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Fishbone / Ishikawa Diagram
Fishbone / Ishikawa Diagram
Fishbone / Ishikawa Diagram
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Overview

Track the reasons behind challenges and problems in any domain using this hierarchy based tool — bonus, it looks like a fish, what’s no ...

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Actionable Takeaways
  • Identify the problem, or effect. 

Define the problem or end effect that is being investigated and w ...

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Fishbone / Ishikawa Diagram is featured in these playbooks:
Limitations

The main issues with the diagram are the differentiation between causes and sub causes. For example, some causes might be complex, with many elements below them, becoming impractical to capture in the diagram. By breaking it up into separate categories, the diagram also does not lend itself to a more connected view of challenges. 

Finally, there is no clear prioritisation within the diagram — all causes seem equal, when in reality a sub cause, which is visually small, might be the key issue. Other causes and sub causes therefore might become a distraction.

In Practice

Internal damages at IKEA.

This paper from Ikea in Portugal describes a process improvement process to address the level of internal damages in Ikea stores. The diagram below was part of a broader analysis process.

Build your latticework
This model will help you to:

The fishbone or Ishikawa diagram, also known as the cause-and-effect diagram, is a core tool within quality management and is commonly used for improvements in products, manufacturing and other fields. 

Use the following examples of connected and complementary models to weave the fishbone diagram into your broader latticework of mental models. Alternatively, discover your own connections by exploring the category list above. 

Connected models: 

  • 5 Whys: in digging to root cause, use this as part of the fishbone process. 
  • Second order thinking: to go beyond the initial cause to sub causes. 
  • 4Ps of marketing: as possible categories. 

Complementary models: 

  • Risk matrix: to consider potential issues with consequences versus likelihood. 
  • Chain reaction/ domino effect: to consider the flow on effects of potential issues. 
  • First principle thinking: to identify and go below assumptions. 
  • Occam’s razor: to cut to the core of the issue. 
  • Divide and conquer: separating out and addressing potential causes.
Origins & Resources

The Fishbone Diagram was created by quality management pioneer Professor Kaoru Ishikawa in 1968. Ishikawa, an engineer, was a leader of quality management at Kawasaki at the time. In his 1986 book, Guide to Quality Control, Ishikawa argued that there were six other key quality tools in addition to what he called the ‘cause-and-effect diagram’, which were: control chart, histogram, flow chart, run chart, scatter diagram and Pareto chart. 

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