Advanced RCA & Corrective Action Quiz

Which of the following statements best describes a limitation of the Fishbone Diagram?

• It is only applicable to manufacturing problems

• It requires advanced statistical tools to use

• It does not inherently prioritize root causes

• It replaces the need for any further analysis

A team completes a 5 Whys analysis and identifies a human error as the root cause. What is the next best step?

• Retrain the person involved

• Implement disciplinary action

• Investigate systemic or process-related contributors

• Close the case as resolved

Which of the following causes is least appropriate to categorize under 'Method' in a Fishbone diagram?

• Outdated SOP

• Lack of defined workflow

• Employee failed to follow steps

• No policy governing the process

Which of the following best distinguishes correction from corrective action?

• Correction is permanent; corrective action is temporary

• Correction fixes the immediate effect; corrective action addresses the root cause

• Correction requires team input; corrective action is individual

• Correction applies only to documentation

What is the risk of using only the 5 Whys without verifying the cause through data or observation?

• You may ask too many Whys

• You will always get a system-level cause

• You may incorrectly conclude the root cause

• You will identify too many root causes

In a Pareto Chart, what is typically shown on the right-side Y-axis?

• Cumulative percentage of total occurrences

• Number of contributors per root cause

• Frequency of each failure mode

• Cost of failure per category

Which of the following is an example of a non-SMART corrective action?

• Implement new leave approval system by July 30

• Review onboarding SOP with HR team this week

• Improve communication to avoid future problems

• Automate data entry for monthly payroll reporting

In RCA, the term 'root cause' refers to:

• The last event in a failure chain

• The process step that failed

• The underlying reason a problem occurred, which if fixed, prevents recurrence

• The person responsible for the failure

A completed Fishbone diagram includes People, Process, System, Policy, and Communication. However, the team still struggles to determine the root cause. What should they do next?

• Assume the most common item is the root cause

• Use the 5 Whys on selected causes

• Review only the People causes

• Skip to corrective action implementation

You're reviewing an RCA report. The identified cause is 'Staff was careless.' What should your feedback be?

• Acceptable - problem solved

• Suggest replacing with 'lack of accountability'

• Recommend further analysis - possible system/process contributors

• Reassign the issue to another team