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| Criterion |  Operations Causal Factor Analysis |  Operations Family Tree Analysis |  Facilitation Power Interest Grid |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | For a series of incidents with a similar pattern, the method arranges individual events as branches of a common origin. It makes visible which conditions keep recurring. | When many stakeholders compete for attention at once, the Power Interest Grid sorts them by influence and stake. It turns individual contributions into a visible selection. The result is captured as a Power Interest Grid and a stakeholder-specific strategy. | When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Medium | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 2-6 h | 2-4 h | 30-60 min | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 2-6 | 2-8 | 4-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Event Timeline, Causal Factor Chart, Cause List, Corrective Actions | Family Tree Diagram, Pattern Notes, Systemic Measures | Power Interest Grid, Strategy per Stakeholder | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions |
Tagsno overlap | CausalityIncidentRoot causeTimeline | Root causePatternsIncidentSystemic | StakeholdersFacilitationAlignmentPlanning | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation |