What is Root Cause Analysis?

Root cause analysis refers to any systematic process that identifies the cause or causes that contribute to a focus event. Root cause analysis can be used to obtain a greater understanding of focus events with both positive and negative outcomes. However, it is most commonly used to analyze failures and incidents.

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Defintion of Root Cause Analysis 

Root cause analysis is a process used to understand the fundamental reasons why an issue occurred and to identify the most appropriate solutions to prevent recurrence. Effective root cause analysis enhances problem-solving to uncover all contributing factors and corrective actions for a problem or issue.  

Understanding what is root cause analysis and its applications 

Root cause analysis helps organizations identify cause-and-effect relationships for a defined problem, event, or incident. It is frequently used in the industrial and energy sectors to aid problem-solving following a significant incident or unexpected failure or change in asset performance. 

Root cause analysis can also be applied to support systems analysis, process improvement, and change management. For example, organizations can carry out root cause analysis to investigate why a change in process or technology has failed to deliver the desired result. They can then identify and address all the contributing factors in their change management plan.  

Root Cause Analysis in Use

Root cause analysis is essential to prevent problems from recurring. With the right problem-solving techniques, root cause analysis goes beyond looking at symptoms or surface-level causes, and instead focuses on the fundamental reasons why a problem occurred. This supports the identification of effective solutions.  

When to use root cause analysis  

Knowing what root cause analysis is helps you recognize when it is appropriate to use. It is commonly applied to the following situations:  

• Recurring problems such as repeated failure of an asset or process  
• Significant or catastrophic failures such as a plant fire or explosion 
• A health or safety related incident  
• Missed performance or production targets  
• Break down in quality of products or services   
• Unexpected result or adverse outcome related to a change or event  
• Systemic issue found within an organization, system, or process  

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Are you experiencing any of these problems?

Root cause analysis helps organizations overcome current challenges with problem-solving, including:

• Spending more time reporting problems than solving them
• The solutions you implement don’t appear to work
• You implement the same solutions over and over again
• Problem solving seems opinion based, not fact based

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Root Cause Analysis Examples 

Root cause analysis and the problem-solving techniques involved can be applied across industries to identify underlying issues and implement effective corrective actions. By addressing the contributing factors rather than just the symptoms, organizations can achieve long-term improvements in areas such as efficiency, reliability, and safety. 

Examples of how root cause analysis is used in various sectors: 

Manufacturing: Reducing asset failure and downtime  

Root cause analysis is used in manufacturing to identify contributing factors behind asset or equipment failures and issues impacting product quality and production efficiency. For example, if a plant experiences repeated failures of a particular machine, root cause analysis may reveal the root cause to be ineffective maintenance schedules or environmental issues such as excessive heat. Implementing corrective actions, such as more regular maintenance, can reduce downtime and improve production efficiency. 

IT: Addressing system failures or security incidents  

Root cause analysis in IT can support investigating the failure of IT systems and software or a breach in security. For example, if a business experiences repeated server outages, root cause analysis can pinpoint contributing factors such as hardware malfunctions or overheating. Corrective actions such as upgrading server components or improving cooling systems can enhance system reliability and prevent recurring failures. 

Telecommunications: Enhancing reliability and customer satisfaction 

Root cause analysis can help telecommunication providers investigate and solve problems like network outages or poor connectivity. For example, if customers report frequent signal loss, root cause analysis may reveal insufficient coverage in the area. This may inform corrective actions such as increasing the number of telecommunication towers in the area. In this way, root cause analysis can help telecommunications providers improve service reliability and customer satisfaction. 

Healthcare: Improving patient outcomes  

Root cause analysis can help healthcare providers understand the underlying causes of systemic issues or adverse events. By addressing these causes, healthcare providers can prevent recurring issues and improve patient care. Corrective actions could be as simple as improving communication and staff training.   

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Benefits of Root Cause Analysis 

Root cause analysis provides several benefits by helping organizations identify and resolve the underlying causes of problems.  

Key benefits of root cause analysis: 

• Improve understanding of what has happened  
• Find the source of problems to take corrective action and prevent recurring issues 
• Identify causes of events with beneficial outcomes so they can be repeated  
• Improved performance and production efficiency by preventing recurring issues 
• Improved reliability of assets, systems, and processes  
• Reduced costs related to recurring problems  
• Improved risk management and compliance  
• Continuous improvement by learning from failures and implementing effective solutions  
• Improve objectivity and consistency of problem-solving efficiency

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Getting started with Root Cause Analysis 

To understand what is root cause analysis and how to get started, it is helpful to examine the key concepts, steps, and methods used.  

Key concepts of Root Cause Analysis 

• Causal relationships: Problems often result from a chain of events. Root cause analysis helps to piece together the causal chain and separate symptoms from actual root causes. 

• Causal chart: A causal chart is used in root cause analysis to visually represent the relationship between a problem and its contributing factors. It also categorizes causes and supports decision-making.  

• Contributing factors: Root cause analysis may identify several types of contributing factors. These can relate to people, process, equipment, materials, and environment.  

• Corrective actions: Corrective actions are the solutions used to eliminate the root causes of a problem. They are designed to prevent issues from recurring by addressing the contributing factors rather than symptoms.  

