in Organizational Leadership , “or the extent to which you can personally drive the needed change or improvement.”

The best way to illustrate your control is by using three concentric circles: the innermost circle being full control of resources, the middle circle representing your ability to influence but not control, and the outermost circle alluding to shifts outside both your influence and control.

Consider these circles when implementing your action plan to ensure your goals don’t overreach.

The Importance of Root Cause Analysis in Organizational Leadership

Root cause analysis is a critical organizational leadership skill for effectively addressing problems and driving change. It helps you understand shifting conditions around your company and confirm that your efforts are relevant and sustainable.

As a leader, you must not only effect change but understand why it’s needed. Taking an online course, such as Organizational Leadership , can enable you to gain that knowledge.

Using root cause analysis, you can identify the issues behind your organization’s problems, develop a plan to address them, and make impactful changes.

Are you preparing to transition to a new leadership role? Enroll in our online certificate course Organizational Leadership —one of our leadership and management courses —and learn how to perform an effective root cause analysis to ensure your company’s long-term success. To learn more about what it takes to be an effective leader, download our free leadership e-book .

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[Updated 2023] Top 25 Fishbone Diagram PPT Templates To Conduct Root Cause Analysis

Gunjan Gupta

Love it or hate it, we all have indulged in brainstorming sessions once in a while. Whether it involves taking necessary business decisions or major life decisions, brainstorming is something that has followed us throughout our journey. These deep-sighted sessions might also have been disorderly at times due to the overwhelming flow of ideas coming from every direction or totally structured with a strategy that helps. 

Since the late 1960s, Ishikawa diagrams have helped in shaping the lives of millions of entrepreneurs drowning in the pool of chaos and confusion. They have helped through the process of brainstorming causes of an effect and even mapping the relationships between cause-and-effect.  

Due to their shape, structure, and focus, these diagrams are popularly known as fishbone diagrams, herringbone diagrams, or cause-and-effect diagrams. They resemble an actual fishbone structure, with a long line running through the center reflecting the main outcome. It is sometimes also referred to as the ‘problem statement’. The other bones branch out from the middle line representing various other causes or ‘affinities’. This process is repeated until you feel satisfied with the fishbone diagram.

Since fishbone diagrams are so useful and used by many industries, there are a few pre-designed templates that we have made available for your convenience. Using these 25 fishbone diagram PPT templates will help you avoid unnecessary cluttering and analyze things more fluidly. 

Fishbone Diagram PPT Templates To Download and Use

Fishbone Diagram Template 1 

Fishbone diagrams are extremely useful in the problem-solving arsenal. Use this template to figure out the cause and effect relationship between different variables. Also, present a breakdown of the contributing factors by employing this highly-resourceful PPT slide. Besides this, our Ishikawa diagram PPT visual can be utilized to give an in-depth understanding of the process and the problem. Additionally, highlighting opportunities for optimization, understanding current processes is acquainted with this professionally-designed template. Since the format of this design is fully-responsive, tweak it to fit your individual business perspective. 

Download Fishbone Diagram Cause Effect Relationship PPT Slide

Fishbone Diagram Template 2

If management and environment as root causes is well understood, highlight the five other generalized root causes for the problem at hand with this editable PPT Layout. Identify these remaining causes related to measurements, materials, methods, manpower, and machine. Furthermore, summarize their underlying causes via staircase format as shown in this PPT Slide, then connect these causes to your problem statement to show their relevance. Download this PPT Template without further ado now!

Download Fishbone Diagram  Root Cause Quality Assurance PPT Slide

Fishbone Diagram Template 3

Convey the changes in your business as well as its progress by employing this invigorating design. This fishbone timeline diagram model helps divide various levels into discrete sections, each representing different stages of the process. Developments and progressions can be fluidly explained to the onlooker with this diagram that is pre-designed by our experts. You can either insert monthly updates into it or any other way you like as this template can be custom-tailored to your needs and requirements. Therefore, this template is an ideal fir for professionals undertaking a new project as articulating growth, progress, and time duration is a breeze with this design. 

Download The 8 Manufacturings Problems Fishbone Timeline

Fishbone Diagram Template 4

Our root-cause analysis fishbone diagram template aims to present a breakdown of the causes of an issue. It also helps in organizing and determining what elements have the greatest impact so that various possibilities of them creating an effect can be judged proficiently. This fishbone PPT slide is designed in such a way that it will assist you in tackling smaller chunks of a problem on the basis of which the whole process can be judged, making your solution-finding process less intimidating and problem-solving a lot more manageable. 

Download Root Cause Analysis Fishbone Diagram Cause And Effect

Fishbone Diagram Template 5

Classify various potential causes of an issue in a systematized manner by employing this well-crafted Ishikawa diagram template. Determine the root causes of each problem that you face in your business, marketing, sales, or any other department. Essentially this layout helps you in breaking the whole process into smaller chunks, making it much more comprehensible. With a single-glance, the cause and effect relationship can be understood by the onlooker, if the information is presented using this template design. 

Download Fishbone Diagram Cause Effective Relationship PowerPoint Slide Backgrounds

Fishbone Diagram Template 6

Take advantage of this creative yet very minimalistic design to present deductive generalizations with solid proofs. Business and academic research departments can employ this template to determine the cause-and-effect relationship between various variables. Additionally, social and market situations can be effortlessly analyzed by incorporating this cause-and-effect diagram PPT slide into your business structure. 

Download Fishbone Diagram For Cause-Effect Analysis PPT Slide

Fishbone Diagram Template 7

If the root cause to the business problem under consideration traces 6 paths, use this simple diagrammatic structure to point these out. With this fishbone diagram framework, identify the multiple bottlenecks obstructing business operations pertaining to process, equipment, people, material, management, and environment. Fill out the branches with those solid reasons and help your team resolve conflicts with ease. Get it now!

Download fishbone diagram ottkenecks identifying PPT Slide

Fishbone Diagram Template 8

Such fishbone PPT slides can help you create amazing presentations on manufacturing, sales, marketing, and the like. The user can employ this template to analyze the root cause of a problem. Also, utilize it to conduct proper analyses of the outcomes and their conclusions with cemented data. All of the research findings can be efficiently discussed with the audience by downloading this template.  

Download Fishbone analysis diagram variation PPT slides 

Fishbone Diagram Template 9

Business and academic researchers can employ this design to present logical connections to their findings. This template is well-suited to academic research centers to judge phenomenon and its root cause. Also, casual relationships between various variables can be determined with this well-structured PPT design. The diagram symbolically presents all the causes that can be organized systematically. Not only that, but the interdependency and relatedness of each variable can also be visually analyzed by including this template into your business research structure.

Fishbone Diagram Template 10

If you need to discuss the causes and effects of some issue or simply conduct a root cause analysis, then this fishbone diagram PPT slide is the right fit for you. Make a visually appealing presentation that keeps your audience engaged by incorporating this design. Represent the causes and effects of various problems in the structure of a fish skeleton. Every business and industry can use this template to represent their ideas in an attractive manner that is easily understood by the onlookers. 

Download Eleven Years Fishbone Timeline

Fishbone Diagram Template 11

This is an ideal tool to identify and present various problems, their outcomes, shortcomings, and their possible solutions whether they arise in any area of business such as technology, machinery used, staff, production plant, or any other. Also defects in other distinctive areas like finance, marketing, processing, aviation, hospitality, etc. can be accounted for and discussed with your subordinates. This template design is an inseparable part of brainstorming sessions, presentations, meetings, and seminars. Hence take advantage of this fishbone PPT layout by clicking on the download button now. 

