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| Criterion |  Operations 5 Whys |  Operations Scatter Diagram |  Operations Fishbone Diagram |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. | When the question is whether two measures are related, the method makes patterns in the data picture visible. It separates felt correlations from relationships that actually show up in the data. | When a problem has several possible contributing factors, the method sorts causes by cause areas. It prevents an initial hunch from blocking the view of other plausible drivers. | When a problem keeps recurring and the cause stays unclear, the method exposes the underlying mechanism. It separates symptom, guess, and robust explanation from one another. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 15-30 min | 30-90 min | 30-60 min | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 2-6 | 1-4 | 2-8 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Root cause notes, Countermeasures | Scatter Plot, Korrelationsnotiz, Hypothesenliste | Fishbone Diagram, Cause Categories, Investigation Backlog | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan |
Tags1 shared | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving | Root causeQualityVisualization | Root causeQualityOperations | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident |