QA professionals also use fishbone diagrams to troubleshoot usability issues, such as: why is the website down? For example: why have surveys shown a decrease in patient satisfaction?įishbone diagram example #3: Quality assurance Let’s start with an everyday example: what are the main causes of climate change?įishbone diagram example #2: Healthcare and nursingįishbone diagrams are often used in nursing and healthcare to diagnose patients with unclear symptoms, or to streamline processes or fix ongoing problems. Fishbone diagram example #1: Climate change In the business world, they are an often-used tool for quality assurance or human resources professionals. They are particularly popular in healthcare settings, particularly nursing, or in group brainstorm study sessions. You can try your hand at filling one in yourself using the various blank fishbone diagram templates below, in the following formats:ĭownload Excel template Fishbone diagram template Wordĭownload Word template Fishbone diagram template PowerPointĭownload our free PowerPoint template below!ĭownload PowerPoint template Fishbone diagram examplesįishbone diagrams are used in a variety of settings, both academic and professional. Lastly, add text boxes to label each function. These serve as the potential causes of the problem. Next, add horizontal lines jutting from each central line.
These serve as the ribs, or the contributing factors to the main problem.
From here, you’ll draw the first “bones” directly from the backbone, in the shape of small diagonal lines going right-to-left.
Next, draw a long arrow, which serves as the fish’s backbone.This is the “head” of the fish, summarized in a few words or a small phrase. Your fishbone diagram starts out with an issue or problem.Frequently asked questions about fishbone diagramsĪ fishbone diagram is easy to draw, or you can use a template for an online version.Advantages and disadvantages of fishbone diagrams.