Fishbone Diagram Template 12

Communicate with your team efficiency by using the right visuals like our content-ready fishbone timeline cause and effect template. Share a rational process with your team members as well as subordinates in an orderly manner. This template can be used to show various project milestones, time, duration, and other factors in an organized manner. This will also help in reaching logical conclusions at the end of the process. This design is fully editable, so alter its design and aesthetics as per liking. 

Download Fishbone Timeline Cause And Effect

Fishbone Diagram Template 13

Analyze the roots of complex issues. Visually display many potential causes that led to a particular effect. Professionals indulge in ales, marketing and manufacturing can conveniently use this template. Apart from this, this template is a very useful set for other professionals and industries as the layout is full-customizable. As such everything ranging from the color to theme can be tweaked as per one’s specifications. 

Download 7 Year Fishbone Timeline With Result

Fishbone Diagram Template 14

Use this fishbone framework template to uniquely represent your crisis management strategy. Identify the core aspects of your crisis plan that include everything from creating a crisis team, to triggering an escalation process while citing the crucial role of people, record keeping, and communication vividly with this content-ready PPT Template. Explore this PPT Slide in its fullest potential by downloading it from the link below.

Download Crisis Management Via Fishbone Diagram PPT Slide

Fishbone Diagram Template 15

Use this fishbone diagram slide to exhibit the cause and effect of various theories, concepts, and variables alike. Classify the facts and figures behind the occurrence of a particular phenomenon. Presenters can utilize this template to discuss details of various causes, their possibilities of leading to effect, the relationship between the two, and other such factors. This template is especially useful for business entrepreneurs as categorizing and dividing various factors like people, methods, machines, etc. is an absolute breeze. 

Download Fishbone Timeline For Incorrectly Assembled Parts

Fishbone Diagram Template 16

Identify the gaps in the production results. Determine the problem causes and divide them into categories by employing this fishbone framework. Analyze the six M’s that are manpower, method, machine, material, measurement, and mother nature with this well-crafted design that comes with editable features and attributes. Also, its high quality saves you from unnecessary pixelation while presenting on a large screen 

Download Fishbone Tool For Value Gap Analysis

Fishbone Diagram Template 17

This is an extremely versatile tool that can aid you not only problem-solving but also presents a breakdown of contributing factors in an orderly manner. Apart from this, it can be utilized to show the management hierarchy with ease and precision. Brainstorming the possible causes and their apt solutions in another area that this design caters to, making it a highly resourceful PPT layout. 

Download Fishbone Timeline With Text Holders And 4 Years

Fishbone Diagram Template 18

Represent managerial hierarchy, departmental divisions, and stages of a process with this intuitively designed fishbone diagram template. Exhibit the cause and effect relationships between various theories, concepts, variables, and others by utilizing this meticulously crafted Ishikawa PPT slide. The presenter can outline different causes and their possibilities of creating an effect here in this design. Also, customer attitude can be verified with ease by employing this outstanding fishbone design. Since making alterations is quite easy in this design, feel free to modify it as per your liking. 

Download Fishbone Diagram Cause Effect Relationship PPT Show Deck

Fishbone Diagram Template 19

Detect the reasons for various imperfections, defects, and failures in your business setting. Find out the deviations that are required to detect for initiating the process of growth and expansion. Since this template is designed after due thought to design and aesthetics it is a very productive tool to download and use. Not only this, but it also acts as the greatest problem-solving tool an entrepreneur would have in his arsenal. Hence, click on the download button now!

Download Fishbone Diagram For Problem Analysis Flat PowerPoint Design

Fishbone Diagram Template 20

Envision the potential causes to find the root cause of an issue. Identify, determine, and improve quality issues with this fishbone diagram template design. It can also help in analyzing the discrepancies preventing the occurrence of future issues. Since this cause and effect diagram is professionally designed after due research and analysis, edit its format any which way. Whether it includes changing the color, design, font size, shapes or any other attribute, this template will respond to all the changes made by you. 

Download Quality Circles Fishbone Diagram

Fishbone Diagram Template 21

Use this 4s fishbone diagram template for not only your problem-solving endeavors but also analyzing complex problems with multiple causes, uncovering bottlenecks, identifying the loopholes in a problem, accelerating a process, and many others. This Ishikawa diagram also facilitates as a great quality improvement tool, that can be used any which way by the user. Tweaking all its elements is made effortless for the convenience of the user. 

Download 4s Fishbone Timeline Diagram

Fishbone Diagram Template 22

Presenters who want to inspire their audience and explain their skills in a visually attractive way can download this fishbone diagram template. Professionals can also employ this template to conduct a thorough root cause analysis on any problem areas such as manufacturing, sales, production unit, or any other. Nonetheless, the components of this PPT can be tweaked as per your needs and aspirations. 

Download Root Cause Analysis Fishbone Diagram Showing People

Fishbone Diagram Template 23

Managerial staff, professionals, and researchers can employ this template to display their findings, statistics, and interferences. It can also be utilized to interpret various objectives and their root causes, which is the main function of a fishbone diagram. The ill-effects of any cause can be effortlessly judged and possible solutions can be found out with this visually attractive template. Additionally, presenters can incorporate this design with DMAIC tools. User-friendliness is our biggest priority, hence tweaking the content of this template is very easy and convenient. 

Download Fishbone Diagram Cause Effect Relationship PPT

Fishbone Diagram Template 24

Present conclusions to your study in this Ishikawa diagram PPT Template. Company managers can avail this design to interpret the problems created by the employees and decide upon the possible solutions. Therefore, download this well-crafted fishbone diagram design to conduct an effective root-cause analysis and wow your audience with the results. 

Download Fishbone Diagram Cause Effect Relationship Presentation Pictures

Fishbone Diagram Template 25

Track all the causes and conditions at various steps that led to a particular effect by employing this well-crafted fishbone diagram. Avoid unnecessary clutter by arranging your data in an orderly manner. This helps in better understanding and visualizing the process. Therefore download this must-have template to present like a pro!

Download Cause And Effect Diagram Fishbone Diagram PPT

Don’t worry if you aren’t quite used to creating fishbone diagrams, these 25 built-in template designs will supply you with the ultimate visual toolkit. Tap into this collection to elevate your work and achieve the greatest impact in your business setting!

These templates are a breeze to use and download: in just a few clicks you have the entire fishbone diagram outline ready at your doorstep. One of the coolest features of these templates is that if you don’t like the positioning of an attribute or cause, you can drag and drop the shape wherever you prefer. 

FAQs on Fishbone Diagrams

What is also known as the ishikawa diagram.

The fishbone analysis technique is also known as the Ishikawa diagram, named after its inventor, Kaoru Ishikawa, a Japanese quality control expert. The diagram is called Ishikawa diagram because he first developed the method in the 1960s as a quality control tool for the Kawasaki shipyards where he worked. The diagram is sometimes also referred to as a cause-and-effect diagram, as it is used to identify the potential causes of a problem or an issue.

What is fishbone analysis used for?

Fishbone analysis, also known as Ishikawa diagram or cause-and-effect analysis, is a problem-solving technique used to identify the root causes of a problem or an issue.

The name "fishbone" comes from the diagram's shape, which resembles the skeleton of a fish, with the problem or issue being the "head" of the fish and the potential causes branching off as the "bones" of the fish.

