NEEDS ASSESSMENT KNOWLEDGE BASE

FISHBONEDIAGRAMS
PURPOSE
Thefishbonediagramisacauseandeffectdiagramthatcanbeusedtoidentifythepotential(oractual)
cause(s)foraperformanceproblem.Fishbonediagramsprovideastructureforagroupsdiscussionaround
thepotentialcausesoftheproblem.

NEEDSASSESSMENTAPPLICATIONS
Fishbonediagramsareoftenusedinneedsassessmenttoassistinillustratingand/orcommunicatingthe
relationshipsamongseveralpotential(oractual)causesofaperformanceproblem.Likewise,these
graphicalrepresentationsofrelationshipsbetweenneeds(i.e.,discrepanciesbetweendesiredandactual
results)offeryouapragmatictoolforbuildingasystemofperformanceimprovementinterventions(for
instance,acombinationofmentoring,jobaids,training,motivation,newexpectations)aroundtheoften
complexrelationshipsfoundacrosspotential(oractual)causes.

ADVANTAGESANDDISADVANTAGES

ADVANTAGES
Fishbonediagramspermitathoughtfulanalysisthatavoidsoverlookinganypossiblerootcausesfora
need.
Thefishbonetechniqueiseasytoimplementandcreatesaneasytounderstandvisualrepresentationof
thecauses,categoriesofcauses,andtheneed.
Byusingafishbonediagram,youareabletofocusthegrouponthebigpictureastopossiblecauses
orfactorsinfluencingtheproblem/need.
Evenaftertheneedhasbeenaddressed,thefishbonediagramshowsareasofweaknessthatonce
exposedcanberectifiedbeforecausingmoresustaineddifficulties.

DISADVANTAGES
Thesimplicityofafishbonediagramcanbebothitsstrengthanditsweakness.Asaweakness,the
simplicityofthefishbonediagrammaymakeitdifficulttorepresentthetrulyinterrelatednatureof
problemsandcausesinsomeverycomplexsituations.
Unlessyouhaveanextremelylargespaceonwhichtodrawanddevelopthefishbonediagram,you
mayfindthatyouarenotabletoexplorethecauseandeffectrelationshipsinasmuchdetailasyou
wouldliketo.

WBI EVALUATION GROUP (2007)

NEEDS ASSESSMENT KNOWLEDGE BASE

GENERALPROCEDURES
1. Identifygapsbetweentheresults(i.e.,performance)thatarerequiredforthesuccessfulaccomplishment
ofyourprograms/projectsresultschain(i.e.,logicframe)andcurrentachievementstodate.
2. Generateaclear,concisestatementoftheneed(s).Makesurethateveryoneinthegroupagreeswiththe
needasitisstated.Forexample,theapplicationofmodernagriculturaltechniquesamongthe
populationisat25%andtheaimofyourprogram/projectisfor75%ofthepopulationtousemodern
techniques(leavingyouwithagaporneedof50%).
3. Usingalongsheetofpaper,drawalinehorizontallyalongthepage.Thislinewillbethespineofthe
fish.Writetheneedalongthespine,onthelefthandside.
4. Identifytheoverarchingcategoriesofcausesoftheneed.Brainstormingisoftenaneffectivetechnique
foridentifyingthecategoriesofcauses.Foreachcategoryofcauses,drawabonealineata45degree
anglefromthespineofthefish.Labeleachspine(seeFigure1).

Figure1:ABasicFishboneDiagram

Details Why Details Why

e e
aus Details Why aus
C C


Need (gap in results)

Details Why


Ca

Ca
us

us

Details Why Cause

De

ta
ils
W

hy

5. Havethegroupbrainstormtoidentifythefactorsthatmaybeaffectingthecauseand/ortheneed.For
eachcategoryofcauses,thegroupshouldbeasking;Whyisthishappening?Addeachreasonwhy
tothediagram,clusteredaroundthemajorcausecategoryitinfluences.
6. RepeattheprocedureforaskingWhyisthishappeningforeacheffect,untilthequestionyieldsno
moremeaningfulanswers(seeFigure2).

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 NEEDS ASSESSMENT KNOWLEDGE BASE

7. Whenthegrouphascometotheconsensusthatthediagramcontainsanadequateamountof
information,analyzethediagram.Inparticular,lookforcausesthatareappearinginmorethanone
sectionofthediagram.
8. Circleanythingthatseemstobearootcausefortheneed.Prioritizetherootcausesanddecidetotake
action.Thisactionmayinvolvefurtherinvestigatingtherootcauses.

Figure2:AnAnnotatedFishboneDiagram

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Not standardized by HR Lack of training

Ta
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WBI EVALUATION GROUP (2007)

NEEDS ASSESSMENT KNOWLEDGE BASE

TIPSFORSUCCESS
Makesurethatthereisconsensusinthegroupaboutboththeneedandthecharacteristicsofthe
causestatementbeforebeginningtheprocessofbuildingthefishbonediagram.
Ifappropriate,youcangraftbranchesthatdonotcontainalotofinformationontootherbranches.
Likewise,youcansplitbranchesthathavetoomuchinformationintotwoormorebranchesasyougo.
Makeparsimonioususeofwordswhilepopulatingthefishbonediagram.Onlyuseasmanywordsas
necessarytodescribethecauseoreffect.

REFERENCESANDRESOURCES
Gupta,K.,Sleezer,C.M.,&RussEft,D.F.(2007).APracticalGuidetoNeedsAssessment.Pfeiffer

WEBSITES
UseaFishboneDiagramtohelpattackcomplexproblems(fromTechRepublic):
http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/510010878_116092236.html?tag=nl.e053

CauseAnalysisTools(fromAmericanSocietyforQuality;hasanexampleofafishbonediagram):
http://www.asq.org/learnaboutquality/causeanalysistools/overview/fishbone.html

TheFishboneDiagram(fromSixSigma;hastemplatesformakingfishbonediagramsinMicrosoftWord
andMicrosoftExcel):
http://www.isixsigma.com/library/content/t000827.asp

WBI EVALUATION GROUP (2007)