SchoolAdvancement

If you’ve been a visitor to SchoolAdvancement.com, you’ll know that according to systems thinking pioneer Peter Senge, a complete system has 5 elements.

Several years ago, I decided to do some research into Six Sigma process improvement, and was pleasantly surprised to see this article on “The 5 Whys” as part of the Analysis phase of the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) methodology.  (It’s a process that’s also referred to in my book which deals with creating a marketing plan for your school.  Check it out by visiting this link!).

Rather than reprint the article verbatim, I chose to include the link to the article on www.sixsigma.com in this article.  You can access the article at https://www.isixsigma.com/tools-templates/cause-effect/determine-root-cause-5-whys/

It’s also interesting to note that the 5 Why’s are can be used individually or as a part of what’s called the “fishbone” (also known as the cause and effect or Ishikawa) diagram. The fishbone diagram helps to explore all potential or real causes resulting in a single defect or failure. Once all inputs are established on the fishbone, you can use the 5 Whys technique to drill down to the root causes.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishikawa_diagram:

Ishikawa diagrams (also called fishbone diagrams, herringbone diagrams, cause-and-effect diagrams, or Fishikawa) are causal diagrams created by Kaoru Ishikawa (1968) that show the causes of a specific event.  Common uses of the Ishikawa diagram are product design and quality defect prevention to identify potential factors causing an overall effect. Each cause or reason for imperfection is a source of variation. Causes are usually grouped into major categories to identify these sources of variation. The categories typically include

  • People: Anyone involved with the process

  • Methods: How the process is performed and the specific requirements for doing it, such as policies, procedures, rules, regulations and laws

  • Machines: Any equipment, computers, tools, etc. required to accomplish the job

  • Materials: Raw materials, parts, pens, paper, etc. used to produce the final product

  • Measurements: Data generated from the process that are used to evaluate its quality

  • Environment: The conditions, such as location, time, temperature, and culture in which the process operates

Interestingly, the “causes” are categorized as “The 5 M’s” in the manufacturing industry:

  • Machine (technology)
  • Method (process)
  • Material (Includes Raw Material, Consumables and Information.)
  • Man Power (physical work)/Mind Power (brain work): Kaizens, Suggestions
  • Measurement (Inspection)

In marketing, the typical 4 P’s (Product, Price, Place and Promotion) have been expanded to the 8 P’s to also include People/Personnel, Process, Physical Evidence, and Publicity.

Personally, I’d also add a 9th P – Position – since “Place” can either refer to a business’ or organization’s physical location or, in the case of placement, “where” a product is placed on a store’s shelf or in a particular section of a retail location.  It can also refer to the place the business or service occupies in the consumer’s mind, which is more correctly defined as “Position.”

There are also 4 S’s which are seen as categories of caused within the service industry, signified by Surroundings, Suppliers, Systems, and Skills.  May I also suggest there is a 5th “S,” Significance. This would address issues such as human interaction vs. technology assistance.

For instance, what difference would be created if a company would have a person answer phone calls, rather than a recorded menu, or a voice-recognition system which has a caller responding to a human-sounding voice rather than a caller choosing a number or extension to self-direct their call?  We’re already seeing a lot of that, and will see significantly more as AI continues to evolve and become more advanced.