Air Maestro ideas

Introduce Dedicated Root Cause Analysis (RCA) Module Separate from Actions

Problem statement:

  • There is no dedicated facility to conduct Root Cause Analysis (RCA) within audits and safety reports.

  • Current behaviour in AM captures RCA inside Action pop-ups, which is incorrect. RCA should precede and inform actions, not be captured as part of an action.

Required changes:

  1. Introduce a dedicated RCA module/section for audits and safety reports

    • RCA should be a first-class component linked to the specific finding/non-conformance/observation.

    • Provide structured RCA fields (example set; confirm framework):

      • Problem statement / finding reference

      • Immediate cause(s)

      • Underlying/root cause(s) (e.g., 5 Whys analysis)

      • Contributing factors

      • Evidence and data considered

      • Selected RCA method (5 Whys, Fishbone/Ishikawa, Etc.) and its artifacts

      • Verification/validation notes

      • RCA owner, participants, dates, and status

    • Support attachments and diagrams (e.g., fishbone diagram images).

  2. Decouple RCA from Actions

    • Remove any RCA inputs from Action creation/edit pop-ups.

    • Actions (corrective/preventive) should be created as outcomes of a completed or in-progress RCA and must reference the RCA record.

    • Allow multiple actions to be linked to a single RCA.

  3. Workflow and permissions

    • RCA lifecycle: Draft → In Review → Approved/Closed (confirm exact states).

    • Permission controls: who can create/edit/approve RCA vs who can raise actions.

    • Prevent action approval/closure if the referenced RCA is missing or not in an appropriate state (configurable).

  4. UI/UX integration

    • On each finding within an audit/safety report: “Start RCA” or “View RCA.”

    • RCA workspace with guided templates (5 Whys, Fishbone) and autosave.

    • Linkage panel to create/manage related actions from the RCA view.

    • Clear separation in the UI between RCA content and Actions.

  5. Data model and integrity

    • New RCA entity linked to Finding/Observation (1:N: one finding may have zero or many RCAs; confirm desired cardinality).

    • Actions reference RCA ID (N:1 to RCA).

    • Enforce referential integrity; prevent deletion of RCA if actions depend on it, or require reassignment.

  6. Reporting and audit trail

    • Include RCA fields in reporting and exports.

    • Maintain full change history (who/when) for RCA records.

    • KPIs: time-to-RCA completion, actions per RCA, recurrence rates.

Acceptance criteria:

  • RCA can be created and managed independently of Actions, directly from findings in audits and safety reports.

  • Action pop-ups contain no RCA fields; actions must reference an RCA when required by configuration.

  • Multiple actions can link to a single RCA; links are visible in both directions.

  • Role-based permissions and state transitions function as designed.

  • All RCA activity is captured in audit logs and appears in reports.

  • Leigh Morkel
  • Nov 4 2025
  • Needs review