Table 1 : First example of the five whys
The company ’ s electric bill was paid late . Why # 1 The check arrived at the electric company after the due date . Why # 2
The check sat in the mail room for three days before being delivered to the post office .
The mail clerk had a family emergency . She missed work for three days , and no one picked up her duties .
Why # 3
Why # 4
No other person in the organization was cross-trained to perform her tasks . Why # 5
The organization did not prioritize cross-training for all roles within the company .
Root cause
While the five whys are useful in root-cause analysis , they can be readily utilized to augment EDD analysis for a strong conclusion . Returning to the dog groomer example , Table 2 shows another example of the five whys in action .
Table 2 : Second example of the five whys
The reviewed activity is not commensurate for the business . Why # 1
The business is a one-location dog groomer that is not expected to make wire transfers to France .
From research conducted throughout the internet , reviewing onboarding documentation and speaking with the account officer , the counterparties to the wire transfers are not in the dog grooming industry or related to the owner of the company . The transactions do not appear to be business-related .
The counterparties are individuals , not businesses , so they are likely not vendors . The individuals do not share a surname or any other ties that the bank could uncover .
The bank questioned the owner of the dog grooming salon . She would not provide the relationship of the counterparties to the business , nor would she provide the purpose of the wire transfers .
There is likely not a reasonable explanation or business purpose for the transactions .
Why # 2
Why # 3
Why # 4
Why # 5
Root cause
With the information gained from using the five whys method , an investigator can draft a well-founded and logical summary for the reasons they formed a conclusion .
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