Ishikawa Diagram
A Cause and Effect Diagram, also known as a Fishbone Diagram or Ishikawa Diagram, is a visual tool used to:
- Identify and organize potential causes of a specific problem or effect.
- Systematically analyze the root causes of an issue by visually representing the various factors that may contribute to it.
This in turns links to Root Cause Analysis.
Root Cause Analysis
I have used Cause and Effect Diagrams and Root Cause Analysis many times in my career as a Commercial Manager / Quantity Surveyor in the Construction Industry. Sometimes as part of Contractual Claims preparation or defence, as it is essential to know the primary cause and the associated Contract Clauses upon which the whole stack of cards, or story, and subsequent evaluation is based.
Another use is to to with company re-engineering, process engineering, and strategy development. Whichever of the names used, which is just a sense of scale and timing, the thoughts are similar, based it to two groups.
The first group is something is wrong and need to be put right. Hence you must find the root cause of the problem to be able to properly fix it. The strategy can then be developed to rectify the cause of the problem or problems not just looking at the symptoms and applying a sticking plaster. Sometimes the cause can be something as small as a simple process, which needs reworking and adjusting. Other times, the whole company needs to be re-engineered to save the company from its own demise.
The second group is similar, but different. There is no fault to find, but a direction needs to be found. A strategy for a change and development initiative. What does success look like? What is the mission and the associated mission statement. It could be a new company or a new product, or new project. It could be transformational change of a whole industry. Either way, the first steps are to find the things that will impact and influence the success or failure. Understanding the root and the influences is key to drafting a strategy which has any reasonable hope of success.
So what has all of the above to do with my travelogue?