Fishbone analysis can be used in various industries and fields, including manufacturing, healthcare, service industries, and management. It helps to identify the underlying causes of a problem and to develop effective solutions to address the issue.

What are the 5 Ms in the Ishikawa diagram?

The 5 Ms, also known as the 5 categories, are commonly used in the Ishikawa diagram (fishbone diagram) to organize the potential causes of a problem or an issue. The 5 Ms are:

Manpower: This includes the people involved in the process, their skills, knowledge, and experience.

Methods: This includes the procedures and processes used to complete the task, such as standard operating procedures, work instructions, and tools.

Machines: This includes the equipment, machinery, and technology used in the process.

Materials: This includes the raw materials, components, and supplies used in the process.

Measurements: This includes the metrics and data used to monitor and measure the process, such as quality control checks and inspection criteria.

By considering these 5 Ms, teams can brainstorm potential causes of a problem and identify the underlying issues that may be contributing to the problem. This can help teams to develop effective solutions to address the root cause of the problem and prevent it from happening again in the future.

What are the 7 categories in a fishbone diagram?

While the 5 Ms ( Manpower, Methods, Machines, Materials, and Measurements ) are the most used categories in a fishbone diagram, there are other categories that can be used depending on the context of the problem or issue. The additional two categories that are sometimes included in a fishbone diagram are:

Mother Nature (Environment): This category includes factors outside of human control that can affect the process, such as weather, temperature, humidity, and other environmental conditions.

Management: This category includes factors related to the management and organization of the process, such as leadership, policies, procedures, and communication.

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Root cause analysis (rca).

​Description  

Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is a problem-solving technique that seeks to identify the primary cause of a problem. By focusing on the root cause, organizations can prevent the problem from recurring and develop long-term solutions that improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase customer satisfaction.

RCA uses tools such as the 5 Whys and Cause & Effect Diagram to identify the underlying causes of a problem. The 5 Whys technique involves asking "why" multiple times to dig deeper into the root cause. The Cause & Effect Diagram categorizes potential causes, such as people, process, and equipment, to identify root causes quickly.

This RCA presentation is designed to provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of Root Cause Analysis (RCA) as a problem-solving technique. The presentation highlights the importance of identifying the root cause of a problem and how RCA can be used to achieve this. Participants will learn how to apply common RCA tools such as the 5 Whys and Cause & Effect Diagram to identify the root cause of a problem. They will also gain knowledge on how to prioritize root causes using a Pareto Chart to focus on the most significant causes first. The presentation will also cover the pitfalls in root cause analysis, highlighting the importance of avoiding making assumptions, involving stakeholders, and making RCA an ongoing process. By the end of the presentation, participants will have a deep understanding of RCA and be equipped with the skills needed to identify and solve problems effectively.

Learning Objectives

Understand the critical role of identifying root causes in effective problem-solving.

Apply 5 Whys and Cause & Effect Diagram for practical root cause analysis.

Learn to prioritize root causes using Pareto Charts for impactful solutions.

Recognize common pitfalls and strategies for overcoming them.

1. Introduction to Root Cause Analysis

What is Root Ca use Analysis?

What RCA Is Not

Root Cause: The "Evil at the Bottom"

Relationship of Problems, Symptoms and Root Causes

Why Root Cause Analysis?

Principles of Root Cause Analysis

Applications of Root Cause Analysis

Root Cause Analysis Tools

2. Overview of Problem Solving

What is a Problem?

Problem Solving Funnel

Key Problem Solving Methodologies

PDCA Problem Solving Process

A3 Problem Solving Process

DMAIC Problem Solving Process

8D Problem Solving Process

Bridging to Key RCA Tools

5 Whys: Purposes

5 Whys: When to Use

Examples of 5 Whys

Completing the 5 Whys

Drawbacks of the 5 Whys

5 Whys: Practical Tips

4. Cause & Effect Diagram

Understanding 4M Analysis

Cause & Effect Diagram: Purposes

Cause & Effect Diagram: When to Use

Cause & Effect Diagram (Manufacturing)

Cause & Effect Diagram (Service)

Examples of Cause & Effect Diagrams

How to Construct a Cause & Effect Diagram

Integrating 5 Whys with the Cause & Effect Diagram

Checklists for the 5M1E

Corrective Actions

Cause & Effect Diagram: Practical Tips

5. Root Cause Prioritization ​

Pareto Chart: Purpose

Pareto Chart: When to Use

Pareto Chart Insights

Pareto Chart: Data Collection

Examples of Pareto Chart

How to Construct a Pareto Chart

Pareto Chart: Practical Tips 

6. Effective RCA Practices

Yo u may also be interested in the following training presentations (sold separately): ​

A3 Problem Solving Process & Tools

8D Problem Solving Process & Tools

PDCA Problem Solving Process & Tools

Root Cause Analysis

5 Whys Analysis Toolkit

5 Steps of Problem Solving

Business Process Reengineering (BPR)

Problem Solving & Visualization Tools

Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP)

Failure Mode & Effects Analysis (FMEA)

Mistake-Proofing

Total Quality Management

Reducing the Cost of Quality

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What Are The Five Whys? 5 Whys Root Cause Analysis Explained!

Have you ever encountered never-ending problems in your professional or personal lives? In their problem-solving and continuous improvement journey, organizations find challenges that require intensive research to reach their root causes. Sometimes, finding the leading cause of problems that make your processes inefficient is hard. The 5 Whys Root Cause Analysis is one of the most effective techniques for the same. Principles of systematic inquiry guide this method and allow teams to delve into problems at a root level to unravel the underlying causes. This method makes way for sustainable solutions. 

Through this blog, let’s delve into the concept of root cause analysis, how it works, and its practical applications in various industries. It also shows 5 why examples and templates.

What Are The 5 Whys?

Let’s discuss what are the 5 whys. It is a structured problem-solving approach developed by Toyota as part of its continuous improvement practices within the Toyota Production System. 

Sakichi Toyoda , the father of the Japanese industrial revolution and the founder of Toyota Industries, introduced the concept of asking a simple question – ‘Why’ to business problem-solving . He developed a managerial problem-solving tool called 5 Why Root Cause Analysis.

It is a straightforward yet powerful tool; it simply asks “why” with regard to any problem until its root cause is found. It gets its name from the idea that it generally takes around five times of saying “why” to unravel an issue to its root cause. However, the number isn’t fixed but is rather contingent on the complexity of the problem. 

This number of asking “why” can increase or decrease depending on the complexity of the problem. Simpler problems might need fewer times of asking “Why”. Similarly, Larger problems may require more questions to discover the actual cause of the problem.

Owing to its effective and lean nature, this Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA) Tool has gained popularity. You must have understood what are the 5 whys of root cause analysis. So, let’s discuss its benefits.

What Are The Benefits Of The 5 Whys Analysis?

Five Whys root cause analysis method offers multiple benefits to organizations and professionals who want to understand the actual reason behind a problem. Some of the key benefits are discussed as follows:

1. Identifying Root Causes

The 5 Whys method helps teams dig deeper beyond surface-level symptoms By systematically asking “why” multiple times. It ultimately helps to uncover the fundamental root causes of problems.

2. Improved Decision-Making 

It gives insight that will be of use in decision-making and strategic planning . It establishes causes and ensures an understanding of what causes problems. It enables an organization to design, apply effective interventions, and utilize resources toward priority areas.

