An extension of the topic on identifying root causes by showing how the C&E Matrix is used after a C&E diagram and 5 Whys for building a DCP.

1. Section & Lesson #:
Pre-Requisite Lessons:
Complex Tools + Clear Teaching = Powerful Results
Identify Root Causes – C&E Matrix
Six Sigma-Measure – Lesson 26
An extension of the topic on identifying root causes by showing how the
C&E Matrix is used after a C&E diagram and 5 Whys for building a DCP.
Six Sigma-Measure #25 – Identify Root Causes – Combining the
C&E Diagram and 5 Whys
Copyright © 2011-2019 by Matthew J. Hansen. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means
(electronic, mechanical, photographic, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without prior permission in writing by the author and/or publisher.

2. Why Do We Need This Tool?
o Remember, our goal of building the transfer function (Y = f(X)) begins with the DCP.
• We should already know the Y, so now we need to find the potential X’s for the transfer function.
• The data collection plan (DCP) helps ensure we have enough data measuring the Y and every X.
• Below is the method previously described for helping to build the DCP:
Copyright © 2011-2019 by Matthew J. Hansen. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means (electronic, mechanical, photographic,
photocopying, recording or otherwise) without prior permission in writing by the author and/or publisher.
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1. Define phase
items plus Y &
defect definitions
2. Validate Y &
defect definition
with Team
3. Identify
potential X’s
4. Narrow
down to most
critical X’s
5. Build a data
collection plan
for critical X’s
INPUT to Meeting PROCESS during Meeting OUTPUT from Meeting
Tools: Cause & Effect (C&E) Diagram (a.k.a.,
Fishbone/Ishikawa diagram) and 5 Whys
Tools: Cause &
Effect (C&E) Matrix
Tools: Sample Size Calculator
& Data Collection Plan

3. C&E Matrix Defined
o What is a C&E Matrix?
• It’s a tool that helps evaluate and prioritize all potential root causes.
• Similar to a QFD tool, it objectively evaluates the team’s subjective opinion about the causes.
o What is the purpose of a C&E Matrix?
• Narrows down all potential causes to just the critical few that are most likely the root causes.
• Focuses the team on evaluating each cause individually and its direct impact to the effect.
• Allows for an objective comparison of how each potential cause influences each effect.
o Example of a C&E Matrix built in Excel:
Copyright © 2011-2019 by Matthew J. Hansen. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means (electronic, mechanical, photographic,
photocopying, recording or otherwise) without prior permission in writing by the author and/or publisher.
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Cause and Effect Matrix
9 3
Process Inputs
Process Outputs
BillingErrors
BillingCredits
Total
Potential Data Collection
Logic for each Cause
1 3 1 30
Compare billing error rate between new and experienced
employees
2 9 9 108
Compare billing error rate between customers having
recently updated contracts and those not updated; compare
differences between commercial vs. non-comm customers.
3 9 3 90
Compare billing error rate between bills affected by new rates
and those unaffected by new rates.
4 3 9 54
See #1 (outdated training materials should primarily affect
new employees coming out of training)
5 3 3 36
Compare billing error rate as monitored by QA rep between
current bills and a previous time when QA had more reps.
Quality Assurance (QA) doesn't audit enough bills > QA
doesn't have enough auditors > vacant QA positions were
never back-filled due to budget cuts
Employees entering wrong rates > employees learning an
outdated process in training > training materials don't account
for current methods
Rating of Importance (0, 1, 3, 9)
Employees entering wrong rates > new employees are more
prone to make mistakes
Billing system is slow to update rates > Commercial Sales
Reps are slow at entering contract changes > Reps aren't
incented to enter contract changes quickly
Billing system is slow to update rates > New rates are
effective before they're loaded into billing system > New rates
don't have enough lead time.

4. Building the C&E Matrix
o How do you build the C&E Matrix?
• It’s built collaboratively with the team and can be the natural next step from the C&E diagram.
• Get the C&E diagram and follow the steps as prioritized below:
Copyright © 2011-2019 by Matthew J. Hansen. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means (electronic, mechanical, photographic,
photocopying, recording or otherwise) without prior permission in writing by the author and/or publisher.
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1 3 9
Process Inputs
Process Outputs
Effect1
Effect2
Effect3
Total
Potential Data Collection
Logic for each Cause
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
5 0
Rating of Importance (0, 1, 3, 9)
Type each Effect/Defect from the
previously built C&E diagram(s);
exclude duplicate causes.
Assign an importance rating (0, 1,
3, or 9) for each Effect. It’s OK if
some effects have the same rating.
Type each unique
cause from the C&E
diagram on each row.
For each cause and respective effect, type a rating
of how much a cause influences that effect. Use
High (9), Medium (3), Low (1) or no influence (0).
If they struggle with an answer, try asking “If we fix that
cause, how severe would the pain of that effect still be?”
 
 The causes having the highest totals are the
most “critical”; at a minimum, these should be
measured. Type a general description of how
they can be measured (e.g., system query or
reporting, manual observation, etc.).


5. Practical Application
o Refer to the practical application from the pre-requisite lesson about combining the
C&E Diagram and 5 Whys concept.
• In that prior application, you should have identified some potential root causes (based on the
effect of having too high of an expense, such as fuel expense).
• Open the spreadsheet template for the C&E Matrix and begin to fill in the various components:
 Type in the name of the effect that you used.
 Assign an importance rating for each effect (if only one effect was used, then this step may be skipped).
 Type into the designated area each of the causes you identified from the prior lesson.
 Identify and type in the level of impact (9=High, 3=Medium, 1=Low) for each effect.
 Select the top causes that have the highest result in the total column.
– These represent your narrowed down list of most likely causes to the undesired effects.
• Do these top causes seem logical that they would be the top?
 If not, then there may have been some subjective bias in the results; these should be explored further.
• If you only had one effect in this exercise, then the formal C&E Matrix may seem unnecessary.
 The greatest value from the C&E Matrix is evident when you’re evaluating multiple effects across multiple
causes. To test that, just run through the exercise again by adding more effects and causes.
Copyright © 2011-2019 by Matthew J. Hansen. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means (electronic, mechanical, photographic,
photocopying, recording or otherwise) without prior permission in writing by the author and/or publisher.
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