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| Criterion |  Operations Causal Factor Analysis |  Operations After-Action Review |  Operations Barrier Analysis |  DevOps Blameless Postmortem |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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. | After missions or project phases with unclear outcomes, the method makes visible what actually happened and what can be learned from it. It separates course, effect, and causes so experience turns into solid improvement. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Low | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 2-6 h | 20-45 min | 2-4 h | 30-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 3-12 | 2-6 | 3-12 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Event Timeline, Causal Factor Chart, Cause List, Corrective Actions | Lessons learned, Action items, Event summary | Barrier Inventory, Failure Analysis per Barrier, Action Backlog | Postmortem Doc, Action Items, Timeline |
Tagsno overlap | CausalityIncidentRoot causeTimeline | LearningOperationsImprovement | Root causeSafetyIncident | Site Reliability EngineeringIncidentLearningReliability |