# Write a root cause analysis report: scoring guide

Turn your rough notes on a problem that happened into a root cause analysis report that separates what happened from direct causes, contributing factors and possible root causes, with each cause tied to evidence in your notes and a fix for each possible root cause.

## How to use it

1. Run the template on your own material, or take an answer you already have.
2. For each criterion below, read the answer against the two lines and tick one: meets or does not meet. Quote what you saw.
3. A criterion marked "checked by you" is yours to mark. An AI cannot meet it for you.
4. Count the ticks for meets, out of 8. Fix the first criterion that is not met and run the guide again.

## The guide

### 1. Every event is quoted word for word from your notes

A plain rule you can check by eye.

- Meets: Every event in the table is found word for word in your notes.
- Does not meet: An event has been reworded, merged with another, or is not in the notes.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

### 2. Each level is one of the five allowed words

A plain rule you can check by eye.

- Meets: Every row has exactly one of the five allowed words in the Level column.
- Does not meet: A row has another word, or the Level cell is empty.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

### 3. No number appears that your notes do not have

A plain rule you can check by eye.

- Meets: Every number in the report is also in your notes.
- Does not meet: The report has a number your notes do not have, such as an invented date, count or cost.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

### 4. The reminder to check with the people who were there is in the final text

A plain rule you can check by eye.

- Meets: The final text includes the line Check this report with the people who were there before you share it.
- Does not meet: The line is missing, or it has been replaced by a claim that the cause is confirmed.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

### 5. No person is named as a cause

Checked by a second AI prompt.

- Meets: No line names a person, or says a person should have known or tried harder, as a cause.
- Does not meet: A person is named as a cause, even in softer words.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

### 6. Every possible root cause has support in the notes

Checked by a second AI prompt.

- Meets: Every possible root cause has a real quote in the Support column.
- Does not meet: A possible root cause has no support in the notes.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

### 7. Every possible root cause has a fix

Checked by a second AI prompt.

- Meets: Each possible root cause has one fix.
- Does not meet: A possible root cause has no fix.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

### 8. A person who was there reads it before it is shared

Checked by you.

- Meets: You, or a person who was there, read the report and checked the events and each possible root cause and, for a report going outside, a manager or legal lead read it.
- Does not meet: The report is shared unread, or a possible root cause is treated as confirmed.
- Your mark: [ ] Meets  [ ] Does not meet
- What you saw:

## Your result

Met ___ of 8

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From Logic Lab (logiclabhq.com). Free to use and adapt, with credit.