Root cause analysis

Root Cause Analysis

Guardrails

• Start with the observed symptom and evidence. Do not jump to a favored cause.
• Separate facts, assumptions, hypotheses, and confirmed causes.
• Prefer the smallest corrective action that addresses the confirmed root cause.
• Define how the fix will be verified and how recurrence will be detected.

Skill Workflow (Invocation Sequence)

When this skill is loaded, follow these steps in order. Each step references the relevant guide in references/ for full detail.

Step 1 — Define the Problem

Pin down the symptom clearly. Write a concise problem statement.

Reference: the-5-whys-technique.md - "Create a problem statement"

Step 2 — Choose a Technique

Decide which tool fits the situation:

Situation	Technique	Reference
Simple linear cause chain	5 Whys	the-5-whys-technique.md
Multiple interacting causes	Fishbone Diagram	fishbone-diagram.md
Complex / unknown territory	Both - start with Fishbone to surface categories, then 5 Whys on the top causes	both files

Step 3 — Gather Supporting Facts

Collect timeline, logs, metrics, and evidence before or during analysis.

Reference: systematic-rca-process.md - Steps 1-2 (Gather Facts, Reproduce)

Step 4 — Analyze (5 Whys or Fishbone)

• 5 Whys: Ask "Why?" iteratively until the root cause emerges.
• Fishbone: Define category ribs (people, methods, materials, measurement, environment, policies), brainstorm causes, then use 5 Whys on top candidates.

Reference: the-5-whys-technique.md - Three Steps to the 5 Whys Reference: fishbone-diagram.md - Five steps to creating a fishbone diagram Reference: root-cause-analysis-techniques.md - systemic vs. individual causes

Step 5 — Document Findings

Write the RCA report: incident, timeline, root cause, contributing factors, solutions (immediate/short-term/long-term).

Reference: rca-report-template.md

Step 6 — Plan Follow-Up

Assign owners, track action items, define prevention measures, schedule verification.

Reference: follow-up-prevention.md

Step 7 — Polish with Business Focus

Invoke $documentation-writer with a business-focus mindset to refine the output.

Quick Start (Minimal Example)

Example: Website Down

Symptom: Website returned 503 Service Unavailable

Why 1: Why was website down?
  Answer: Database connection pool exhausted

Why 2: Why was connection pool exhausted?
  Answer: Queries taking too long, connections not released

Why 3: Why were queries slow?
  Answer: Missing index on frequently queried column

Why 4: Why was index missing?
  Answer: Performance testing did not use production-like data volume

Why 5: Why was production-like data not used?
  Answer: Load testing environment does not mirror production

Root Cause: Load testing environment under-provisioned

Solution: Update load testing environment with production-like data

Prevention: Establish environment parity requirements

Reference Guides (Detail)

Step	Guide	Contents
1-2	the-5-whys-technique.md	Problem statement, Three Steps, PDSA integration
2	fishbone-diagram.md	Five steps, healthcare categories, team brainstorming
2	root-cause-analysis-techniques.md	Systemic vs. individual causes, example branches
3-4	systematic-rca-process.md	7-step process from fact gathering to documentation
5	rca-report-template.md	Incident, timeline, root cause, solutions, prevention
6	follow-up-prevention.md	Action items, monitoring, sharing learnings, checklist

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Install: npx skills add ChristopherAlphonse/calphonse-skills --skill root-cause-analysis