3. Simple and Time Saving 

It is simple and requires very little training; hence, it is accessible to teams at any organizational level. Its simplicity encourages even novices to use it, thus making teams empowered to act in problem solving. It ensures that the team accurately recognizes the problem to be able to solve it in effective and efficient ways, hence allowing them to get back on track within the shortest time possible while maintaining the normal flow and levels of productivity.

4. Cost-Effective Solutions

Compared with treating symptoms, addressing root causes directly can lead to more efficient and cost-effective solutions. It means that the organization may focus resources on solving a problem to avoid recurring or repeating its cost. 

5. Future Problem Prevention

It would also help organizations prevent a repetition of the problem in a similar manner because it helps to identify and mitigate the root causes. It provides a proactive approach that helps the organization build resilience and avoid future failures or disruptions.

6. Fosters Problem Solving team culture 

5 Whys promotes a culture of questioning, learning, and innovation. The teams become habitual to questioning the core facts and challenging the status quo. Hence, continuing with the pursuit of deeper understanding will bring about continuous improvement and growth of the organization. This step of involving the employees in root cause analysis process helps employees take ownership and responsibility. This fosters a culture of accountability, collaboration, and improvement amongst the team.

When To Use Root Cause Analysis?

5 Why analysis is a tool commonly employed to determine the role and accountability of human and system processes in the event of a human error. It is used to understand the cause and effect of a problem to prevent similar occurrences in the future. You can use this technique for the below-mentioned tasks:

• Repetitive Issues : You can use it when you notice frequent problems or issues in a process or system.
• Complex Problems : It can be used in complex processes or operations where multiple factors are involved.
• Quality Control : 5 Whys is a tool to help a manufacturing or service industry find out defects, errors, or failures in the product or service, all in such a way that they never recur.
• Safety Incidents : All these analyses help businesses improve their safety management and come to know about the loopholes in the safety procedure for future hazards.
• Process Improvement : This technique is very much used by organizations at the time of process analysis to find out the inefficiencies or bottlenecks that are hindering high productivity or quality.
• Project Failure : Reason or reasons that have caused the project to fail to meet objectives or deadlines. Recommend corrective action for this and future projects.

How Do You Conduct 5 Whys Root Cause Analysis?

Here’s the 5 step process that can be used to determine the root cause of recurring business issues in the organization.

Form And Assemble The Team

Team selection is the first essential and critical step of the process. The Five Whys method suggests involving everyone who is affected by the problem in some manner. Team members should be chosen across shifts, departments, or regions. If you are dealing with a shop floor problem, include factory workers alongside your managerial team. It is crucial to make this a team exercise and be open to all perspectives. It is advisable to include a facilitator to steer these meetings.

Brief The Team

The next step is to give the meeting agenda and brief your team on the purpose of this 5 whys exercise. The original methodology recommends using a white paper/ whiteboard during this process instead of a computer. Ideally, the facilitator should write down the problem on the whiteboards to ensure the team is collectively aware of it. Allowing cross-discussion will help to formulate a more comprehensive problem statement. Often, defining the problem statement itself is half the solution.

The facilitator should lead the conversation by asking the first why. They should encourage answers based on facts rather than assumptions or emotions. The focus should be on finding the root cause rather than the symptoms or complaints. The process can become a rather lengthy one if the answers are not precise. Sometimes there could be more than one root cause. The root causes should be one word or short phrases rather than lengthy statements.

Repeat Four Times

Each reason listed out in the previous step needs to be reframed into a question. The facilitator should be able to demonstrate the cause-and-effect relationship to the team. For example, if the cause listed in Step 3 was – ‘Reminder email wasn’t sent to the client’ it would have to be reframed into a question – Why wasn’t the reminder email sent to the client?

Repeat this step four times or until you have determined the root cause. 5 Whys technique is an exemplary method of dealing with problems arising from human error. This team problem-solving approach minimizes the risk of hurting sentiments. The team approaches the problem without playing the blame-game and searches for the solution together in a constructive manner.

This 5 Why method seeks to set in place processes and best practices to avoid the problem rather than assigning blame to a single team member. In other words, the cause needs to be as specific as possible. The team should avoid listing causes as human errors or employee inefficiencies.

Verify the Causes 

Check the answers for common themes or patterns of root causes that could, if corrected, prevent recurrence of the problem. Verify that the root causes are indeed factors of the problem. Sometimes, further investigation or data analysis may be necessary to confirm the validity of the identified causes.

Define Solutions

Now, you have discussed all the sources of errors with your team. The next part is to define solutions. Brainstorm with your team and form possible solutions or action plans to rectify the problems. After this, you need to implement the solutions and track their effectiveness.

Follow Up & continuous improvement

Access the effectiveness of the implemented solutions consistently. Watch the problem so that it does not occur. Take care of the new problems arising. Use the insights developed from the analysis of 5 Whys to help the organization continually improve its processes, systems, and procedures. Build a learning and problem-solving culture.

5 Whys Examples

Now, you have understood the concept and learned about how to conduct the method. Let’s discuss some 5 whys examples to help you better equip yourself with the concept.

practical, real-life business scenario using five whys method

Example 1 : A renowned advertising agency is facing an acute problem. A client has threatened to pull out due to the increasing delay in deliverables. The agency calls for a meeting of the responsible managers and executives.

• There was one instance of late delivery.
• The creatives weren’t approved by the Creative Head as scheduled.
• The Creative Head was on sick leave for two days
• A substitute for the Creative Head hasn’t been appointed in the organization
• We hadn’t predicted the situation, and clients are becoming more particular about their deadlines.

Solution : To avoid delays, let’s designate a substitute for the Creative Head and some other critical profiles. 

Let’s discuss another 5 whys example 

Example 2 : Manufacturing equipment keeps breaking down.

• Because the bearings failed.
• Because they were not lubricated properly.
• Because the maintenance schedule wasn’t followed.
• Because the maintenance team was not adequately trained.
• Because there wasn’t a standardized training program in place.

Root Cause : Lack of a standardized training program for the maintenance team.

Solution : Conduct a standardized training program for the maintenance team.

These examples must have helped you how to conduct a 5 Y’s analysis. Lets discuss an example for professionals in their daily life

5 whys example for daily lives of professionals

Example 1 : I am Feeling stressed and overwhelmed most of the time.

• Because I have too many tasks to complete.
• Because I need help with time management and prioritization.
• Because I don’t set clear goals or deadlines for my tasks.
• I often procrastinate and avoid planning.
• Because I feel overwhelmed and don’t know where to start.

Root Cause : Lack of clear goal-setting, deadlines, and effective time management strategies.

Solution : Set clear goals with deadlines.

5 Whys Root Cause Analysis Templates

After spending considerable time in Root Cause Analysis, you ought to present your Analysis in the most persuasive manner to influence decision-makers. Keeping that in mind, we have designed a collection of Templates for you. The templates’ design ensures the analysis is conveyed clearly.

Root Cause Analysis PowerPoint Template

You can use this List Template to showcase a structured approach to the root causes of the problem. The question ‘Why’ is asked repeatedly until the most basic answer, i.e., the root cause, comes up.

This Template has a list design that makes it easy for the audience to understand the sequence of problems listed. You can edit the slides with your preferred text. Add Background Images and colors to personalize this Template according to your brand identity.

5 Whys Leaf PowerPoint Template

This framework uses attractive infographic vectors to break the problem into stages to find out the root cause affecting the business.

Using this approach, we can find the root cause of a problem and develop corrective or preventive solutions. It consists of five leaf petals that can denote the “Whys.” This beautiful leaf style makes the template beautiful and signifies an eco-friendly approach. The middle leaf indicates the main why, and the following leaves denote the subsequent whys. Simply download this template and customize it to your preferences.

