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Cause and Effect Analysis is a technique that helps you identify all the likely causes of a problem. This means that you can find and fix the main cause, first time around, without the problem running on and on.
The diagrams you create with this type of analysis are sometimes known as fishbone diagrams, because they look like the skeleton of a fish. The technique was developed by Professor Ishikawa in the 1960s.
To solve a problem with this technique, write down your problem in a box on the left-hand side of a piece of paper. Then draw a straight line from the box to the other side of the paper.
Once you've written down the problem, draw several lines that extend out from your long horizontal line. You're now going to brainstorm all of the factors that could be contributing to this problem. These may be systems, equipment, materials, external forces, people involved with the problem, and so on.
In this example, which looks at the issue of high staff turnover, the possible factors are management, the working environment, training and development, the corporate culture, and pay.
When you've brainstormed possible factors, draw several horizontal lines that extend outward from each one. You're now going to brainstorm possible causes of the problem, related each factor.
