kaizen:plan-do-check-act

The PDCA cycle is an iterative experiment loop using Plan, Do, Check, and Act phases to achieve measurable process improvement through evidence-based decisions and small-scope changes.

To run a PDCA experiment for CI build time, define an improvement goal, execute small-scope changes, check results against baseline metrics, and standardize the winning changes or plan a refined cycle.

Use a PDCA loop for process improvement when engineering or operational scenarios require root-cause analysis, measurable outcomes, and iterative experimentation to reduce guesswork across multiple cycles.

Yes, PDCA supports root cause analysis in software engineering by recording deviations and observations during experiments, then evaluating them against measurable success criteria to drive evidence-based decisions.

The Act phase handles failed experiments by evaluating results against success criteria, turning failures into learning, and selecting a refined next-cycle plan instead of standardizing the changes.