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| Criterion | ![]() Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) | ![]() Innovation TRIZ | ![]() Operations 5 Whys | ![]() Operations A3 Problem Solving |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | For technical contradictions or trade-offs, the method looks for solutions that resolve opposing requirements at the same time. It translates limits into an explicit picture of conflict that becomes workable. This produces not just compromises but more elegant principles. | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. | For a complex deviation with several people involved, the method bundles problem, analysis, and decision onto one page. It creates a shared working space where causes, countermeasures, and follow-up fit together. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional | 1-4 h | 15-30 min | 45-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation | 2-8 | 2-6 | 2-5 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions | Contradiction Statement, Inventive Principles, Solution Concepts | Root cause notes, Countermeasures | A3 Report, Action Plan, Root Cause Analysis |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks | InnovationProblem solvingContradictionsCreativity | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving | LeanProblem solvingCoachingOperations |



