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Selected:Assumption SurfacingLASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews)Kepner-TregoeFailure Mode and Effects Analysis
| Criterion | ![]() Decision Making Assumption Surfacing | ![]() Architecture LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews) | ![]() Operations Kepner-Tregoe | ![]() Operations Failure Mode and Effects Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | LASR helps development teams identify where their software falls short of important quality goals and which improvements to consider. A small group with existing system knowledge can make an initial assessment and investigate open questions in more detail. | For a disturbance that's hard to pin down, the method cleanly separates problem, cause, and decision. It reduces mixing when symptoms allow several interpretations. | For a process, product, or service with noticeable failure risks, the method assesses possible failure modes in advance. It directs attention to combinations of occurrence, effect, and detectability. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | High | High |
Timedifferent | 45-90 min | 3–4 h for initial assessment; preparation and deeper analysis additional | 2-8 h | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 1 or a small team; particularly suitable for 3–4 people | 2-8 | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan | Lean Mission Statement describing the software’s purpose, Prioritized quality goals and evaluation criteria, Risks and estimated gaps against quality goals, More closely examined findings and open checks | Problem Analysis, Decision Analysis, Risk Plan | FMEA Table, Risk Priority, Mitigation Actions |
Tagsno overlap | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery | ArchitectureQualityRiskAssessmentLean | Problem solvingRoot causeDecisionOperations | RiskQualityOperationsRoot cause |



