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Steve's avatar

Good ol’ 5 whys, rooted in Lean Six Sigma. I must’ve sat through dozens of talks on the 5 whys over my career(s). Classic example video: https://youtu.be/N7cR2gArCFE

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Darrell's avatar

Wasn’t it around before Six Sigma?

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Steve's avatar

Perhaps not rooted in, I just know every lean six sigma type training I’ve sat through included the five whys.

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Darrell's avatar

You are correct when it comes to its use in Six Sigma. I just looked it up and it ties right in to Bill’s Toyota example :

Sakichi Toyoda, the Japanese industrialist, inventor, and founder of Toyota Industries, developed the 5 Whys technique in the 1930s. It became popular in the 1970s, and Toyota still uses it to solve problems today. Toyota has a "go and see" philosophy.

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