The following principles form the basis for statistical thinking:

* All work occurs in a system of interconnected processes,

* Variation exists in all processes,
* Understanding and reducing variation are keys to success.

There are five sources of variation:

• Materials – Materials are the physical elements in the process. For example
materials can be a source of variation when for the data center there are two
suppliers of servers or equipment.
• Methods – Methods are the techniques used to accomplish a task. A method can
become a source of variation when one worker accidentally applies the previous
procedure to doing an operational task.
• Measures – Measures are the techniques to measure. For example if one
measurement of time spent is based on duration, and another measurement of time
spent is based on effort. Then there is variation when the measures are compared.
• Mother Nature – Mother Nature is the environmental factors that create a
variation in the process. For example a mudslide caused the building to close.
• People – People are a source of variation when they perform a task differently
than they normally would, or differently from how everyone else is performing the
task. For example, an experience colleague is worried about family issues, so he
may not be as diligent and detailed oriented as normal.

Common-cause variation
Common-cause variation is characterised by:

 Phenomena constantly active within the system;

 Variation predictable probabilistically;
 Irregular variation within an historical experience base; and
 Lack of significance in individual high or low values.

The outcomes of a perfectly balanced roulette wheel are a good example of common-
cause variation. Common-cause variation is the noise within the system.
Special-cause variation
Special-cause variation is characterised by:

 New, unanticipated, emergent or previously neglected phenomena within the

system;
 Variation inherently unpredictable, even probabilistically;
 Variation outside the historical experience base; and
 Evidence of some inherent change in the system or our knowledge of it.

Special-cause variation always arrives as a surprise. It is the signal within a system.

Examples
Common causes

 Inappropriate procedures
 Poor design
 Poor maintenance of machines
 Lack of clearly defined standing operating procedures
 Poor working conditions, e.g. lighting, noise, dirt, temperature, ventilation
 Substandard raw materials
 Assurement error
 Quality control error
 Vibration in industrial processes
 Ambient temperature and humidity
 Normal wear and tear
 Variability in settings
 Computer response time

Special causes

 Poor adjustment of equipment

 Operator falls asleep
 Faulty controllers
 Machine malfunction
 Computer crashes
 Poor batch of raw material
 Power surges
 High healthcare demand from elderly people
 Abnormal traffic (click-fraud) on web ads
 Extremely long lab testing turnover time due to switching to a new computer
system
 Operator absent