
Kaoru Ishikawa, a quality control expert, invented it.

Why use a fishbone diagram?Ī fishbone diagram is used for troubleshooting and product development processes while focusing on the whole conversation. Thus, for a beginner, it is crucial first to understand the basics of the fishbone diagram and then learn to draw it with the most consistent tool, EdrawMax. If you go deep, the fishbone diagram also involves combining the practice of brainstorming with a kind of mind map template. So, you can also call it a beneficial tool in product development and problem-solving related to the product. After all the issues have been identified using the Ishikawa diagram, the manager can take further steps to improve upon the situations. It depicts the problem at the head and the causes at the spine. The layout is similar to a fish's skeleton. Managers mostly use the Ishikawa diagram or the cause and effect diagram as a tool in finding out the deviations that are necessary to detect for business expansion. Ishikawa or fishbone diagram is one such diagram to detect the causes and effects of various imperfections, failures, or defects in the business. By reviewing each potential cause in detail, teams can identify areas where they need to make changes and eliminate errors.Image Source:

They write the statement on the center-right of the diagram, with a horizontal line running across to it

Mazda famously took this approach in creating the Miata sports car (the MX5), detailing the six components that would make the final product. The diagram is useful in product development, where project teams list all the factors that contribute to making a product and break them down into smaller components. The name Fishbone Diagram comes from the shape of the diagram, which when completed resembles the shape of a fish.

Based on an idea for problem-solving developed earlier in the 20 th century, Ishikawa’s diagram because popular in the 1960s at Kawasaki. Ishikawa invented the Fishbone Diagram for the shipbuilding industry in Japan. The use of a Fishbone Diagram requires that a team look at all possible causes for errors and mistakes, not just those they have come up with in the past or that team members suspect is the root cause.īecause of its usefulness, a Fishbone Diagram is one of the most popular tools in Six Sigma. It’s also useful for teams who find that their thinking on solving a challenge has fallen into a rut. Another name for the diagram is the Cause and Effect Diagram or Ishikawa Diagram (named for the diagram’s inventor, Kaoru Ishikawa).Ī Fishbone Diagram is an effective tool for project teams tasked with finding the root causes of a problem. A Fishbone Diagram is a visual tool that allows project teams to easily display a list of potential causes of a problem, then break these causes down into increasingly more detailed components until a link is found between a root cause and the final outcome.
