Question

IT Project Management:

Give an diagram example of Ishikawa analysis in Software Development.

Answer 1

Also called: cause-and-effect diagram, Fishbone diagram

When ti use this method -
   - Focus attention on one specific issue or problem
   - Focus the team on the causes, not the symptoms

Step by Step Guide to do an Ishikawa Analysis
Step 1 – Define Topic
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Identify and clearly define the outcome or effect to be analyzed.

An effect may be positive (an objective) or negative (a problem)
Focussing on a …
… positive effect —> focuses on a desired outcome —> fosters pride and ownership over productive areas
… negative effect —> can sidetrack the team into justifying why the problem occurred and placing blame

Step 2 – Draw the Fish
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Draw the fishbone and create the effect box

Step 3 – Major Branches
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Identify the main causes contributing to the effect being studied —> major branches.

Step 4 – Sub-Brances
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For each major branch, identify other specific factors which may be the causes of the effect

Step 5 – 5 Why´s
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Identify more levels of causes using the 5 Why´s

Step 6 – Conclusion
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Analyze the diagram:
   - Use a Pareto Chart to prioritise potential causes.
   - Look at the “balance”, repetition of causes, potential for consolidaton, quantification of effects.

Diagrams I am attaching for MCPS: SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT CAUSES

For software development projects, this set of common causes is solid foundation to investigate (MCPS):

• Method (include software development life-cycle, QA process, agile methodology, SCRUM methodology, Waterfall)
• Code (the source code and related artifacts such as packages and libraries and frameworks)
• People (your team members, coworkers and other stakeholders)
• Systems (the systems used for development, releases, deployments, testing)