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| Criterion | ![]() Architecture Architecture Decision Record | ![]() Decision Making Argument Mapping | ![]() Innovation Lotus Blossom | ![]() Architecture Request for Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable. | When statements, evidence, and counterarguments get mixed up, a debate quickly loses its structure. Argument Mapping breaks a thesis down into its reasoning and makes visible what it really rests on. | When a central question feels too large, the method breaks it into neighboring topic fields with their own depth of ideation. It holds structure and openness at the same time, so adjacent perspectives don't get lost. This grows an idea space out of a core problem. | An RFC clarifies architecture context, options, and consequences. It structures technical context, alternatives, tradeoffs, open questions, and review feedback, and captures the result as an RFC document, reviewer comments, and a decision rationale. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 15-45 min | 1-3 h | 45-90 min | 1-3 Wochen vom Draft bis zur Entscheidung |
Participantsdifferent | 1-3 | 1-8 | 3-10 | 3-20 Reviewer |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Async |
Outputdifferent | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Argument Map, Evidence Gaps, Decision Rationale | Lotus Diagram, Idea Themes, Shortlist | RFC document, Reviewer comments, Decision rationale, Follow-up ADR or tickets |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | SensemakingDecisionRationale | BrainstormingIdeationCreativityDivergenceWorkshop | ArchitectureDecisionAsyncGovernance |



