How Do You Create And Analyze An Ishikawa Diagram?
Kaoru Ishikawa created the Ishikawa diagram to map cause and effect visually. This chart, also called the fishbone diagram or the cause-and-effect diagram, can be used to explain the many parts that add to a larger, main idea. Companies and teams use Ishikawa diagrams to address complex problems that they are facing by breaking down the ideas. Often used as a tool in the methodology of Six Sigma, the Ishikawa diagram may have ribs designating such categories as the four Ps (policies, procedures, people and plant/technology) and the six Ms (machine, method, materials, measurement, man and Mother Nature). Create a horizontal line in the center of your page or whiteboard with a circle at one end. The Ishikawa diagram is called the fishbone diagram because of this shape: The line is the fish’s spine, and the circle is its head. Write down the problem, the known effect, at the head. Consider how many categories of causes add to that effect. This is where you may use the four Ps, six Ms or a
