An important reason why Lean projects seek to create a blame free environment is that ascribing fault gets in the way of learning. We recently ordered a basket of fruit from a florist to be sent to a relative. The fruit was not exactly rotten, but it was well past the point when any reasonable grocery store would have pulled it from the aisles.

Of course we registered our dissatisfaction with the florist. They did the right thing and delivered a beautiful bouquet of flowers at no charge, but not before telling us that the recipient must have let the basket sit for several days before inspecting the fruit. In other words it wasn’t their fault.

Their problem isn’t that this makes them look foolish, though it does. Their problem is that by not owning the cause of the problem, somehow they allow spoiled fruit to be delivered to customers, they very likely excuse themselves from the responsibility of learning how to prevent this problem from happening again. And this learning is far more valuable than the cost of a bouquet of flowers.