Only 64% of projects meet their goals. Welcome to the real world, trooper. The failure rate is extremely high when it comes to keeping projects on schedule and budget. If you want to avoid such setbacks in the future, root cause analysis (RCA) is a powerful tool to have in your arsenal.
By going beyond surface-level symptoms, RCA identifies the underlying causes of problems, preventing them from recurring. This systematic approach can save you time and money, not to mention protect your reputation.
In this blog, we have designed several Root Cause Analysis templates to help your business succeed! Learn how these templates can help you improve your RCA project management software strategies.
- Root cause analysis (RCA) identifies the underlying causes of issues, preventing future recurrence
- RCA templates streamline problem-solving by providing structured methods for identifying and addressing root causes
- The 5 Whys method is a simple yet effective RCA technique for drilling down to the root cause
- Fault Tree Analysis and FEMA help pinpoint failures and assess their impact on project outcomes
- Selecting the right RCA template improves efficiency, allowing tailored approaches to simple or complex problems
Root cause analysis (RCA) is a process used to find the actual sources of an issue. While most problem-solving approaches may involve an attempt to solve the symptoms of a problem, RCA goes deeper to identify the base causes of these problems.
This way, you can address the deeper reasons that led to such a situation and avoid repeating the same mistakes in the future.
Taking this extra step saves you time and money in the future, as well as resources that you would otherwise continue to waste.
RCA is a useful tool for project managers to apply to their work in order to develop Agile problem-solving skills and achieve project success.
With RCA, one can discover latent hazards, make the right choices, and enhance the project's operation.
The following is a step-by-step process to identify a root cause in a project:
Define The Problem
State the specific problem by identifying the general issue, its context, and the visible indicators. Do not use phrases that are too general. For instance, instead of saying,
‘The project is behind schedule,’ it is more useful to say, ‘The project is two weeks behind schedule because of the procurement problems.’
Gather Data
Acquire data regarding the situation at hand from different sources to gain insight into the problem. These can include documentation for the project, interviews with team members, and the observations of managers.
The various stakeholders may have differing views but corroborating their narratives with the documented data should result in a clearer picture.
Identify Potential Causes
One of the ways to sort through all that collected data and come up with potential causes can include a “SWOT” analysis. These help teams consider the internal and external factors that may be causing the problem.
For instance, internal constraints might be in the form of limited resources, inadequate skills, or communication breakdown, while external issues might comprise of unfavorable market conditions, issues with suppliers and changes in customer demand.
Use The 5 Ways Analysis
A popular technique for identifying the root cause involves asking “why” five times. Start with the problem statement and ask “why” five times to drill down to the underlying issue.
Determine The Root Cause
After that, if you want to identify the cause, evaluate the causes so that you can see the actual issue. Some of the considerations that should be made include the rate of occurrence, the intensity, and the consequences associated with each cause.
The fundamental cause is usually the largest contributing factor to the issue at hand.
Develop And Implement Solutions
Develop efficient strategies to address the problem. When formulating solutions, consider their practicality, cost, and potential risks.
Clearly define how you will measure the effectiveness of the chosen solutions and implement them accordingly.
Monitor Results
Monitor the outcomes of the solutions that you have put in place to ascertain that the problem has been dealt with. If the solutions do not produce the results expected, then some modifications should be made.
In evaluating the solutions, use the key performance indicators (KPIs) to determine their effects and check for new problems.
The following are various root cause analysis templates that you can freely use for your project endeavors. Smartsheet software also offers these templates to help streamline your process.
Root Cause Analysis Template
This root cause analysis template enables a thorough review of the incident. It can be used to document details about the incident's background, contributing factors, corrective actions to minimize future risks, findings related to the root cause, and any other relevant discoveries not directly tied to the issue.
Additionally, it provides space to outline the event description, timeline, investigative team, and methods applied.
Simple Root Cause Analysis Template
This is a simplified version of the previously mentioned root cause analysis template. It's ideal for addressing straightforward issues that don't need in-depth analysis.
You can use it to briefly describe the problem, outline potential root causes and solutions, and track the success of those solutions.
5 Whys Method
5 Why root cause analysis template is designed for a specific type of investigative process. This method involves repeatedly asking why the problem happened, then probing further into the reasons behind each answer until the underlying root cause is identified.
The template offers a structure for systematically posting these questions and pinpointing the root cause. It also allows for documenting corrective actions intended to prevent the issue from happening again.
Fault Tree Analysis
This FTA illustrates how project failure can be caused by a combination of insufficient resources, ineffective communication, and scope creep.
By analyzing the probabilities of these basic events and their relationships, you can identify the most likely root causes and prioritize corrective actions.
Failure Mode & Effective Analysis (FEMA)
Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) is a risk assessment tool used to pinpoint where a process might break down. It provides a systematic approach to identifying potential failure modes, their causes, and their effects.
FMEA should be treated as a dynamic document, not something to complete once and forget. It needs to be regularly updated as new data emerges or process changes occur. This ongoing revision helps keep your processes strong and minimizes errors.
DMAIC Template
This DMAIC template helps identify and resolve project quality issues efficiently. It follows the five steps:
Define the project vision and requirements, measure data on defects and prioritize causes, analyze root causes and inefficiencies, improve by developing and testing solutions, and control by standardizing processes, training staff, and tracking performance.
The template provides a clear framework for enhancing quality and maintaining ongoing efficiency.
Cause Mapping Template
This template merges aspects of the root cause analysis, Six Sigma DMAIC and 5 whys methodologies.
It offers a comprehensive problem overview, timeline, a series of "why" questions for analysis, visual diagrams to map the process, sections for suggesting and assessing potential solutions, and an area for developing an action plan.
To use an RCA template effectively, select one with the appropriate level of detail for the issue at hand. For complex problems, choose a more detailed template, while simpler issues can be addressed with a less complex one.
This approach involves following a structured format: defining the problem, collecting data, and analyzing the root cause.
Organize the data using diagrams, then develop and implement solutions. Assess the outcomes and adjust the template to ensure continuous improvements.
This reduces the likelihood of revisiting problems and increases overall project success.
Please visit our project management resources center section for further assistance.