In incident investigations, what statement best describes root-cause analysis?

• A. Blaming individuals helps quickly resolve the issue.
• B. Collect facts, interview involved parties, perform root-cause analysis, implement corrective actions, and document results.
• C. Immediately escalate to external auditors without internal review.
• D. Do nothing until a formal external audit.

Answer: (B)

Root-cause analysis in incident investigations is about using a structured, evidence-based process to find the underlying factors that allowed the incident to happen, not just what appears on the surface. The best approach starts with gathering facts from records and sources, then interviewing those involved to get multiple perspectives. From there, you analyze the sequence of events and contributing conditions to identify the true underlying causes—often systemic issues like gaps in procedures, training, equipment maintenance, or oversight. Once these root causes are understood, you develop and implement corrective actions that address them, and you document everything so the results are verifiable and the learning can prevent recurrence. This emphasis on evidence, a holistic view of contributing factors, and a full follow-through with fixes and records is what distinguishes effective root-cause analysis from other, less thorough approaches.