CAUSE & EFFECT — THE FISHBONE (ISHIKAWA) DIAGRAM · TRAINING DECK + TEMPLATE

When a problem has many possible causes, guessing wastes time. This complete problem-solving toolkit teaches your team to map every possible cause of a problem on one clear picture — and pinpoint the few worth acting on. No background needed: it's built from scratch, in plain language, and you can run your first fishbone the same day.

Perfect for team leaders, continuous-improvement and quality people, operations and maintenance teams, trainers, and anyone who has to get to the bottom of a recurring problem on the shop floor, in the warehouse or in the office.

WHAT YOU GET

- Training slides (PPTX): a 14-slide deck that builds it up from scratch — the concept, the anatomy (head, spine, ribs and bones), the six categories (6M), the 5-step method, a full worked example, and common pitfalls to avoid.

- Print-ready deck (PDF): the same course as a clean PDF to learn, print and share with the team.

- Fishbone template (XLSX): a ready-to-use 6M table — log every possible cause, flag the likely and the measurable ones, and record your evidence. Includes a fully worked example and a quick-start guide.

THE SIX CATEGORIES — THE "6M"

M - Manpower: the people — skills, training, fatigue, communication.

M - Machines: equipment and tools — wear, settings, maintenance.

M - Measurement: gauges and data — accuracy, calibration, readings.

M - Method: how the work is done — process steps, instructions.

M - Materials: inputs and consumables — quality, supply, storage.

M - Environment: the surroundings — temperature, space, layout, conditions.

BUILD ONE IN FIVE STEPS

1. Describe the problem: state it in facts, what, where, when and how often, on the head of the fishbone.

2. Brainstorm causes: capture every possible cause; all views count, no debate yet, this is about quantity of ideas.

3. Place under categories: sort each cause onto the right rib of the 6M.

4. Identify the likely causes: use silent dot-voting to surface the vital few worth investigating, not the loudest voice.

5. Analyze and act: look for clusters and repeats, then circle the measurable cause you can actually do something about.

A WORKED EXAMPLE YOU CAN FOLLOW

"Pump 1 breaks down weekly." The team maps every possible cause across the 6M, dot-votes the shortlist, and lands on "fuse blown", a measurable cause they can verify with data — as the one to investigate first. The same example ships inside the Excel template so you can see exactly how a finished fishbone looks.

WHY TEAMS LOVE IT

- See every cause: map the whole problem on one clear picture.

- Miss nothing: the 6M make sure no type of cause slips by.

- Run a real team session: brainstorm and capture so every voice is heard.

- Beat groupthink: silent dot-voting surfaces the real priorities.

- No background needed: built from scratch; anyone can follow.

- Fully editable: adapt the deck and the 6M template to any problem or process.

- Print-ready: a clean PDF to teach and share.

- Instant download: get all three files the moment you buy.

WHAT'S IN THE DOWNLOAD

- 1 x Training deck — .pptx (14 slides, fully editable)

- 1 x Print-ready deck — .pdf

- 1 x Fishbone template — .xlsx (6M table, worked example & quick guide)

Instant digital download. For personal and in-company training use.