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CURIOSITY-AT-WORK5 MIN READ

Run a Five Whys without blame

Run a short Five Whys chain that moves from symptom to changeable work condition.

Customer handoffs from Sales to CS failed three Fridays in a row because the deadline and success criteria were missing. Five Whys: symptom -> condition -> deeper condition -> countermeasure The common trap is turning the second why into a person hunt: "Why did Sales forget again?" That creates defensiveness and usually leads to another reminder instead of a better handoff condition. Problem statement Write the miss in observable terms: Three Friday handoffs lacked deadline and success criteria. A neutral statement gives the chain a stable starting point and keeps the team out of character judgments. Why 1 Why were…

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