five-whys-root-cause

Name: five-whys-root-cause
Availability: InStock
Author: Anduril

Drive five-level why investigations to identify systemic root causes and corrective actions.

7|2|Updated Mar 5, 2026

Search Tags:#debugging #root cause analysis #five whys #incident review #process gap #recurrence prevention #systemic thinking

Ready to run

npx skills add https://github.com/AndurilCode/craftwork --skill five-whys-root-cause

💬 Prompt for ChatGPT / Claude Chat▼

Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: five-whys-root-cause
Source: https://github.com/AndurilCode/craftwork/tree/main/skills/five-whys-root-cause
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/AndurilCode/craftwork --skill five-whys-root-cause

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve?

It helps you stop recurring incidents by identifying the systemic root cause behind a failure instead of settling for symptom-level explanations.

Core Features & Use Cases

5 Whys root-cause chains: Guides iterative questioning from a specific problem statement to an actionable, systemic cause with “Why 1” through “Why 5”.
Root-cause categorization: Classifies causes into common buckets like process gaps, knowledge gaps, tooling gaps, incentive misalignment, and missing feedback loops.
Multi-branch analysis: Supports multiple causes when a single “Why” has more than one valid answer, producing separate fix paths.
Corrective actions & prevention: Produces corrective actions with verification and timelines, plus recurrence prevention through monitoring and review.

Quick Start

Use the five-whys-root-cause skill to run a structured post-mortem on the recurring failure described in your incident notes.

Frequently Asked Questions about five-whys-root-cause

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema

How do I find the systemic root cause of a recurring incident instead of just fixing symptoms?▼

To find the systemic root cause of a recurring incident, you drive a structured five-level "why" investigation from observed symptoms to actionable causes. This method rejects superficial explanations and outputs categorized causes with recurrence risk.

When should I use five whys root cause analysis for debugging?▼

Use five whys root cause analysis for debugging when your fixes do not hold, during incident reviews and post-mortems, or when analyzing workaround-like proposals where the underlying cause of a process gap is unclear.

How do I handle incident post-mortems when a single why has multiple valid root causes?▼

For incident post-mortems with multiple valid root causes, the analysis supports multi-branch investigation. It produces separate fix paths for each valid answer to ensure all systemic issues are addressed with targeted corrective actions.

What is the best way to prevent process gaps from causing repeated bugs after an incident review?▼

The best way to prevent process gaps from causing repeated bugs is to categorize root causes into buckets like knowledge gaps or missing feedback loops, then apply recommended corrective actions with verification, timelines, and recurrence prevention monitoring.

Can root cause analysis categorize systemic failures beyond just pointing out the broken process?▼

Yes, root cause analysis categorizes systemic failures into common buckets like process gaps, knowledge gaps, tooling gaps, incentive misalignment, and missing feedback loops to provide targeted corrective actions and verification steps.

What are the limitations of using five whys for incident review when fixes do not hold?▼

A limitation of using five whys for incident review is that linear questioning might miss parallel failures, which is why this approach supports multi-branch analysis to map separate fix paths when a single why has multiple valid answers.