IDEA: Analyze why an idea failed. Remember: An idea can fail only after multiple attempts.
When an approach or idea in your company has been tried and has been considered a failure, ask why? What caused it to fail? If necessary, get professional or consulting help from outside to investigate went wrong. What could have been changed or modified to make it more likely to succeed? Ask the participants how it was flawed and what would cause the idea to succeed if it were changed. Never walk away from an idea if it has not been modified and tried multiple times.