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| Criterion |  Decision Making Assumption Surfacing |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  Product Strategy ICE Scoring |  Decision Making Risk Matrix |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it. | ATAM helps teams weigh architecture decisions when quality goals compete. The team considers business goals, stakeholder expectations, and technical decisions together. The evaluation shows which risks need further investigation. | When ideas need sorting quickly, it condenses impact, confidence, and effort into one compact score. It connects customer value, product logic, and decision priorities. The result is captured as an ICE table and top-ideas list. | When a project faces many possible disruptions, it quickly becomes unclear which risks deserve attention first. It separates options, evaluation criteria, and open risks. The result is captured as a Risk Matrix and a Top Risk List. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | High | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 45-90 min | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 30-60 min | 30-60 min |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | 2-8 | 3-10 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations | ICE Table, Top Idea List | Risk Matrix, Top Risk List |
Tagsno overlap | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | PrioritizationScoringGrowthDecision | RiskDecisionPrioritizationAssessment |