Animated 5 Whys Business Analysis PowerPoint Template

Use this template to illustrate the five causes of a business problem creatively. It performs a ‘5 Why Analysis’ using innovative animation. These animations make the presentation attractive and easy for your audience to comprehend.

Using this template, you can identify viable reasons for a business problem by asking 5 ‘Why’ questions. This framework helps you discover the root cause and, thus, formulate an effective solution accordingly. It has multiple slides to present each “Why” separately in a detailed manner. All the slides are fully editable, which you can personalize to suit your brand’s identity.

Our template on Root Cause Analysis with the Tree Design is a very good and visually appealing tool to easily identify and address the issues by any person, individual, and organization. The structure of the tree then outlines the possibility to document the problem statement, primary and secondary causes, and the recommended solutions.

It has personalizable fields and a user-friendly interface that enhances navigation and ease in collaborations among members of the team. In manufacturing, it allows the teams and, in fact, those of the healthcare and project management industries, among others, to be in a position whereby they can draw insights from a perspective of driving improvements effectively or preventing recurrence.

5 Whys 3D PowerPoint Template

This 5 y’s template incorporates 3D elements in its design. It has two sections represented with different colors. Both sections have five lists on which to write the problems and their answers. The left-sided section showcases the Whys, while the right-sided section answers the Whys.

It’s a beautiful presentation that helps the audience understand the problems and their solutions. It also provides a header and footer to write the Problem statement and Conclusion, respectively. The template is fully editable, and you can personalize it per your brand guidelines. 

More Root Cause Analysis Templates

Browse through our Root Cause Analysis template collection for more suitable templates for your presentations. We also have a vast 5 Whys Template library that you can explore. All the templates are availabe for both MS PowerPoint and Google Slides format.

The ‘5 Whys ’ is an ideal problem-solving tool that both entrepreneurs and well-established companies can utilize. Using this approach, we can find the root cause of a problem and develop corrective or preventive solutions. Its success depends on the ability of the team to delve deep into root causes rather than stop at the symptom level. The investigating team should also be open to more than one root cause. This tool can have a substantial positive effect on your organizational process if performed correctly. Explore our PowerPoint Templates and enhance your presentations!

How do I know when to stop asking "why" in a 5 whys?

Knowing when to stop asking “why” depends on reaching a point where the answers lead to actionable insights or when the root cause becomes evident. It’s important to use judgment and common sense to determine when further questioning won’t provide meaningful information.

Are there any limitations to this?

While it is a valuable tool for root cause analysis, it’s not always sufficient on its own. In complex situations, additional methods such as fishbone diagrams, fault tree analysis, or statistical analysis may be necessary to fully understand the problem.

Can the 5 Whys method be applied to personal life?

Yes, the five Whys method can be applied to personal life to address various challenges, such as time management, relationship issues, health concerns, and personal development goals.

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• Root cause analysis: Digging to find ef ...

Root cause analysis: Digging to find effective solutions (with examples)

Root cause analysis (RCA) finds the root causes of a problem and helps you identify and implement solutions. Instead of treating surface-level symptoms of a problem, RCA digs deeper and finds the underlying issues. By taking the time to analyze the real reason why a problem is occurring, you can solve the problem for good instead of opting for a quick fix. In this piece, you’ll learn how RCA can be the key to corrective action.

“Let’s get to the root of the problem” is an idiom people commonly use when looking for solutions. This idiom can be visualized in the form of tree roots below the surface. Tree roots aren’t visible, but their growth is obvious above ground. Sometimes this growth is positive and results in a beautiful tree, and sometimes it’s negative—damaging sidewalks and foundations. 

What is root cause analysis?

A root cause analysis (RCA) involves finding the root causes of a problem in order to identify and implement solutions. RCA treats the underlying causes of a problem instead of the surface-level symptoms of the problem itself. 

For example, if your company is suffering from a low retention rate, hiring more team members is a quick solution. But with RCA, you can instead discover why team members aren’t staying with the company so you can increase retention long term. Root causes of low retention rate could include:

Lack of professional development opportunities

Poor team member benefits

Low pay compared to market range

Low team morale

After considering possible root causes, you can use research to determine one or multiple root causes. Once you understand those root causes, it’s easy to implement a solution. RCA addresses problems systematically instead of placing a bandaid over problems and taking the risk that the problem will occur again. 

Key principles of RCA

Root cause analysis can resolve recurring project issues or larger bottlenecks within business processes. If you want to reap the unique benefits of this method, keep these key principles of RCA in mind:

Instead of correcting the symptoms of a problem, focus on its root causes.

Focus less on who caused the problem and more on how and why the problem occurred.

Find cause-and-effect evidence to support the root causes you’ve identified.

Develop an informative action plan to support your solutions.

Consider how you can prevent root causes from reoccurring in the future.

Remember that you can have multiple root causes for a problem, and it’s not out of the ordinary for this to happen. End with the root causes you feel are most accurate and be prepared to tackle them with strong solutions. 

How to perform a root cause analysis

There are various strategies you can use to identify root causes in RCA. Use the steps below to guide your team through the RCA process. 

1. Define the problem

You’ll need a clearly defined problem to perform a root cause analysis. If you have multiple problems you want to solve, it’s best to start with one and perform multiple RCAs to find solutions for each. By tackling one problem at a time, you’ll have a better chance of finding the cause of each issue and addressing it quickly.

Defining your problem also involves getting everyone on the same page. For example, you may want to perform RCA because you think your team is suffering from low productivity. But if your team doesn’t feel like their productivity is low, then you can’t move forward. Because productivity is subjective, you may need to define your problem in a more measurable way and move on to step two where you’ll use evidence to learn more about the problem. 

2. Collect data

You’ll now need to collect evidence to support the idea that the problem exists. You can also use company research to better understand the symptoms of the problem. Questions you should ask during this step include:

How long has the problem existed?

Who is suffering because of this problem?

What is the short-term and long-term impact of this problem?

What are the key symptoms of this problem?

What evidence do we have to support the idea that there’s a problem?

Once you know more about how this issue impacts your company and team members, you can brainstorm potential causes of the problem. 

3. Identify possible root causes

Identifying possible root causes is the most important part of the root cause analysis process. The causes you find in this step will eventually lead you toward a solution and action plan. Common problem-solving strategies include:

Cause-and-effect flow chart: The free root cause analysis template provided below features a cause-and-effect flowchart. This flowchart breaks down the problem into symptoms, possible causes, and actual causes in order to find a logical solution. 

5 whys approach : You can also use the 5 whys approach to get to the root cause of a problem. Instead of taking the problem at face-value, ask "why" until you uncover a process or system that isn't working the way it's supposed to. When you don’t settle for the first answer you land on, you can discover layers of issues that weren’t noticeable right away. 

4. Determine the root cause

To determine the root cause of your problem, you’ll go through as many possible root causes as you can. Once you’ve exhausted every possibility, ask the following questions:

Are there any similarities between the root causes I’ve identified?

Are there reasons to eliminate any of these possible root causes?

Which root cause seems most problematic?

Similar to the strategies you used when looking for possible root causes, there are strategies you can use to get to the actual root cause. These strategies include:

Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA): FMEA is a tool similar to risk analysis where you’ll look at the possible root causes you’ve identified and eliminate the ones that are most likely to result in failure later on. 

