What's Cause and Effect Diagram

Cause and Effect analysis helps you to think through causes of a problem thoroughly. Their major benefit is that they push you to consider all possible causes of the problem, rather than just the ones that are most obvious.

Cause and Effect Diagrams are also known as Fishbone Diagrams. The box and line can be thought of as the head and spine of the fish.

Cause and Effect Diagram Software

Edraw Max is a vector-based diagramming software with rich examples and templates. Easy to create flow charts, cause and effect diagrams, organizational charts, business process, UML diagrams, work flows, program structures, network diagrams, chart and graphics, mind map, directional maps and database diagrams. With pre-drawn libraries and more than 4600 vector symbols, drawing couldn't be easier!

Examples of Cause and Effect Diagram

Cause & Effect analysis (or fishbone analysis) provide a structured way to help you think through all possible causes of a problem. This helps you to carry out a thorough analysis of a situation. The example below shows a Cause & Effect diagram drawn by a manager who is having trouble getting cooperation from a branch office.

The cause-and-effect diagram is a method for analyzing process dispersion. The diagram's purpose is to relate causes and effects. Three basic types: Dispersion analysis, Process classification and cause enumeration. Effect = problem to be resolved, opportunity to be grasped, result to be achieved. Excellent for capturing team brainstorming output and for filling in from the 'wide picture'. Helps organization and relate factors, providing a sequential view. Deals with time direction but not quantity. Can become very complex. Can be difficult to identify or demonstrate interrelationships.

How to draw Cause and Effect diagram

1. Identify the problem:
   Write down the exact problem you face in detail. Where appropriate identify who is involved, what the problem is, and when and where it occurs. Write the problem in a box on the left hand side of a large sheet of paper. Draw a line across the paper horizontally from the box. This gives you space to develop ideas.
   
2. Work out the major factors involved:
   Next identify the factors that may contribute to the problem. Draw lines off the spine for each factor, and label it. These may be people involved with the problem, systems, equipment, materials, external forces, etc. Try to draw out as many possible factors as possible. If you are trying to solve the problem as part of a group, then this may be a good time for some brainstorming! Using the 'Fish bone' analogy, the factors you find can be thought of as the bones of the fish.

3. Identify possible causes:
   For each of the factors you considered in stage ii, brainstorm possible causes of the problem that may be related to the factor. Show these as smaller lines coming off the 'bones' of the fish. Where a cause is large or complex, then it may be best to break the it down into sub-causes. Show these as lines coming off each cause line.
   
4. Analyze your diagram:
   By this stage you should have a diagram showing all the possible causes of your problem. Depending on the complexity and importance of the problem, you can now investigate the most likely causes further. This may involve setting up investigations, carrying out surveys, etc. These will be designed to test whether your assessments are correct.

Cause & Effect Templates

Create cause-and-effect diagrams (also known as fishbone or Ishikawa diagrams) to systematically review factors that affect or contribute to a given situation. Document 6 Sigma and ISO 9000 processes.

Create diagrams that illustrate problem-solving.