How would you perform a root cause analysis after a critical outage in MIPC?

• A. Blame team and reset systems.
• B. Collect timeline and logs, identify contributing factors, perform 5 Whys or fishbone diagram, verify fixes, implement preventive actions, and document lessons learned.
• C. Wipe all data.
• D. Reboot and assume it won't recur.

Answer: (B)

When evaluating a critical outage, focus on a structured problem-solving approach that aims to uncover the underlying causes and prevent recurrence. Start by gathering a complete incident timeline and relevant logs to understand what happened and when. Then identify contributing factors—conditions that allowed the outage to occur or worsen. Use methods like the 5 Whys or a fishbone diagram to drill down from the event to the root causes, separating surface symptoms from fundamental issues. Once root causes are identified, verify them by testing fixes or reviewing evidence to ensure the underlying problem is actually addressed. From there, implement preventive actions—adjusting code, configurations, runbooks, monitoring, alerting, or processes to reduce the chance of recurrence. Finally, document lessons learned and share them with the team so improvements are captured and applied. The other options miss the mark because they ignore systematic analysis, rely on blame or destructive actions, or simply reboot without solving the real problem.