Root Cause Analysis

RCA assumes that systems and events are interrelated. An action in one area triggers an action in another, and another, and so on. By tracing back these actions, you can discover where the problem started and how it grew into the symptom you're now facing.

You'll usually find three basic types of causes:

1. Physical causes – Tangible, material items failed in some way (for example, a car's brakes stopped working).
2. Human causes – People did something wrong, or did not do something that was needed. Human causes typically lead to physical causes (for example, no one filled the brake fluid, which led to the brakes failing).
3. Organizational causes – A system, process or policy that people use to make decisions or do their work is faulty (for example, no one person was responsible for vehicle maintenance, and everyone assumed someone else had filled the brake fluid).

RCA looks at all three types of causes. It involves investigating the patterns of negative effects, finding hidden flaws in the system, and discovering specific actions that contributed to the problem. This often means that RCA reveals more than one root cause.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Root Cause Analysis important?

RCA allows you to get to the true source of a problem, and stop it in its tracks. This is more effective than simply remedying the symptoms. By identifying and alleviating the root cause of a problem, you can prevent an issue from occurring again in the future.

What is the 5 Whys technique?

The 5 Whys is a common problem-solving technique. You simply ask "why" something is happening until you get to the source of the issue.

Though a useful tool in its own right, the 5 Whys method can be used during a Root Cause Analysis to help you quickly identify different causal factors of a problem.

What are the five steps of a root cause analysis?

RCA has five identifiable steps:

1. Define the problem.
2. Collect data.
3. Identify causal factors.
4. Identify root cause(s).
5. Implement solutions.

Read on to learn how to carry out each step in your own root cause analysis.

How to Perform a Root Cause Analysis

Step One: Define the Problem

Ask yourself the following:

• What do you see happening?
• What are the specific symptoms?

Step Two: Collect Data

• What proof do you have that the problem exists?
• How long has the problem existed?
• What is the impact of the problem?

You need to analyze a situation fully before you can move on to look at factors that contributed to the problem. To maximize the effectiveness of your RCA, get together everyone – experts and frontline staff – who understands the situation. People who are most familiar with the problem can help lead you to a better understanding of the issues.

A helpful tool at this stage is CATWOE. With this process, you look at the same situation from different perspectives: the Customers, the people (Actors) who implement the solutions, the Transformation process that's affected, the World view, the process Owner, and Environmental constraints.

Step Three: Identify Possible Causal Factors

• What sequence of events leads to the problem?
• What conditions allow the problem to occur?
• What other problems surround the occurrence of the central problem?

During this stage, identify as many causal factors as possible. Too often, people identify one or two factors and then stop, but that's not sufficient. With RCA, you don't want to simply treat the most obvious causes – you want to dig deeper.

5 Whys Root Cause Analysis

Use the 5 Whys tool to identify the root causes of a problem quickly. Just ask "Why?" until you reveal each causal factor.

If you need a more in-depth technique to identify possible factors, try these other tools that can help you dig further into each cause:

• Appreciation – Use the facts and ask "So what?" to determine all the possible consequences of a fact.
• Drill Down – Break down a problem into small, detailed parts to better understand the big picture.
• Cause and Effect Diagrams – Create a chart of all of the possible causal factors, to see where the trouble may have begun.

Step Four: Identify the Root Cause(s)

• Why does the causal factor exist?
• What is the real reason the problem occurred?

Use the same tools you used to identify the causal factors (in Step Three) to look at the roots of each factor. These tools are designed to encourage you to dig deeper at each level of cause and effect.

Step Five: Recommend and Implement Solutions

• What can you do to prevent the problem from happening again?
• How will the solution be implemented?
• Who will be responsible for it?
• What are the risks of implementing the solution?

Analyze your cause-and-effect process, and identify the changes needed for various systems. It's also important that you plan ahead to predict the effects of your solution. This way, you can spot potential failures before they happen.

One way of doing this is to use Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA). This tool builds on the idea of risk analysis to identify points where a solution could fail. FMEA is also a great system to implement across your organization; the more systems and processes that use FMEA at the start, the less likely you are to have problems that need RCA in the future.

Impact Analysis is another useful tool here. This helps you explore possible positive and negative consequences of a change on different parts of a system or organization.

Another great strategy to adopt is Kaizen, or continuous improvement. This is the idea that continual small changes create better systems overall. Kaizen also emphasizes that the people closest to a process should identify places for improvement.

Again, with Kaizen alive and well in your company, the root causes of problems can be identified and resolved quickly and effectively.

Tips for Performing Effective Root Cause Analysis

Collaborate with other teams. Gain a diverse range of experiences and expertise by working with relevant people from other teams. They can likely offer different perspectives that will help to find the various causes of the problem.

Don’t play the blame game! Root cause analysis is a tool that helps you and your team overcome problems, but it shouldn’t be used to criticize or blame someone. Instead, try to create a blame-free culture, so that your co-workers feel confident in sharing ideas and insights. This will help you to diagnose the issue quickly and effectively.

Keep your questions open-ended. Leave any assumptions you have about the potential causes of the problem at the door. RCA is a chance to look at a problem with fresh eyes, so use open-ended questions as you work through the five steps. This will allow you to reveal things you didn’t already know, and find the most effective solution.

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