Maybe we're trying to identify, or dare I say create problems that don't really exist. If its simple enough to describe in three minutes then I'd say it's very close to being common sense. What I see when I watch that video is someone trying to make a simple thing complicated. Do you really need five Why's? I think there are 4 superfluous Why's in that process. Eric Ries has the experience and education to talk about this stuff but at a certain point, after anyone has been out of the trenches long enough, they start to lose touch. This to me seems like an example of someone who once knew what was up now having nothing better to do than over think something as simple as "Ask Why something went wrong" and turn it into "Ask why something went wrong in 5 different ways" even though asking Why just once will suffice. Now, you asked why so many companies fail at identifying and addressing root causes. Well, why don't we apply the 5 Why's and see if we can find out?