5 why therefore

The key part in this step is to start with right question. There are two types of approach which can be adapted in this step by the team such as single lane 5 Whys or multiple lane 5 Whys. After identifying true root cause of the problem, the team need to discuss and agree the practical as well most effective counter measures that fits for their case to prevent the recurrence of the problem.

Continue monitoring the counter-measures until the problem statement is eliminated effectively or completely. Sometimes assumptions that we take in each step might not be the real underlying cause of the problem there may be more causes to the problem. The success of this method is completely depending to degree upon the skill with which the method is applied.

It also should not be your only tool in your toolbox in finding the root cause, but should be combined with other approaches. Nevertheless, try to get some variation in your questions or risk sounding like a nosy kid. However, I also use this frequently in the other direction to find the root problem to a given solution.

When I talk with managers on the shop floor, I often ask them what they consider to be their biggest problem they want to address. Kanban is a solution, not a problem.

I am a firm believer in starting any lean activities from a problem. Just copying the solution of someone else will fail. And kanban is a solution that may or may not fit the problem at hand. Hence, I often find myself going 5 Why in the other direction, for example like this.

You get my point? Sometimes you first have to find out what is really the problem before solving it. Let me also quickly introduce a method that sounds similar but is for a different purpose.

The 5W or 6W and the 1H stand for. The sequence is, by the way, not standardized. Nor is the exact list of questions. There are lots of possibilities here, too, to fit this method to your needs Thanks to Koen van Dam for the suggestions. This is not so much a method for root-cause analysis but rather a structured set of questions to get the overview of a situation.

This set of questions covers the breadth of a topic rather than the depth. As such it is also useful, but for a different purpose.

It is also not suitable as the main structure for a full-blown formal workshop. However, as an underlying approach to dig deeper for the actual root cause, it is quite useful. As with most lean tools, it is not so much the tool as the skill of the user that determines the success. Now go out, keep asking why, and organize your industry! A good article that helps to clear up some of the Myths about 5 Why.

The key to starting is to ensure the problem is clearly defined. I have seen so many sessions fail as the problem was not clearly defined at the start. There is only ever 1 root cause, but there can be many contributing factors. Hi Mar, depending on how you define the problem there could be more than one cause. These could differ in significance, or both be important.

It is nice to have only one root cause, but I believe that is not always possible. I find it helpful to complete the fishbone diagram with the team and down select possible problems.

You know the car wont start, but as stated there are several possible reasons, so a little investigation goes a long way to figuring out the first why. Good points all around. Because the developers were still working on the new features. Why were the developers still working on the new features? Why was the new developer unfamiliar with all procedures?

He was not trained properly. Why was he not trained properly? How to Get Started with 5 Whys The 5 Whys technique may help you achieve continuous improvement at any level of your organization. Form a team Try to assemble a team of people from different departments. By forming a cross-functional team, you are going to receive unique points of view.

Define the problem Discuss the problem with the team and make a clear problem statement. Ask Why Empower one person to facilitate the whole process.

Take Action After the team detects the root cause s , it is time to take corrective actions. Try Kanbanize for free In Summary The 5 Whys technique is a simple and effective tool for solving problems. The 5 Whys method helps your team focus on finding the root cause of any problem.

It encourages each team member to share ideas for continuous improvement, rather than blaming others. It gives your team the confidence that it can eliminate any problem and prevent the process from recurring failures. Step 7. Go to Article. Step 8. Start your free trial now and get access to all Kanbanize features. Unfortunately, some organizations overlook this basic principle. They think problem-solving is a combination of tools, techniques and terminology.

They believe a problem-solving method provides structure to the incident — like a Fishbone or 5Whys. In contrast, a Cause Map diagram reveals the structure that is already within the incident. There is no secret sauce or technique for explaining a problem; there are basic principles.

A why question is an easy way to identify a cause-and-effect relationship. And it is cause and effect that explains how things happen. All problem solving happens within the domain of cause and effect. Why a specific solution was effective or how your operations work is all explained by cause and effect. The ability to ask and answer why questions is essential for understanding both the things that go badly and the things that go well.

Cause and effect is easy to understand and can be applied to any type of issue. Regardless of how complex the issue is, the analysis can begin with just one or two why questions, then expand as needed. A 5-Why Cause Map diagram is just an initial phase of a more thorough investigation. The conventional approach for documenting 5Whys is sentences written down the page.

Writing a sentence, then asking a why question and writing down another sentence can take too many words. Cause-and-effect relationships are much easier to show as a diagram. We suggest building a 3- to 5-Why using our Cause Mapping method.