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Selected:ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method)Alignment MappingMcKinsey 7S
| Criterion |  Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |  Business Strategy McKinsey 7S |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | ARID examines how well developers can work with a technical design. It focuses on a part of the system that can still be revised, between the architecture overview and the detailed specification. | SAAM helps teams judge an architecture’s suitability for selected tasks and changes. It is particularly useful for examining modifiability and comparing architecture alternatives with clear reasoning. | When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable. | McKinsey 7S checks whether Strategy, Structure, Systems, Shared Values, Skills, Style, and Staff fit together. Organizational misalignments become visible across multiple levers as a result. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope | 1-2 h | 2-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting | 4-12 | 3-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions | Domain functions mapped to components and connections, Quality attributes and evaluation criteria, Typical tasks and their effects on the architecture, Reasoned evaluation or comparison of alternatives | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions | 7S Assessment, Alignment Gaps, Change Actions |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation | OrganizationStrategyAlignmentChange |