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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Systems Thinking Leverage Points |  Business Strategy McKinsey 7S |  Systems Thinking Future Reality Tree |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When content only makes sense internally and users can't find the structure again, card sorting exposes their mental order. Terms, groups, and naming are then aligned with the target group's expectations. | Leverage Points show exactly where interventions in a system produce a disproportionate effect. It draws relationships, patterns, and feedback loops. The result is captured as a leverage map and action strategy. | 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. | A Future Reality Tree shows how desired actions are meant to lead to a better system state. The method checks whether a path of change holds together logically before time flows into implementation. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | High | Medium | High |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | Half day | 2-4 h | 2-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 3-12 | 3-12 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Leverage Map, Action Strategy | 7S Assessment, Alignment Gaps, Change Actions | Future Reality Tree, Negative Branches, Assumption List, Improved Injections |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | Systems thinkingChangeStrategy | OrganizationStrategyAlignmentChange | Theory of ConstraintsSystems thinkingChange |