02. Root Cause Analysis II.a Copy

Root Cause Analysis – Part II. a.

So, what is Root Cause Analysis?

Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is the process of uncovering the cause of the problem in a systematic, and not in an ad-hoc manner, or by trial and error.

In the absence of such a systematic approach, we can find ourselves merely troubleshooting, rather than successfully resolving the problem.

In this lesson, we will look at the steps involved in conducting such an analysis.

Root-Cause Analysis: A Five-Step Process

We will be illustrating the Root Cause Analysis tool using an example later, but let’s start by enumerating the four steps that comprise this tool:

Define the Problem → Collect all Relevant Data → Identify Causal Factors → Identify the Root Causes

Let us look at each of these steps in detail.

• Define the Problem
  It is important that we define the exact problem, before we attempt to solve it. Sometimes, what we think is the problem might well be somebody’s interpretation of the problem. It is important then, that you identify the exact issue that is being referred to.

The following questions could help you do this:

• What exactly do you see/ hear happening? How much of this is fact, and how much of this is interpretation?
• What are the specific symptoms that you observe that indicate a problem?
• When did it happen? Or, how often does this happen?
• How long has the problem existed?
• How can you be one hundred percent sure that this happened?

These questions allow you to separate fact from interpretation

Here’s an example of facts versus interpretation? The witness says, “It was obvious the accused was in a murderous rage. I saw him step out of home at five in the morning, whereas he is never up till eight, otherwise. He was bleary eyed and trembling visibly, as though he had been pondering the crime all night and was now filled with nervous energy at the prospect of carrying out the heinous act. Five minutes later, I heard the victim scream, and a few minutes later, I observed the accused, covered in blood, running out of the apartment. That is when I ran to the telephone booth to dial the police. It is clear to me that the accused is guilty.”

The lawyer corrects the witness by saying, “Mr. Witness, what you observed was the accused leave his home at five in the morning, he was bleary eyed and trembling. You heard a scream five minutes later and the accused running out of the building. Those alone are the facts. Your assertion that the accused was in a murderous rage, that he had been pondering the crime all night, and that the prospect was trembling at the prospect of carrying out a crime are your interpretations of the facts. There could well be multiple explanations for each of these.”

Bottom line: if you want to identify the root cause of a problem, define the problem by separating facts from interpretation.

The next question that you will ask is “What is the outcome of this problem?”

• Collect all Possible Data
  If we wish to have a robust solution to the problem, we need to first involve everyone who understands the situation, who is familiar with or is experiencing the problem, to provide the necessary data that we can use for our study.

• • Identify Causal Factor(s)

Now, any problem can be caused by a single cause or a multiplicity of causes. If it is the latter, then it is important to determine as to which of these could be classified as the root cause of the problem? The deepest-level cause of a problem is called the root cause. When we don’t use a systematic means of identifying all possible causes, we might end up identifying one or two factors. Such an ad-hoc study might lead us to miss the root or biggest cause contributing to the problem, altogether. We need to identify as many causal factors as possible. RCA provides us with broad groups of possible factors, which we use to for our study.

The broad groups are as under:

• • Methods
  • Machinery
  • Management
  • Materials
  • Manpower
  • Milieu