Most lean folks use 5 Whys daily to problem solve, but relatively few are familiar with a clever problem-solving device developed 30 years ago by Deming Prize winner Ryuji Fukuda, called the why-not diagram. 

Because objection is a natural human response to new ideas, Fukuda created the why-not diagram to afford every stakeholder an opportunity to put his concerns out on the table: all the reasons why an idea won’t work. Fukuda recommends that why-not reasons be recorded in silence so that no one is unduly influenced by anyone else. We use a separate Post-it note for each separate idea. In my own experience, this technique generates a lot of Post-it notes. It seems to be easier for participants to fire off thoughts about why something won’t work than how it will work.  

Some time ago, my previous company was having an especially tough sales quarter, and the level of frustration was high throughout the organization. I posed this why-not question to my field sales force: Why not double sales?

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