What is a tornado diagram?

Tornado diagram — a visual tool for sensitivity analysis of a project or model to various risk factors. It shows how changes in each parameter affect the final result, ranking the factors by their impact — from the most significant to the less significant, creating a "tornado" appearance.

It is most commonly used in risk management and decision-making to quickly identify key variables that require special attention. The horizontal bars on the diagram represent the range of influence of each factor, and the length of the bar reflects the degree of impact.

Example of application: when assessing a project budget, one can see which risks (e.g., supply delays, changes in material costs) have the most significant impact on the final cost.