How do you perform a basic root cause analysis for chronic stockout events?

• A. Collect data on demand and lead times, assess supplier performance, review internal processes, identify root cause, implement corrective actions, and verify outcomes.
• B. Identify marketing trends and seasonal demand.
• C. Review only supplier performance without internal process checks.
• D. Blame the warehouse team without data.

Answer: (C)

Root cause analysis for chronic stockouts should be a data-driven, end-to-end investigation of demand, supply, and internal processes to uncover the underlying causes. The best approach collects data on demand patterns and lead times to understand variability, evaluates supplier performance to see if external delays are at fault, reviews internal procurement and inventory processes to find gaps in planning or replenishment, identifies the root causes, implements corrective actions, and then verifies outcomes to confirm that the fixes worked and stockouts are reduced. Other options fall short because marketing trends and seasonal demand do not reveal the internal causes of stockouts; focusing only on supplier performance ignores process gaps elsewhere; blaming the warehouse without data is not evidence-based and won't address the real drivers.