View methods side by side.
Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.
Selected:Blameless PostmortemArchitecture Decision RecordFishbone DiagramFailure Mode and Effects Analysis
| Criterion | ![]() DevOps Blameless Postmortem | ![]() Architecture Architecture Decision Record | ![]() Operations Fishbone Diagram | ![]() Operations Failure Mode and Effects Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | After an incident with damage or a near miss, the method creates a sober field for learning without assigning blame. It directs attention to the course of events, conditions, and effective countermeasures. | 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 a problem has several possible contributing factors, the method sorts causes by cause areas. It prevents an initial hunch from blocking the view of other plausible drivers. | 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 | Medium | Low | Low | High |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 15-45 min | 30-60 min | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-12 | 1-3 | 2-8 | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Postmortem Doc, Action Items, Timeline | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Fishbone Diagram, Cause Categories, Investigation Backlog | FMEA Table, Risk Priority, Mitigation Actions |
Tagsno overlap | Site Reliability EngineeringIncidentLearningReliability | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | Root causeQualityOperations | RiskQualityOperationsRoot cause |



