How can you present root cause analysis results to senior management? (2024)

Highlight the Summary of the Incident Impact of the Incident (outage timelines/no:of users effected)What immediate action taken to arrest the Incident.Highlight the exact cause which resulted in landing the Incident.What are the next actions we are going to take with timelines, so we are not going to have same kind of incident again.

All presentations to senior management, requires a high level of professionalism . Ensure that you have a concise and clear presentation with an Executive Summary that tells the whole story. No matter, your best intentions, Senior Executives are very busy and time is currency. Make sure, you put your best-foot forward by thoroughly researching the subject, being confident and communicating clearly through your slide deck, verbal and non verbal communication.Ensure your presentation, takes a structured approach and always ask them, what style they prefer. That is, do you want me to run through the presentation before questions or ask afterwards. Pause in between, to make sure that everyone in the room feels heard.

Depending on the knowledge level of my audience, I would start by learning who is the senior management. Learn a little more about their background and use a vocabulary that they would understand and are familiar with. As previously stated, senior management might not be very technical and using simple sentences that get straight to the point will better help them get a broader picture in regards to the incident.The senior management cares about the following:-What happened-Whom is involved-Where did it it happen-When did it happen-How did it it happen-Why did it happenBy narrowing down information as well as trying to answer the above questions, we will better align to their knowledge, goals and expectations.

Executive Summary:Start with a concise executive summary that highlights the main findings, the impact of the incident, and the significance of the root cause analysis.Context Setting:Provide a brief overview of the incident, its timeline, and any relevant context. Help senior management understand the nature and severity of the incident.

Perhaps the simplest method is an Ishakawa/Fishbone diagram. The bones of the fish illustrate root and supporting causes of a problem. These can be color coded to show the importance of each cause and key underlying supprting causes. The color coding can also then display relative importance and priorites amongst them to help inform work efforts. While the presentation is simple and easy to grasp, the ability to identify root and supporting causes and their relationships may require more tools and capabilities such as data analytics, depending on the problem's complexities. These tools and the insights they developed should be part of the presentation to help build confidence in the fishbone diagram.

Key Findings:Present the key findings of the root cause analysis. Focus on the primary causes and contributing factors that led to the incident. Use clear and straightforward language to convey complex technical information.Visual Aids:Utilize charts, graphs, and diagrams to visually represent the root cause analysis results. Visual aids can help senior management grasp complex concepts quickly. For example, a flowchart illustrating the sequence of events or a fishbone diagram depicting contributing factors can be effective.

When explaining root cause analysis to senior management, it's important to keep it simple and focused on what matters most to them. Executives like straightforward insights that help them make big decisions. So, start with a quick summary of what you found and why it's important for the company's goals. Then, explain the main reasons behind the issues you uncovered in a clear and easy-to-understand way, without getting too technical. Offer practical suggestions for fixing these problems, keeping in mind what the company wants to achieve. Make sure to mention any potential problems that could come up and how to deal with them. Finally, wrap it up by emphasizing the importance of taking action to keep the company on track.

Use the standardized 7 step IR process to demonstrate progress and avoid miscommunication.Follow the order -1. Punch line: Just facts. How much screwed are we ? Is the Adversary or Malware active in environment ?2. Current status: How this affects current business ? What is the attacker or malware going after ? How much data has been lost ?3. Next steps: What plans we have actioned in the last couple of hours ? What is the IR teams top priorities right now ? How soon will we be able to gain control back of the situation ?4. Explanation: Current understanding of how the incident happened from gathered incomplete RCA notes. Explain other statements made in the earlier points.

Begin by succinctly outlining the incident's context and impact (Situation). Define the goals and methodologies of your RCA (Task). Present your findings, including root causes and evidence (Action). Conclude with key insights, actionable recommendations, and preventive measures (Result). This methodical approach not only enhances comprehension but also keeps your audience engaged and focused on actionable outcomes, making it easier for them to support and implement improvements.

Impact Analysis:Clearly outline the impact of the incident on the organization, including financial, operational, and reputational consequences. This information will help senior management understand the gravity of the situation and the urgency of taking corrective actions.Recommendations:Provide actionable and realistic recommendations for addressing the root causes. Clearly articulate the steps that need to be taken to prevent similar incidents in the future. If applicable, discuss short-term and long-term mitigation strategies.

When presenting root cause analysis to senior management, focus on clear and concise communication. Use a structured approach, outlining the problem, investigating methods, key findings, and proposed solutions. Emphasize the impact on organizational goals and present data-driven evidence to support your analysis. Keep it brief, highlighting actionable insights and potential benefits of implementing recommended changes.

Opt for charts, graphs, and timelines that directly support your key points and illustrate the incident's impact and response clearly. Avoid cluttering your slides with excessive or intricate visuals that could confuse or overwhelm. Ensure that each visual aid is relevant, straightforward, and complements your spoken narrative, reinforcing the message without distraction. This balance between visual and verbal communication ensures your audience grasps and retains the essential details of your analysis.

Be Confident. The worst has already happened. Now all you can do is endure getting yelled at by senior management for ruining metrics.

Cost-Benefit Analysis:If possible, include a cost-benefit analysis of the proposed solutions. This can help senior management make informed decisions regarding resource allocation and prioritization of corrective measures.

Post Incident Review meetings need to be scheduled in order to fix weaknesses or make systematic changes or improve detection rules to prevent similar incident from occurring again.

#️⃣2️⃣3️⃣🙃 Host a Question and Answer session, plus tell a story, and add in some humor:Q: How did the hacker get in?A: Someone left their Windows open.Q: How did hacker get away?A: Used the backdoor and ransomware.Q: Why couldn't the witness identify the hacker?A: Used Spyware and Subnet Mask to hide identity.Q: How did the hacker get caught?A: CSIRT used a Bug, to lure in Scattered Spider, and they got stuck in the Web.A2: The CSIRT used Python to Byte...well, let's just say that a little bird (a.k.a. Parrot) did some squawking, but now they are done talking.Q: What happened to the hacker after getting caught?A: Police made them WannaCry by clearing their cookies.A2: FBI made their Heartbleed by deleting their cache.

You might use proprietary tools, you might use open source methods (5-Whys, etc). But remember, unless ALL the members of your senior team are also investigators or safety / quality professionals, they probably have absolutely no idea what a causation factor, causal relationship, root cause, etc actually is. So find a way to translate. You don't have to list cause labels. Summarise and don't waffle.

The Tap Root methodology takes you all the way to what material and supporting documents you should take to Management. It also shows you how to structure the final report.