Free training deck
Updated · About 40 minutes
5 Whys training presentation
The 5 Whys is a root cause method: you ask why a problem happened, then why that answer was true, until you reach a cause you can remove. This free deck teaches it to a team in about 40 minutes. Its 20 editable slides cover where the method comes from, Taiichi Ohno's machine example, how a session runs, good and weak answers, checking each link in the chain, when to stop, branching, where it falls short and where it sits inside root cause analysis, A3 and 8D. They include an illustrative worked example, a 15-minute exercise on a real problem and four check questions with answers. Every slide has speaker notes. For the wider method, with the fishbone, see the root cause analysis deck.
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
The title 5 Whys, ask why until you find a cause you can fix, on a navy background with the LeanSuite logo.A look inside
What is in the 20 slides
For operators, team leaders, supervisors, maintenance, quality and continuous improvement staff. Widescreen, in plain language, with speaker notes on every slide.
Slide 5: Ohno's classic example: a machine that stopped 
Slide 11: Example: a hydraulic press that keeps overheating 
Slide 17: Try it: a 5 Whys on a real problem
- 15 Whys: ask why until you find a cause you can fixCover
- 2AgendaWhat the 5 Whys is and where it comes from · Ohno's example and how a session runs · Good answers, checking each link and when to stop · A worked example, branching and the limits · Countermeasures, mistakes, an exercise and check questions
- 3What the 5 Whys isAsk why a problem happened, then why that answer was true, until you reach a cause you can remove.
- 4Where it comes fromSakichi Toyoda developed it, and it became part of how Toyota teaches problem solving.
- 5Ohno's classic example: a machine that stoppedFrom Toyota Production System, 1988. Each answer becomes the next question.
- 6Before the first why: write the problem downA vague problem gives a vague chain.
- 7How a 5 Whys session runsFive steps, on one sheet, with the team that knows the process.
- 8Good whys and weak whysThe chain is only as good as each answer.
- 9Check each link, forwards and backwardsRead the chain from the last why back to the first. Each step should work with 'therefore'.
- 10When to stop askingStop when the cause is something you can fix and you have proved it.
- 11Example: a hydraulic press that keeps overheatingIllustrative plant and numbers. Your own chain will differ.
- 12More than one cause: branchingSometimes a why has two true answers. Follow both.
- 13Where the 5 Whys falls shortIt is a good tool for a simple problem and a weak one for a complex problem.
- 14Where it sits in bigger methodsThe 5 Whys is a step inside other methods. It does not replace them.
- 15From root cause to countermeasureA countermeasure answers the cause you found, not the symptom.
- 16Common mistakesStarting from a vague problem or from a guess about the cause.
- 17Try it: a 5 Whys on a real problemA 15-minute team activity
- 18Check your understanding4 check questions
- 19AnswersThe answers, to discuss
- 20Key points and next stepsNext: run one 5 Whys on a problem that came back in your area this month.
The 40-minute session, slide by slide
- Slides, about: 25 minutes
- Activity (slide 17): 15 minutes
Present · 16 slides
- 15 Whys: ask why until you find a cause you can fix
- 2Agenda
- 3What the 5 Whys is
- 4Where it comes from
- 5Ohno's classic example: a machine that stopped
- 6Before the first why: write the problem down
- 7How a 5 Whys session runs
- 8Good whys and weak whys
- 9Check each link, forwards and backwards
- 10When to stop asking
- 11Example: a hydraulic press that keeps overheating
- 12More than one cause: branching
- 13Where the 5 Whys falls short
- 14Where it sits in bigger methods
- 15From root cause to countermeasure
- 16Common mistakes
Do the activity · 1 slide
- 17Try it: a 5 Whys on a real problem
Check and follow up · 3 slides
- 18Check your understanding
- 19Answers
- 20Key points and next steps
About 25 minutes of slides and 15 minutes of activity. Present: slides 1 to 16 (5 Whys: ask why until you find a cause you can fix; Agenda; What the 5 Whys is; Where it comes from; Ohno's classic example: a machine that stopped; Before the first why: write the problem down; How a 5 Whys session runs; Good whys and weak whys; Check each link, forwards and backwards; When to stop asking; Example: a hydraulic press that keeps overheating; More than one cause: branching; Where the 5 Whys falls short; Where it sits in bigger methods; From root cause to countermeasure; Common mistakes). Do the activity: slide 17 (Try it: a 5 Whys on a real problem). Check and follow up: slides 18 to 20 (Check your understanding; Answers; Key points and next steps).
How to run it
Running the session
- 1
Prepare
Read the speaker notes once and swap the illustrative example for one from your own area if you have it. Print the PDF if people like a handout.
- 2
Present
The slides take about 25 minutes. Every slide has notes, so you can talk from them rather than read the slide.
- 3
Do the activity
Pick a real problem from the last month that came back or cost time. Write it with what, where, when and how much. The activity slide takes the team through it step by step; allow 15 minutes.
- 4
Check and follow up
Ask the check questions before showing the answers, then agree one next step with an owner and a date before people leave.
The check questions
- 1. Why is 'operator error' a sign you stopped too soon?
- It points at a person, not at the process. Ask why the process let the error happen and keep going until you reach something you can fix.
- 2. What do you ask 'why' about at each step?
- About the previous answer, once it is checked, not about the original problem.
- 3. How do you check that a chain is sound?
- Read it backwards with 'therefore' and look for evidence beside each answer: a reading, a photo, a record or the part itself.
- 4. When would you use a fishbone or an 8D instead of one 5 Whys?
- When the problem has several possible causes, the chain keeps branching, or a customer needs a formal report.
Templates and guides to go with it
- 5 Whys templateA problem statement, a why chain that can branch, evidence for every answer, root causes and countermeasures that are checked.
- Root cause analysis templateOne report from problem statement to proof: containment, evidence, analysis, verified causes, actions and the effectiveness check.
- 5W1H templateWho, what, when, where, why and how: a problem statement built from checked facts, and an action plan with nothing left open.
- Topic: Root cause analysis and problem solvingEvery guide we have on the subject, sorted.
Read more
- 5 Whys: Root Cause Analysis Method for Manufacturing
- 5 Whys: When It Works and Its Limitations
- 5 Whys examples: worked chains with the evidence for each why
- Root cause analysis training deck: define and contain the problem, 5 whys and fishbone
- Root cause analysis: which tool, in what order, worked through
- AI Root Cause Analysis in LeanSuite: describe the problem and the RCA Agent drafts the 5 Whys, 5W1H and fishbone
Terms in this deck
After the session
Put it on the wall
Free printable poster on the same subject, so the team sees it every day: a PNG to download now, and print-ready PDFs from Letter to 24 x 36 in.
FAQ
5 Whys training presentation: common questions
A root cause method. You ask why a problem happened, write one checked answer, then ask why about that answer, and repeat until you reach a cause you can remove. The aim is a cause in the process that you can fix, not a person to blame.
Sakichi Toyoda is credited with developing it. Taiichi Ohno described it in Toyota Production System: Beyond Large-Scale Production (English edition, 1988), and it became part of Toyota's problem-solving training.
No. Five is a rule of thumb from Ohno's example. Stop when you reach a cause you can fix and have checked, which can take three whys or seven.
About 40 minutes: roughly 25 minutes of slides, a 15-minute exercise on a real problem and the check questions.
Often not. It follows one chain, so it can miss other causes. For a problem with several possible causes, use a fishbone first, and for a serious customer problem use an 8D. Both are in the free training decks.
Yes. The PowerPoint file is fully editable, including the speaker notes. Many teams replace the hydraulic press example with a recent problem from their own plant.
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