Current reality tree (theory of constraints)

One of the thinking processes in the theory of constraints, a current reality tree (CRT) is a tool to analyze many systems or organizational problems at once.

By identifying root causes common to most or all of the problems, a CRT can greatly aid focused improvement of the system.

The benefit of building a CRT is that it identifies the connections or dependencies between perceived symptoms (effects) and root causes (core problems or conflicts) explicitly.

Operationally working backwards from the apparent undesirable effects or symptoms to uncover or discover the underlying core cause.

To take a somewhat frivolous example, a car owner may have the following UDEs: The CRT depicts a chain of cause-and-effect reasoning (if, and, then) in graphical form, where ellipses or circles represent an "and".