Root Cause Analysis

Developed by Dr. W Edwards Deming, The Deming Cycle, also known as the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, is a fundamental framework for continuous improvement in processes, products, and services.

The Deming Cycle is a powerful tool for continuous improvement because it encourages systematic experimentation and learning. By repeatedly applying the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle, organsations can make incremental improvements, adapt to changes, and enhance their processes over time. This iterative approach helps ensure that improvements are data-driven and responsive to real-world performance.

The Deming Cycle: Overview

The Deming Cycle consists of four stages:

1. Plan: Identify an opportunity for improvement and develop a plan to address it.
2. Do: Implement the plan on a small scale to test its effectiveness.
3. Check: Evaluate the results of the implementation to determine if the plan is working.
4. Act: Based on the evaluation, decide whether to adopt, adjust, or abandon the plan.

Let’s break down each stage with practical examples:

1. Plan

In the Plan stage, you identify an area for improvement and develop a detailed plan to address it. This stage involves defining the problem, setting objectives, and outlining the steps needed to achieve the desired outcome.

Example: Suppose a company notices that its customer service response time is longer than desired, leading to customer dissatisfaction. In the Plan phase, they might analyse the current process, identify bottlenecks, and set a goal to reduce response time from 48 hours to 24 hours. They might decide to implement a new ticketing system to streamline the process.

2. Do

The Do stage involves implementing the plan on a small scale to test its effectiveness. This is a trial phase where you execute the plan and gather data to assess its impact.

Example: The company decides to pilot the new ticketing system in one department rather than the entire organisation. They train a small group of customer service representatives on the new system and start using it for a portion of customer inquiries.

3. Check

In the Check stage, you evaluate the results of the implementation. This involves comparing the actual outcomes to the expected outcomes, analysing any discrepancies, and determining whether the plan is working as intended.

Example: After the pilot phase, the company assesses the performance of the new ticketing system. They review metrics such as average response time, customer satisfaction scores, and the number of tickets resolved. They find that response time has improved to 23 hours, and customer satisfaction scores have increased.

4. Act

In the Act stage, you take action based on the evaluation. This could mean standardising the successful changes, making further adjustments, or abandoning the plan if it did not achieve the desired results.

Example: Given the positive results from the pilot, the company decides to roll out the new ticketing system across all departments. They also gather feedback from the pilot users to refine the system further and address any remaining issues. If the results had been mixed or negative, they would analyse what went wrong and make adjustments before a broader implementation or consider alternative solutions.

Example Scenario: Improving Product Quality

Plan

A manufacturing company notices a high defect rate in a particular product line. They plan to implement a new quality control process, including additional inspections and adjustments to the production machinery.

Do

They start by applying the new quality control process in one production line for a month. This includes adding extra inspections at key stages and recalibrating machinery.

Check

After the pilot month, they analyse defect rates, customer complaints, and production efficiency. They find that defects have decreased by 30%, and customer complaints have reduced significantly.

Act