Annex B The TRACE Method – Root Cause Intelligence for Modern Organisations

• Problem Management practitioners

• Service owners

• Transformation leads

• Continuous Improvement teams

• Agile delivery leads

• Anyone facilitating RCA in meetings, retrospectives, or governance

Purpose: Anchor the problem-solving process in observable reality. The trigger is the event or condition that brought the issue to light.

Key Questions:

• What made us stop and take notice?

• What event, symptom, or signal triggered the investigation?

Why This Step Matters: It prevents teams from jumping to assumptions by separating the signal from the cause. It frames the investigation scope and ensures objectivity.

Use Case Example: In a managed service provider (MSP) setting, repeated SLA breaches for resolution time triggered a problem investigation, even though ticket volume remained steady.

Output: A concise, bias-free statement describing the issue as it appeared.

Purpose: Group possible contributing factors across domains to avoid linear thinking. This provides structure to the chaos and avoids premature convergence on a single cause.

The Five Theme Domains:

• Cultural (behaviours, mindsets, psychological safety)

• Structural (roles, ownership, governance)

• Process (steps, policies, time delays)

• Technical (tools, systems, integrations)

• Strategic (goals, direction, external changes)

Why This Step Matters: Theme-based diagnosis helps teams break through surface-level symptoms. It allows for broader insight while keeping the process manageable and practical.

Use Case Example: In a global enterprise, delays in onboarding new employees were mapped across process (paper forms), technical (access systems), and structural (unclear role ownership) themes.

Tips:

• Use visual aids like sticky notes or whiteboards to cluster ideas.

• Don’t rush to solve — explore broadly before narrowing down.

Output: A theme map of influences without assuming a single root cause.

Purpose: Pinpoint the most impactful divergence between original intent and actual behaviour. This is the defining moment of misalignment.

Key Lenses to Use:

• Purpose vs Output

• Role vs Responsibility

• Cadence vs Relevance

• Insight vs Action

Why This Step Matters: It helps focus on what has really gone wrong — not just what failed. This is where strategic and operational disconnects become visible and actionable.

Use Case Example: A monthly report is being produced because it always has been, not because anyone reads or uses it. The alignment breakpoint is “activity without purpose.”

Tips:

• Ask: “If this process was starting today, would we do it this way?”

• Look for signs of drift — when practices continue without clear rationale.

Output: 1–2 clear Breakpoints that reflect the root misalignment.

Purpose: Define the consequences of inaction in order to support prioritisation, escalation, or risk acceptance. It creates momentum for resolution.

Why This Step Matters: Problems are often ignored until their cost is clear. This step frames urgency, creates a compelling narrative, and builds support for resolution.

Types of Consequences:

• Performance impact

• Financial cost

• Stakeholder trust erosion

• Compliance or reputational risk

Use Case Example: If a reporting error continues unchecked, it could lead to incorrect billing and client loss. By showing this cost of inaction, the Case for Action secures prioritisation.

Tips:

• Don’t inflate risk — be credible and clear

• Use direct stakeholder language: “Why this matters to you”

Output: A consequence statement that can be used for stakeholder communication.

Purpose: Provide 2–3 practical options for resolution, workaround, or mitigation—framed as recommendations, not commitments. It ensures clarity at the point of handoff.

Why This Step Matters: Problem Managers don’t own the fix — but they must guide it. This step empowers a clean transition from analysis to action.

Guidelines:

• Keep options actionable and scoped

• Identify likely owner, effort, and impact

• Don’t prescribe—present

Use Case Example: A performance issue with slow reporting was solved by:

1. Migrating to Power BI (high effort, high impact)

2. Reducing report frequency (low effort, medium impact)

3. Training users to interpret raw data (medium effort, low impact)

Tips:

• Include a “do nothing” option if appropriate

• Flag when options are mitigations, not fixes

Output: Handover-ready execution summary for the accountable stakeholder.

TRACE balances speed with structure. It empowers Problem Managers and operational leaders to define, align, and hand off the right insight—without taking on execution responsibility. It’s perfect for environments where:

• Problems are systemic or recurring

• Issues cross teams, contracts, or value streams

• There’s a need for diagnosis and stakeholder buy-in, not just logs

• Ownership of resolution lies elsewhere

By elevating problem-solving to a method that respects context, scale, and clarity, TRACE becomes a gateway into SPARA’s deeper performance frameworks.