Knowledge Base · Seeing Problems
How do I run a fishbone session with my team?
Write the problem as the fish's head, draw the six standard cause categories as the main bones (people, method, machine, materials, measurement, environment), and brainstorm causes onto each bone before judging any of them. Chapter 3 of the book sets out the 6 M's and the discipline: map every plausible cause first, then investigate.
You need a problem the team genuinely shares, a board, and about an hour. Draw a horizontal line ending at the problem statement, written as a clear effect: not a solution in disguise and not a person. Then draw the main bones, one per cause category. Chapter 3 of the book uses the six standard categories, the 6 M's:
- Man (People): anyone involved in the process, their skills, staffing and handoffs.
- Method (Process): the steps, procedures and policies the work follows.
- Machine (Equipment): the tools, technology and systems used.
- Materials: the inputs, parts, information or supplies the process consumes.
- Measurement: the data, checks and metrics applied to the work.
- Environment: location, timing, workload, temperature and culture around the process.
Work bone by bone, asking what in that category could contribute to the problem, and add each suggestion as a smaller bone. The rule during this phase is capture before judging: a cause that sounds unlikely still goes on the diagram, because the team cannot evaluate what it has not first made visible. Push for specificity; "communication" is a label, while "the night shift never sees the updated figures" is a cause you can test.
Close by stepping back. The finished diagram is a map of possibilities, not a verdict. Circle the two or three causes the team judges most likely and most testable, and agree how each will be checked, with data or with a 5 Whys on that single branch. The book positions the fishbone exactly here: for complex problems with several possible causes, it organises the search before the digging starts.
Build a fishbone diagram in ClarionEX (free in Lite)
Related questions
- What is a fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram, and when do I use one?
- Should I use a 5 Whys or a fishbone diagram?
- What is root cause analysis?
Source: Continuous Improvement in the Workplace, Ch. 3 (Learning to See).