Ask Five Whys Without Blame
Run a Five Whys chain that traces process causality instead of assigning personal blame.
Five Whys is not a courtroom cross-examination. It is a way to peel symptoms down to redesignable causes. Start with an observable failure Write the problem in plain, evidence-based language. Avoid motive words like careless, lazy, or ignored. "The email used Sunday's CRM snapshot" gives you a system to inspect. "RevOps was careless" gives you a person to defend. Make each why follow the previous answer The chain breaks when a team jumps sideways to a favorite theory. Keep the next why attached to the last factual condition. If the answer is "the automation fired before refresh," the next why…
Sign up free — one personalized lesson every day, matched to your role and goals.
Already have an account? Sign in