CAT001: Root Cause Analysis

CAT001: Root Cause Analysis

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  root cause analysis Address thecause , not just the symptom.! Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  in partnership with CreativeActivist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis introduction You live on a street where many kids ride their bicycles every day after school. One day, a girl riding her bike gets hit by a car. You run out of your house to make sure she’s ok. She’s conscious but may have fractured her arm. You call for an ambulance. It comes and takes her away. She’ll be fine... Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis The next week, the same thing happens. Another kid gets hit by a car at the same location. You call for help again. The week after that, the same thing happens yet again! Now you’re thinking, something weird is going on. Why are all these accidents happening all of a sudden? Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis You walk down the block to the You trim the tree a bit. No more intersection and you see the problem - accidents. You’ve identified the an overgrown tree has covered up the root cause. stop sign so cars are not slowing down at the intersection. Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis Root Cause Analysis is about trying to identify the primary cause of a problem so that we can prevent the problem from happening in the first place. It’s about asking questions like... Can we prevent homelessness rather than just feed the people who end up on the streets? Can we prevent people from littering our beaches rather than clean up after them after the fact? Can we prevent the elderly from catching the flu rather than treat them after they have the disease. A simple way to identify the root cause of a problem is The 5 Whys. Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis ????? The 5 Whys This is a simple yet powerful exercise that involves seven steps. 1. State the problem you’re trying to address. 2. Identify an indicator - something that tells you there IS a problem. 3. Ask why this is the case - why does the indicator show x. 4. For the reason you just gave, ask why that is the case. 5. Again, for the reason you just gave, ask why that is the case. 6. Again, for the reason you just gave, ask why that is the case. 7. One last time, for the reason you just gave, ask why that is the case. By the time you get to the 4th or 5th why, you might see something that resembles a root cause. Here’s an example... Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis 1.State the problem Climate Change Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis 2.Identify an indicator - something that tells you there IS a problem. Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are rising Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis 3.Ask why this is the case - why are carbon dioxide levels rising? Coal-powered plants are pumping more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis 4.Why are more coal-powered plants generating more CO₂? As the world’s energy needs increase, we are relying on coal to meet the gap. Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis 5.Why are we relying on coal to meet our energy needs? Coal is still the “cheapest” source of energy. Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis 6. Why is coal still the “cheapest”? Clean sources of energy have not been properly developed. Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis 7.Why are clean sources of energy not sufficiently developed? There isn’t enough investment or market demand for clean energy. Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis In summary... Problem Climate Change Indicator Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are rising Coal-powered plants are pumping more CO₂ into the Why atmosphere Why We are relying on coal to meet our increased energy needs Why Coal is still the “cheapest’ source of energy Why Clean sources of energy have not been properly developed There isn’t enough investment or market demand for clean Why energy Root Cause? Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis So one root cause for climate change could be... There isn’t enough investment or market demand for clean energy. Now you’re ready to ask... How should I intervene? How can I help increase investment or demand for clean energy? There are countless ways you can act - you can sell “carbon offsets” to car owners or create a program that teaches youth how to use solar and wind technology. As long as your solution answers the question above, you can be sure you are addressing a “root cause” of the problem. Now it’s your turn... Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis Before you begin, here are some tips... 1. There can be many root causes. Try to identify one at a time. 2. Root causes don’t have to be universal. They can and often are very specific to a community. The cause for homelessness can be x in one town and y in another. 3. It’s tempting to offer multiple explanations for something. You might want to say something is happening because of x and y. But for this exercise, choose one explanation - the one you think is most important. 4. Ask a friend, a teacher or mentor to do this exercise with you. The best way they can help you is to repeat your answers back to you. “So you think this is happening because of this?” Good luck! Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis Problem Indicator Why Why Why Why Why Root Cause? Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis Check out other chapters... Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  root cause analysis and the six habits of highly effective social entrepreneurs. Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  about the author Charles Tsai is the founder and Executive Director of Social Creatives. Previously, he worked for Ashoka’s Youth Venture as Director of Virtual Program and at CNN as a reporter and producer. www.charlestsai.com creative activist toolkit thanks The Creative Activist Toolkit is a series of PDF The Creative Visions Foundation booklets designed to help today’s youth The Vancouver Foundation impact the world through creativity and social The Steve Nash Foundation entrepreneurship. Produced by Social Creatives and the Creative Visions Jon and Amy Eldon Turteltaub, Joanne Marien Foundation, the toolkit chapters are offered Elaine Munro, Debbie Riopel, Jaspal Lisa Rai free to download. Email us if you would like Bruce Johnson, Brooke Kuhn, Serge Martin to contribute a chapter. Copyright ©2009 Social Creatives credits Feel free to pass this booklet on but you may Amy Eldon Turteltaub Executive Producer not alter the content or charge for it. You may Charles Tsai Managing Director quote brief sections if you credit Social Creatives and provide a link to Echoing Green, Photos from socialcreatives.org globalwarmingart.com and iStockphoto.com Creative Activist Toolkit 001
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  Charles Tsai Social Entrepreneurship Educator Charles Tsai is a journalist, writer, speaker and consultant for social entrepreneurs. A former reporter and producer for CNN, Charles ventured into the social sector to help youth design and implement their own solutions for change. He then helped Ashoka launch its first global campaigns to support youth-led social ventures. Now, he has launched SOCIAL Creatives, a new framework to learn, teach and practice social entrepreneurship.
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  Charles Tsai [email protected] www.socialcreatives.org