This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by The Cranky PM
From Advanced Remote Retrospective Psychology: When Basic Techniques Fail
Your remote team keeps hitting the same problems because you’re treating symptoms instead of root causes. The 5 Whys technique, adapted for distributed work, helps you dig deeper into remote-specific dysfunction.
The Remote Work 5 Whys in Action:
Problem: “The deployment failed”
Why #1: “The tests didn’t catch the bug”
Why #2: “We don’t have timezone coverage for integration testing”
Why #3: “We deprioritized async testing processes for feature work”
Why #4: “Leadership measures feature delivery, not distributed quality processes”
Why #5: “Our success metrics ignore the unique challenges of remote work”
Root Cause Revealed: The real problem isn’t the failed deployment – it’s that your organization’s measurement systems aren’t designed for distributed work realities.
Why This Works for Remote Teams: Standard root cause analysis often stops at “communication problems” or “process failures.” The remote-adapted 5 Whys forces you to examine how distributed work constraints create systemic issues.
Implementation in Retrospectives: When your team identifies a recurring problem, spend 10 minutes walking through the 5 Whys. Don’t stop at comfortable answers like “we need better communication.” Keep pushing until you hit organizational or systemic constraints.
Warning: This technique surfaces uncomfortable truths about remote work that your team might not be ready to address. Use it selectively with problems that keep recurring despite multiple “fixes.”
→ Learn advanced techniques: Advanced Remote Retrospective Psychology: When Basic Techniques Fail
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by The Cranky PM