Impact analysis: Use an impact analysis to assess the positive and negative impacts of each possible root cause you’ve identified. When you make this hypothetical pro and cons list for each cause, you can feel more confident narrowing down your list.

You may struggle to identify a singular root cause of your problem, and that’s okay. If you think your problem has multiple contributing factors, don’t feel pressured to choose just one to solve. It’s nice to streamline your action plan, but sometimes you’ll need to create multiple plans to address an issue.

5. Implement solutions

Once you’re confident in the root causes you’ve identified, it’s time to find solutions for these causes and take action. The solutions you come up with should address the root cause, but as a result, these solutions will work their way back up the chain and address your initial problem. 

Ask yourself these questions when developing solutions:

How will we implement this solution if we choose it?

What roadblocks will we face when implementing this solution?

How long will it take to implement this solution?

Who will implement this solution?

Could implementing this solution lead to other problems?

Once you’re ready to create your implementation plan , make sure it’s shared in a tool that all stakeholders can view. Project management software makes it easy for your team to collaborate and coordinate deliverables as needed. It may take several weeks to implement your plan, which means some of your objectives may become dependent on other milestones. Use Gantt charts to view project dependencies and collaborate in real-time.

Root cause analysis template and example

An RCA template makes performing root cause analysis simpler because you can visualize your problem and its underlying causes in flowchart form. Just like the roots of a tree, this cause-and-effect flow chart expands in different directions from the initial problem. 

If you follow the root cause analysis example below, you’ll see how the template begins with one problem and then breaks down into the symptoms the problem displays. From the symptoms, the root cause analysis template helps you determine possible root causes before settling on actual root causes and finding solutions. 

In this example, the company is suffering from a loss of website views. The root cause analysis flows as follows:

Website views are down

Reduction in brand visibility

Lack of online purchases

Low domain authority

Possible root causes:

Technical issues with our website

Competitor ranking higher in SERPs

Customers don’t like our product

Customers can’t find our website to make purchases

Poor quality content

Irrelevant backlinks

Actual root causes:

Lack of SEO content

Website isn’t ranking in the SERPs

Lack of relevant keywords

Revamp content

You can download a free root cause analysis template below and use it to identify possible causes and solutions for problems you’re experiencing at work. An RCA template can help you address underlying issues that may not have been obvious at first.

Root-cause analysis tools and methods

Root cause analysis stands as a cornerstone in continuous improvement and risk management efforts. It offers a systematic process to unearth the real root causes of problems or incidents. 

By going beyond symptoms, root cause analysis tools empower RCA teams to delve into the deeper, underlying causes of issues. This deep dive doesn't just lead to temporary fixes; it leads to more effective, long-term resolutions—transforming challenges into opportunities for lasting improvement.

Pareto charts

Pareto analysis, based on the Pareto Principle (also known as the 80-20 rule ), is a decision-making technique that helps in identifying the tasks or problem areas with the biggest payoffs. Pareto analysis is particularly effective when there are multiple causes leading to a single effect. This method is widely applied in various business and organizational sectors, helping to prioritize actions that have the greatest impact.

The 5 Whys method is an iterative interrogative method used to analyze the cause-and-effect relationships underlying a specific problem. It involves repeatedly asking the question "Why?" to peel away layers of symptoms, leading to the real root cause of a problem. The Five Whys technique is widely used in lean methodologies to solve problems, reduce costs, and improve quality.

Ishikawa fishbone diagram

The fishbone diagram, also known as the Ishikawa diagram, is a visual way to look at cause and effect. It helps in brainstorming to detect potential root causes of a problem and is used for product design and quality management. The Ishikawa diagram displays the effect or problem at the mouth of the fish, with potential causes added to the smaller "bones."

Fault tree analysis

Fault tree analysis is a graphical tool that uses Boolean logic—in which the answers to every question are "yes" or “no"—to determine the cause of system-level failures. It's suitable for risk assessment in industries like pharmaceuticals, aerospace, and software engineering. The tool arranges events in sequences and uses logic symbols to show dependencies among events.

Failure Mode and Effective Analysis (FMEA)

FMEA involves reviewing components, subsystems, and assemblies to find weak links in a system and their causes and effects. Developed in the late 1950s, it is both a quantitative and qualitative analysis method used in designing products, processes, or services and for creating control plans for new or modified processes.

Scatter diagram

The scatter diagram is a graphical tool that plots pairs of numerical data, with one variable on each axis, to examine the relationship between them. When variables are correlated, the points will align along a line or curve. How closely the points cluster around the line indicates the strength of the correlation. This root cause analysis tool is regarded as one of the seven basic quality tools and is essential in determining the relationships between different variables in root cause analysis.

DMAIC template

DMAIC, standing for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control, is a structured approach used in Six Sigma to optimize processes. It provides quantifiable evidence of improvements and is a repeatable and easy-to-understand method for detecting issues and developing solutions. This template is excellent for project managers and RCA teams.

8D report template checklist

The 8D report template is used for detailed root-cause analysis based on eight disciplines of problem-solving. It's widely used in industries influenced by customer feedback, such as automotive and healthcare. The template helps in identifying and eradicating the problem, focusing on the "escape point," which represents the point when the issue first went undetected.

Events and causal factor analysis

Events and causal factor analysis identifies the sequence of events and the causal factors that led to an issue or problem. This analysis focuses on understanding the chronological order of events and the specific conditions or actions that contributed to the problem. A cause-and-effect diagram is particularly useful in complex situations where multiple factors interact to cause an issue. 

Change analysis

Change analysis is a key component of effective root cause analysis, particularly in quality management and continuous improvement efforts. This method involves examining and comparing the situation or system before and after the occurrence of a problem. 

By identifying what changed, you can isolate causal factors more accurately. Change analysis is valuable in scenarios where the issue emerged following alterations in processes, materials, personnel, or equipment, helping to pinpoint the real root cause of the problem swiftly.

Barrier analysis

Barrier analysis is a problem-solving process that examines the controls and barriers that were in place to prevent an incident and why those safety checks failed. By analyzing the breakdown or absence of these barriers, root cause analysis teams can identify human error, system flaws, and other potential root causes. Barrier analysis contributes to the development of more robust systems and processes, preventing future occurrences of similar issues.

Tips for conducting an effective root cause analysis

Have you ever wondered how to not only solve problems but also prevent them from recurring? Root cause analysis methods are the key. These methods go into the heart of issues, address their underlying causes, and pave the way for lasting improvements. 

This approach doesn't just offer a temporary fix; it ensures the same problems don’t resurface, fostering continuous improvements in processes and outcomes.

Encourage team collaboration

Promoting team collaboration can significantly enhance the effectiveness of root cause analysis. Diverse perspectives and expertise contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the issue and the development of effective solutions.

Example: Consider a manufacturing company facing frequent equipment breakdowns. By forming a cross-functional RCA team with members from engineering, maintenance, and operations, they can pool their insights to identify the root cause. 

An engineer may pinpoint a design flaw, while a maintenance worker could identify wear and tear issues, and an operator might highlight operational errors. This collaborative approach leads to a comprehensive problem statement that results in a multifaceted and effective solution.

Ask open-ended questions

Open-ended questions are key in root-cause analysis. Asking questions encourages a detailed exploration of the issue, allowing team members to consider various possibilities and delve deeper into the underlying causes.

Example: In a healthcare setting, if there's a rise in patient readmissions, asking open-ended questions like "What are the common factors among these readmissions?" or "How do our discharge processes vary for patients who are readmitted?" can reveal deeper issues. 

