The document discusses the 5 Why analysis technique for finding the root cause of problems. 5 Why involves asking "why" five times to uncover the underlying cause, though it may require more or fewer questions. Guidelines include using a cross-functional team, avoiding bias, and ensuring the answers don't include words like "because" before moving to the next why. Corrective actions should address the root cause to prevent future issues rather than just treating symptoms. Examples and criticisms of 5 Why are also provided.

1. 5 Why Analysis
By, Amit Shrivastava
Hyderabad, India.

2. Why 5 Why ?
To find the…….

3. When to Use 5 Why
 Complaint from the Client
 Observation from the Client
 Recurring Errors
 First Time Quality
 Internal Quality Issue
 Quality System Audit Non-conformances

4. 5 Why Analysis
 A cross-functional team should be used to
solve the problem
 Don’t jump to conclusions or assume the
answer is obvious
 Don’t be bias
 Be absolutely objective

5. General Guidelines
 Ask “Why” until the root cause is
uncovered
 It may be more or less than 5 Whys
 If words like “because” or “due to” are
coming in the answer, move to the next
Why
 If you don’t ask enough “Whys”, you may
end up with a “symptom” and not “root
cause”

6. General Guidelines (Contd…..)
 Corrective action for a symptom is not
effective in eliminating the cause
– Corrective action for a symptom is usually
“detective”
– Corrective action for a root cause can be
“preventive”

7. Example:

8. Criticism of 5 Why:
 We generally stop at symptoms rather
than going on to lower-level root causes
 Lack of support to help the investigator
ask the right "why" questions
 Getting right answer for the "why"
 Different people using 5 Whys, come up
with different causes for the same problem

9. Criticism of 5 Why (Contd…..)
 Tendency to isolate a single root cause,
whereas each question could elicit many
different root causes

10. Solution:
Verify the answer to the current "why"
question before proceeding to the next.