Solving IT Problems with Root Cause Analysis
(Excerpted from our article in the May 2010 issue of Industrial Engineer magazine)
Many IT departments struggle with the negative business impacts of recurring problems, and many also struggle with how to proceed with formally investigating each major problem. The risks are so significant that IT-related problems are estimated to impact the US economy to the tune of around $60 billion per year for software errors and around $140 billion per year for info/data security breaches.
So how are solutions typically being developed for these problems? There seems to be a reliance on the statistical analyses of industry trends to drive IT-related solutions. Information from actual IT problems categorized by type, or assumed cause and solutions, are recommended based on data trends exhibiting the highest percentages or greatest threats.
This approach leads to one of the most common reasons problem solving is often ineffective -- solutions based on categories do not necessarily address the actual causes of a given problem as effectively as solutions that are specifically designed to control the actual causes of the problem. Categories don't cause problems - causes do. Categories are titles created so that similar things can be grouped together, so by nature are generic on many levels. Generic, categorical-based solutions fail at a much higher rate than do solutions that control specific causes of a defined problem.
The problem management component of the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL)[1] framework sets the stage for each organization to adopt effective problem-solving strategies that will improve the quality of internal and external IT services. Recently, IT organizations have begun to realize that some of the same problem-solving best practices long used by other disciplines such as quality, safety, maintenance and reliability are adaptable and scalable to IT. Successful IT problem-solving organizations are increasingly implementing formal root cause analysis (RCA) within their ITIL problem management structure.
To glean specific best practices for implementing root cause analysis in an IT environment, read the rest of our article published in the May 2010 issue of Industrial Engineer magazine. Read the article here.
[1] ITIL - Information Technology Infrastructure Library. http://www.itil-officialsite.com/home/home.asp
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