Methods of Root Cause Analysis

• 5 Whys Analysis: A simple problem-solving technique that uses questioning to drill down into the root cause.  
• Causes Tree Method: A systematic approach for analyzing and visualizing events and conditions that contributed to a focus event or incident. The Causes Tree Method considers technical, organizational, human, and environmental causes. 
• Fault tree analysis: Fault tree analysis uses Boolean logic to map the relationship between events and system failures and identify contributing factors.  
• Fishbone or Ishikawa diagram: Illustrates the relationship between a focus event and all the factors that may influence it.  The development of the diagram encourages brainstorming to identify all possible causal factors of the focus event. 

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Tips for implementing Root Cause Analysis 

Establishing a root cause analysis program is essential for any organization that wants to effectively solve problems. Here are key steps for setting up and maintaining a program that truly delivers:  

1. Define the goals and objectives of the RCA program and assure they are in alignment with corporate/facility/department goals and objectives.  
2. Perform a maturity assessment of existing RCA program to be used as a baseline to measure future improvements.  
3. Identify KPIs with baselines and future targets to be used for measuring progress towards meeting program goals and objectives. 
4. Determine which incidents will trigger a formal RCA and estimate how many triggered events may occur in the upcoming year. 
5. Identify which tracking systems will be used to track the status and progress of open RCAs and implemented solutions.
6. Identify who will have a role in the RCA effort, including program sponsor and champion and RCA facilitators.
7. Determine who will undergo root cause analysis training and to what level and in what time frame. 
8. Identify who (or what committees or groups) will be responsible for managing tracking systems, decisions on solution implementation, program modifications over time, and general program performance.
9. Process mapping exercise to document RCA management from the beginning of a triggered incident to completion of implemented solutions, including their impact on organization’s goals and objectives. 
10. Develop a Change Management plan, including a detailed communication plan, that specifically targets those whose job duties will be affected by the RCA effort.
11. Create a checklist to monitor RCA effort implementation. The checklist should include action items, responsible parties, and due dates.

Keep open minds

A successful root cause analysis requires an open-minded approach. Teams should avoid jumping to conclusions and instead encourage brainstorming to explore all potential contributing factors. An open mindset prevents bias, ensuring that solutions address the root cause rather than just surface-level symptoms.  

Importance of data

Accurate data is critical for effective root cause analysis as it helps teams validate assumptions and make evidence-based decisions. Data collection should begin as soon as possible after a problem or event to prevent it from being lost or compromised. Data may include physical evidence, system logs records, and information captured via interviews with witnesses or subject matter experts. Integrating data analysis tools into RCA methodologies and RCA software ensures effective and robust analysis.   

Reactive vs proactive management

Many businesses use root cause analysis reactively—only investigating failures after they occur. While reactive RCA is valuable for addressing immediate issues, a proactive approach helps prevent problems before they arise. By continuously monitoring asset health and risk, and implementing preventive measures, organizations can reduce downtime, improve efficiency, and lower costs. Whether applied in a reactive or proactive framework, root cause analysis ensures that organizations move beyond quick fixes and towards long-term reliability. 

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Root Cause Analysis tools and training

Root cause analysis relies on the right tools and training to be successful. Cordant ™ provides a comprehensive solution with our Cordant™ Root Cause Analysis methodology supported by our training and RCA software. This software, Cordant™ Asset Defect Elimination, supports a structured approach to root cause analysis and centralizes management of analysis, learnings, solutions, and implementation. Our RCA software also manages the process of defect or problem prioritization and analysis triggers. The RCA software supports a scalable depth of analysis based on problem severity and helps organizations track and apply corrective actions across the enterprise.  

Those leading or participating in an investigation should have a solid understanding of what is root cause analysis and associated problem-solving techniques. Our RCA training features hands-on, experiential learning to help participants understand what is the purpose of root cause analysis and how to apply key concepts. More importantly, our RCA training can help to ensure effective root cause analysis which solves problems the first time and prevents recurrence.  

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Steps in Root Cause Analysis

Cordant™ Root Cause Analysis involves the following steps:

1. Preparation: Preparation includes data collection, assembling a team, and organizing details such as time and venue. The team should agree what is the purpose of root cause analysis.  
2. Analysis: Analysis includes developing a problem statement, constructing an initial timeline, building the cause-and-effect chart, adding supporting information, and performing a quality check of the cause-and-effect chart.  
3. Resolution: Resolution involves generating, selecting, and implementing solutions. The process concludes with measuring the success of solutions, communicating wins across the organization, and institutionalizing the entire process. 

 

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Root Cause Analysis Training

Cordant™ provides a range of training to help individuals understand what is root cause analysis and how to apply it. Find the root cause analysis training course that’s right for you.  

Cordant™ RCA Facilitators Course: Learn the knowledge and skills necessary to facilitate an effective problem analysis. 

Cordant™ RCA Advanced Facilitator Course: Improve your knowledge and skills of root cause analysis to increase problem-solving effectiveness and enhance facilitation management skills. 

Cordant™ RCA Incident Investigation: Gain the knowledge and skills necessary to conduct a thorough incident investigation supported by an RCA. 

Cordant™ RCA Managers Course: Speak the same language as your workers involved in RCA and grasp an overview of the concept of the Cause Tree RCA methodology. 
 
Cordant™ RCA Participants Course: Gain an introduction to effective problem-solving using root cause analysis and how to apply it to simple systems and complex groups of systems. 

Cordant™ RCA Refresher: Refresh the skills and knowledge needed to perform a solid RCA investigation.