mingyao743/make-rational-decision/3w-analysis

3W Analysis

A simple yet powerful three-step framework for problem decomposition and decision-making: What → Why → What next.

When to Use

• Quick problem triage and initial assessment
• Incident response and post-mortem analysis
• Situations requiring fast, structured thinking without heavy ceremony
• Kickoff discussions for new tasks or initiatives

The Three Steps

Step 1: What — Describe the Current Situation

Establish a clear, factual picture of what has happened or what is happening.

• What is the observable problem or event?
• What is the scope and impact?
• What is the current state vs. the expected state?

Output: A concise, factual statement of the situation.

Step 2: Why — Identify the Cause

Dig into the reasons behind the situation.

• Why did this happen? (Ask "why" up to 5 times to reach root cause)
• Why is this a problem? (Understand the impact chain)
• Why wasn't it prevented? (Identify process gaps)

Output: Root cause(s) ranked by contribution to the problem.

Step 3: What Next — Define Actions

Convert understanding into concrete next steps.

• What immediate actions are needed? (Containment)
• What corrective actions address the root cause? (Resolution)
• What preventive actions stop recurrence? (Prevention)

Output: A prioritized action list with owners and timelines.

Process

┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐     ┌──────────────┐
│   WHAT      │────▶│    WHY      │────▶│  WHAT NEXT   │
│             │     │             │     │              │
│ What        │     │ Why did it  │     │ What actions │
│ happened?   │     │ happen?     │     │ are needed?  │
│             │     │             │     │              │
│ Fact-based  │     │ Cause-based │     │ Action-based │
│ description │     │ analysis    │     │ planning     │
└─────────────┘     └─────────────┘     └──────────────┘

Output Format

## 3W Analysis: [Topic]
 
### What — Current Situation
- **Observation**: [What happened]
- **Impact**: [Who/what is affected]
- **Current vs. Expected**: [Gap description]
 
### Why — Root Cause
- **Direct cause**: [Immediate reason]
- **Root cause**: [Underlying reason, reached via 5-Whys]
- **Contributing factors**: [Secondary causes]
 
### What Next — Action Plan
| Priority | Action | Type | Owner | Timeline |
|----------|--------|------|-------|----------|
| P0 | [Action] | Containment | [Name] | [Date] |
| P1 | [Action] | Corrective | [Name] | [Date] |
| P2 | [Action] | Preventive | [Name] | [Date] |

Extensions

This skill is enhanced by the following shared extensions:

• `_shared/diagram-renderer.md` — Mermaid template for rendering the 3W flow diagram
• `_shared/skill-workflows.md` — Workflow 1 (Problem-Solving Chain) and Workflow 4 (Root Cause Investigation) use 3W as a key step
• `_shared/examples-library.md` — Example 2 shows a complete 3W analysis

Rules

• Step 1 (What) must be purely factual — no speculation or opinion
• Step 2 (Why) should drill to root cause, not stop at symptoms
• Step 3 (What next) must produce actionable items, not vague intentions
• Each step's output feeds directly into the next step's input