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| Criterion | ![]() Systems Thinking CATWOE Analysis | ![]() DevOps Blameless Postmortem | ![]() Operations Causal Factor Analysis | ![]() Operations Barrier Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | CATWOE structures a problem from six viewpoints and prevents too narrow a view of the situation. Different experiences of the system become comparably discussable this way. | 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. | For an event with a complicated course, the method breaks down the contributing factors along the timeline. It shows how conditions, decisions, and reactions together produce a course of events. | For a risk that can only be managed through multiple layers of protection, the method examines the effectiveness of each barrier. It shows where safeguards are missing, too weak, or fail under real conditions. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 45-90 min | 30-90 min | 2-6 h | 2-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-8 | 3-12 | 3-10 | 2-6 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | CATWOE Canvas, Root Definition, Stakeholder Perspectives, Constraints | Postmortem Doc, Action Items, Timeline | Event Timeline, Causal Factor Chart, Cause List, Corrective Actions | Barrier Inventory, Failure Analysis per Barrier, Action Backlog |
Tagsno overlap | Systems thinkingFramingStakeholders | Site Reliability EngineeringIncidentLearningReliability | CausalityIncidentRoot causeTimeline | Root causeSafetyIncident |



