Fishbone Diagram

Abstract

The Fishbone Diagram is a helpful tool used in root cause analysis and is used to figure out cause-and-effect and to breakdown the contributing factors of an issue. The tool was originally invented by Professor Kaoru Ishikawa, a Japanese organizational theorist and pioneer of quality management, in the 1960s and published in his book “Introduction to Quality Control”. The tool was originally known as Ishikawa Diagrams, however due to its resemblance of a fish skeleton it is now commonly referred to as the Fishbone Diagram. The tool’s original intention was to analyze quality control; however, it has since then been applied in many situations and now mostly turned towards identification of root causes for problems.

The main objective of a Fishbone Diagram is to break down and organize the causes of an issue to reveal the elements that have the greatest impact. By grouping these causes into different categories means that you can think about the different element of the problem as separate from the overall issue. From here it should be possible to identify one or two of these causes to have the greater impact, which will then lead to the root of the problem. This structure also allows you to tackle smaller issues which have a large impact on the problem and thus making problem solving more manageable. This has made it a valuable tool for uncertainty and risk identification as it can help identifying how to best handle potential risks.

This article aims to provide an overview of how the diagram is best used as a risk management tool as well as discussing application and limitations. Hereby also mentioning different tools that can be used in combination with the Fishbone Diagram to strengthen the risk management of a project.

Quality of the summary: Does the summary make the key focus, insights and/or contribution of the article clear?

Big idea

describe the tool, concept or theory and explain its purpose. The section should reflect the current state of the art on the topic

Does it address a topic that is relevant for project managers? Is the purpose clearly articulated, i.e. what kind of problem the article addresses (and solves)?

Application

provide guidance on how to use the tool, concept or theory and when it is applicable

Does the article provide hands on guidance? Can the reader (at least prototypically) apply the method after reading the article?

Limitations

critically reflect on the tool/concept/theory and its application context. What can it do, what can it not do? Under what circumstances should it be used, and when not? How does it compare to the “status quo” of the standards – is it part of it, or does it extent them? Discuss your article in the context of key readings / resources provided in class. Substantiate your claims with literature

Depth of treatment: Is the article interesting for a practitioner or academic to read? Does it make a significant contribution beyond a cursory web search?

Annotated bibliography

Provide key references (3-10), where a reader can find additional information on the subject. The article MUST make appropriate references to the and reference material provided in class – either incorporating it as a source, or critically discussing aspects that are missing from it but covered by this article. Summarize and outline the relevance of each reference to the topic (around 100 words per reference). The bibliography is not counted in the suggested 3000 word target length of the article.

Critical reflection on status quo of standards: To what degree are the core arguments of your wiki article covered by the P/P/P standards and literature? To what degree does your article extend (or maybe contradict) the status quo? Use of reference material provided in class: Elements from the reference material were appropriately incorporated into the article. Annotated bibliography: Does the article properly cite and acknowledge previous work (reference material provided, and appropriate other sources where necessary)? Does it briefly summarize the key references at the end of the article?

References

1. Geraldi, Joana, et al. Doing Projects. A Nordic Flavour to Managing Projects: DS-Handbook 185:2017. Dansk Standard, 2017

2. Project Management Institute, Inc. (PMI). (2019). Standard for Risk Management in Portfolios, Programs, and Projects. Project Management Institute, Inc. (PMI). Retrieved from [1]

3. MIHAELA LOREDANA, E. CO BI CI. “THE ANALYSIS OF CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF A PHENOMENON BY MEANS OF THE ‘FISHBONE’ DIAGRAM.” Analele Universităţii Constantin Brâncuşi Din Târgu Jiu : Seria Economie, Academica Brâncuşi, 2017.

4. Ipsen, Christine, et al. The Fishbone Workshop: How to Transform. 2018.

5. Walsh, Ronan; Fishbone Diagram - How to Make and Use a Fishbone Diagram, http://lbspartners.ie/fishbone-diagram/ , (August 3, 2017)

6. Cause and Effect Analysis - Identifying the Likely Causes of Problems, https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_03.htm