Root cause analysis of complaints –
the new tool in the ADR toolkit

with Nicole Cullen

on Tuesday 22 November

Following the positive response to Nicole Cullen's workshop on root cause analysis (RCA) at
'kon gres 2011, we are delighted Nicole is presenting this topic again at this Chapter event.

RCA is a process that involves using complaints (and other) data to clearly identify serious, recurring problems that are costly to organisations.  An RCA team works together to understand the underlying causes of the problems and to implement a remedial action plan to get rid of the problems on an enduring basis.

RCA is a helpful tool for organisations wanting to create a continuous improvement culture and to experience fewer recurring problems, enhanced reputation and more engaged staff.

It can also prevent serious, high-risk problems from re-occurring and can help to reduce consumer complaints escalating to mediation, Ombudsman and external dispute resolution schemes.

RCA has been widely used to support investigations of accidents in the aviation industry and “sentinel” events in hospitals. More recently, a wide range of organisations including utilities in the energy sector and financial organisations have been using it to prevent serious recurring issues. Mediators are perfectly qualified to assist this process with their well-honed listening, questioning and facilitation skills.

This presentation will be held at 6.30pm following the Victoria Chapter annual meeting at 6pm.

About Nicole Cullen

Nicole Cullen is one of Australia’s leading experts in RCA of complaints and is also an accredited mediator under the National Mediator Accreditation System. She is a director of Cullaborate Pty Ltd which assists corporate clients to save costs through complaint management and prevention.

Nicole’s passion for root cause analysis resulted from holding senior management positions where she saw the impact of recurring and significant complaints on the bottom line. Nicole wrote the first Australian training workshop on root cause analysis of complaints and this is now delivered as a public and a private workshop around Australia.