These questions could uncover that certain discharge procedures aren't being followed consistently, leading to the root cause of inadequate patient education at discharge.

Avoid blame

An essential aspect of successful root cause analysis is focusing on the process and not on individual blame. Concentrating on the "why" and "how" of the problem rather than "who" was responsible creates an environment conducive to genuine problem-solving and improvement.

Example: In a software development team experiencing frequent project delays, focusing on the process rather than blaming individuals can be more productive. By analyzing the “why” and “how,” such as asking, "Why are these delays happening?" or "How can we optimize our project management strategies?" they might discover that the root cause is not individual incompetence but an unrealistic timeline or unclear communication channels. 

This shift from blame to process-oriented thinking helps create a more effective and harmonious problem-solving environment.

Turn solutions into action with workflows

RCA doesn’t come with instant results, but getting to the root cause of a problem solves it for good. After coming up with an effective solution, you’ll need to put a plan into action. Asana workflows provide a single source of truth to set goals, monitor progress, and watch your problems fade in real-time.

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How to Show Root Cause Analysis in PowerPoint

• May 29, 2019
• PowerPoint templates for download , Product Development

What is Root Cause Analysis, and how might it be helpful in your business? Root Cause Analysis is a method of problem-solving. If you could isolate a problem within your business and identify the root cause – you could then resolve the issue.

Elevate your business performance presentations with our curated resources – visit our financial performance PPT reports webpage.

A great way to make presentations relatable and memorable is to involve real-life circumstances and situations. What better way is there to make a presentation “real” than to try and resolve an actual problem you’re experiencing? Not to mention, if the presentation is to the team trying to solve the problem, your presentation will be more effective if you can first explain how the problem came to be in the first place.

If you need to make creative presentations on the Tree Branch Diagram Root Cause Template   and need more ideas, check out these unique icons.

Why it is important to present Root Cause Analysis in a creative way

Creative presentations are more engaging. Your audience will pay closer attention and be more responsive if your presentation is creative. Your audience paying more attention will, in turn, make the presentation more effective. How? Audiences who pay attention and follow along with the material will retain it better than audiences who are not focused. (Or worse, an audience that is drifting off to sleep!)

In this blog, we’ll share how you can share a Root Cause Analysis in a creative way. Some techniques for that include:

• using visual allegories
• using colors with meanings attached

Want to highlight the source of a problem or fault in your next presentation? Let’s get started.

Use Visual Allegories

Think outside the box. Specifically, think about how you can present Root Cause Analysis with less focus on the literal boxes. Instead of using a regular diagram with squares, circles and arrows – use trees with complex root systems. See how the basic, before RCA was very dry and lacked visual appeal. After incorporating the tree and root system icons, the slide is far more interesting. Even before all the data and information is provided.

Provide as much or as little detail as you like

The tree and the leaves represent symptoms of the problem. They are ways the root cause manifests itself. You can provide details about these symptoms and how they influence day-to-day operations, your customers, or whatever part of your business is influenced. The problem itself is where the symptoms and the root cause meet – the ground level in the diagram. The actual problem is what you’re trying to describe the root cause of, so try not to get too bogged down in the details when describing the problem. The causes are the roots. As you can see in this example slide, the root box is larger than the other two because there can be many causes for one problem.

Use color to guide your audience through the presentations

Associate one color with one topic. Use that color to label the description box as well as the different emblems which mark the relevant part of the tree. For example, you could use purple to represent problems on one slide. Then use that same shade of purple throughout the presentation when describing problems. This helps your audience follow along and helps you to maintain consistency.

Use icons to drive your points home

You can customize the icons used with any of your slides. By changing the icons which accompany your points such as the symptoms, problems, or causes of the problems you can again help the audience follow along. It also looks more visually interesting than blank text, which is always an asset when trying to maintain audience focus and attention.

By using visual allegories rather than plain tables on their own, you can engage your audience and make them think. This ensures they’re paying attention. You’re free to provide as much or as little detail as you like, as well as customize the icons used to illustrate each of your points. Another way to draw your audience in is to purposefully use color. Not only to symbolize the different components but to create a sense of uniformity and balance.

Please re-use the templates provided in the Tree Branch Diagram Root Cause Template, or feel free to make your own based on the tips provided here. You’re always welcome to add additional slides from [relevant icon pack]. Keep these tips for making a creative RCA presentation in mind the next time you need to build a compelling presentation.

Check our video guide on how to redesign Root Cause Analysis step by step:

Graphical Resources: Tree Branch Diagram Root Cause Template

To help you build your own creative, interesting Root Cause Analysis presentations we created the Tree Branch Diagram Root Cause Template, which you can download from here:

Icons like these, and others, keep audience members from zoning out or dozing off during what might otherwise be very dry presentations. Don’t be accused of being dull, again. Incorporate interesting graphics into your next presentation. Customize the color scheme and icon sets to match your brand colors or most recent project. Wow your audience with your next presentation.

Why settle for boring when your presentation could be extraordinary?

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6-Step Root Cause Analysis Diagram for PowerPoint

The 6-Step Root Cause Analysis Diagram for PowerPoint presents infographic presentation designs. It displays a problem statement in the middle with visuals of magnifying glass and fingerprints. It is a metaphor for locating complex problems that are invisible to the naked eye. The semi-circle with 6 segments is a colorful infographic layout that will help pan out information in a single slide. This root cause analysis template with 6 steps also includes two slides with different background colors that will let users choose a layout to match the business presentation theme.

The root-cause analysis (RCA) is a problem-solving method that helps evaluate complex issues. There are a few tools available to perform root-cause analysis such as fishbone, scatter diagram, and 5 whys strategy. The basic concept is to find the underlying problem and eliminate the causes. Whichever methodology you use, 6 steps guidelines will help conduct RCA. Kickoff analysis designating team to collect input from everyone. Then focus on what triggered the problem i.e. causes and collect problem data reports like impact on operations. Look for a suitable method to find the root cause. Perform the root-cause prevention action. Lastly, assess the action by measuring its effectiveness. With the help of creative PowerPoint templates , you can prepare presentations to describe a root cause analysis to an audience.

The 6-Step Root Cause Analysis Diagram for PowerPoint is an editable template. You can add the problem-related data in placeholders and personalize the layout. The six clipart icons could be used to discuss 6 steps guideline for conducting root cause analysis in a structured format. Alternatively, you can download other root cause analysis templates for PowerPoint and Google Slides with creative slide layouts and graphics.

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Root Cause Analysis Guide for Efficient Business Problem-Solving

Updated on: 5 January 2023

Sometimes things go wrong. Well-planned projects fail, processes break down and employees lose their productivity.

To understand what happened, you need to get to the bottom of things.

Many organizations use the root cause analysis when a problem or something unplanned happens that will interrupt their business processes. It helps dig deeper and find effective solutions.

In this post, we will look at what is root cause analysis, the root cause analysis steps, and root cause analysis tools.  

What is Root Cause Analysis

Root cause analysis is a method that helps understand the primary cause of a problem or why a problem occurred in the first place.

It helps you to dig into the underlying causes of the situation, thus allowing you to find appropriate solutions for it.

There are several root cause analysis tools and techniques that can be used in the investigation of a problem. But before we get to that, let’s understand how to conduct a root cause analysis first.

Root Cause Analysis Steps

A root cause analysis may take several hours of your time.

It would be easier for you if you involve a team of relevant people; for example, if you are investigating bottlenecks in a process, it would help to have the process owner and other experts for the analysis.

Follow the steps below to conduct a successful root cause analysis.

Step 1: Define the problem

Define the problem your organization is facing and gather data and evidence relevant to it and necessary to understand the current situation.

Create a problem statement which should include information about the problem like the actual impact, potential impact, the focal point, etc. However keep the statement concise.

Step 2: Determine the factors that caused the problem.

Gather a team of people directly involved in the execution of the process and corrective actions, and experts whose input can help find solutions faster.

Together with the team, brainstorm the possible factors for the problem by asking ‘why?’. You can use a 5 whys diagram or a fishbone diagram here.

Step 3: Identify the root cause.

Dig deeper by continuing to ask why after the first layer of causal factors. Keep at it until finally you have discovered the fundamental cause for the problem at hand.

Step 4: Decide the corrective actions

Decide the corrective actions you need to take to eliminate the problem and prevent it from recurring. Make sure that you clearly communicate them to the people who will be involved.

Step 5: Review and evaluate

Review and evaluate the impact of the corrective actions. Make improvements as necessary.

Root Cause Analysis Tools

Many root cause analysis tools are out there. Following we have listed some that are widely used and more effective in problem-solving.

5 Whys Analysis

To carry out a 5 whys analysis, you need to gather a team of people who are affected by the problem.

As the name suggests, in the 5 whys analysis the question ‘why?’ is asked five times in the course of finding the root cause of a problem.

You can use a 5 whys template like the one below to facilitate the brainstorming session.

Once you have asked ‘why’ five times and figured out the root cause, come up with improvement measure you need to apply. Assign everyone the corrective actions that need to be taken.

Cause and Effect Analysis

Once you have identified the problem, you can use the cause and effect analysis to explore the causes of a problem and its effects.

For the analysis, you can use a cause and effect diagram, which is also known as a fishbone diagram or the Ishikawa diagram.

Just as it helps explore the factors that are preventing an outcome, it can also be used to identify the factors needed to generate the desired outcome.

Here’s how to use the cause and effect analysis to solve business problems . You can also refer to our guide on fishbone diagrams to learn how to use the tool in more detail.  

Pareto Chart

Pareto chart is a combination of a bar chart and a line graph. While the length of the bars represent the frequency or cost of faults, they are arranged in such a way that highlights the most frequent to least frequent. The chart helps prioritize your issues based on the cumulative effect they have on a system.

The Pareto chart is based on the theory that 80% of the total problems that occur are caused by 20% of problem causes. This means if you have solutions to your major problems, you can also solve a majority of your other smaller problems.

Learn how to create a Pareto chart step-by-step here .  

Scatter Diagram

Scatter diagrams or scatter plot diagrams can be used to visualize the relationship between two variables. Once you have created a cause and effect diagram and identified potential causes to your problem, you can use the scatter diagram to determine which causes are responsible for the variation.

While the independent variable is plotted along the horizontal axis, the vertical axis is for the dependent axis. Learn more here .

Fault Tree Analysis

Fault tree analysis is a deductive analysis to that visually represent the failure path. You can use the fault tree analysis to determine the possible causes of a problem or an event. The fault tree starts with the event at the top and the possible causes are placed below.

Anymore Root Cause Analysis Tools?

What other root cause analysis tools do you use? Have you got any more tips on accelerating the root cause analysis steps we have discussed above? Do share them with us in the comments below.

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Root Cause Analysis Template

A medical practice may use a root cause analysis (RCA) process as a systematic approach to identifying the underlying causes of adverse events, errors, or near-misses in patient care. The goal of RCA is not to assign blame but to uncover the fundamental issues that contribute to the problem, enabling the practice to implement effective solutions to prevent recurrence.

When to use root cause analysis:

• Adverse events: RCA is often initiated after a significant adverse event, such as a patient injury, unexpected death, or any incident that results in harm to a patient. The practice conducts RCA to understand how the event occurred and to prevent similar incidents in the future.
• Near misses: RCA can also be used when a near miss occurs—an event that could have resulted in harm but was prevented either by chance or timely intervention. Analyzing near misses helps identify potential weaknesses in the system before they lead to actual harm.
• Quality or safety concerns: When there is a pattern of errors, decreased quality of care, or safety concerns, RCA can help identify the root causes of these issues. For example, if multiple errors are linked to the same process or equipment, RCA can reveal why these issues are happening and how they can be corrected.
• Regulatory requirements: Sometimes RCA is mandated by regulatory bodies or accreditation organizations when specific types of incidents occur. The practice may be required to perform RCA as part of a compliance effort.

How to use root cause analysis:

• Assemble a team: Form a multidisciplinary team that includes individuals who are familiar with the processes involved in the incident. The team may include healthcare providers, administrators, and support staff.
• Define the problem: Clearly describe the adverse event or near miss, including the circumstances surrounding it. This step involves gathering all relevant data, such as patient records, witness statements, and any physical evidence.
• Identify causes: Use tools such as the "Five Whys" or fishbone diagrams (Ishikawa diagrams) to systematically explore the causes of the event. The goal is to move beyond immediate or surface-level causes to uncover deeper, systemic issues.
• Develop action plans: Once the root causes are identified, the team should develop corrective actions to address these issues. Action plans should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).
• Implement and monitor: Implement the action plans and monitor their effectiveness. This may involve changes in processes, additional staff training, or modifications to equipment or environment. Regular follow-up is essential to ensure that the corrective measures are working as intended.
• Document and share findings: Document the entire RCA process, including the findings and the action plans. Share these findings with relevant stakeholders to promote transparency and continuous improvement.

The "five whys" is a tool used in root cause analysis (RCA) to help identify the root cause of a problem by asking "why" multiple times — typically five, but sometimes more or fewer depending on the situation. The idea is to dig deeper into the cause of an issue until the underlying problem is uncovered, rather than stopping at symptoms or surface-level explanations.

How the five “whys” work:

• Identify the problem: Start by clearly stating the problem or issue that needs to be analyzed. This is the first "why."
• Ask "why" the problem occurred: Ask the first "why" to determine why the problem occurred. The answer to this question should lead to the next "why."
• Ask "why" again: Continue asking "why" based on the answer to the previous question. Each subsequent "why" question digs deeper into the cause.
• Repeat until the root cause is identified: Continue this process until you reach the root cause of the problem. Typically, this takes about five iterations, but it can be more or fewer depending on the complexity of the issue.
• Identify solutions: Once the root cause is identified, you can develop corrective actions that address this underlying issue.

Key points to remember:

• Depth over breadth: The 5 whys process encourages you to dig deeper into a single cause-and-effect chain rather than jumping to different causes.
• Focus on process, not people: The aim is to identify and correct flaws in processes, not to assign blame to individuals.
• Flexibility: Sometimes fewer or more than five "whys" are needed. The goal is to reach the root cause, regardless of how many iterations it takes.

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Cristy Good , MPH, MBA, CPC, CMPE

Cristy Good, MPH, MBA, CPC, CMPE, is a Senior Industry Advisor at MGMA, with expertise in practice management, healthcare operations, revenue cycle management and project management. She has more than 20 years of experience in medical practice administration and financial management. Prior to joining MGMA, Cristy was a credentialed trainer with EPIC and helped prepare providers for one of the largest EHR implementations. For more than five years, she was an administrator with a large health system where she oversaw the strategic and daily operations for multiple outpatient medical practices and also spent six months working for a private home health agency. In addition, she has more than 10 years of clinical laboratory experience.

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