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| Criterion |  Operations Causal Factor Analysis |  Decision Making Pre-Mortem |  Operations A3 Problem Solving |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | In early initiatives with many uncertainties, planning quickly turns too optimistic. A pre-mortem makes the expected failure visible in advance and sharpens the view of causes, gaps, and countermeasures. | For a complex deviation with several people involved, the method bundles problem, analysis, and decision onto one page. It creates a shared working space where causes, countermeasures, and follow-up fit together. | When a problem keeps recurring and the cause stays unclear, the method exposes the underlying mechanism. It separates symptom, guess, and robust explanation from one another. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Low | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 2-6 h | 20–45 min | 45-90 min | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | Small cross-functional group | 2-5 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Event Timeline, Causal Factor Chart, Cause List, Corrective Actions | Risk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption log | A3 Report, Action Plan, Root Cause Analysis | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan |
Tagsno overlap | CausalityIncidentRoot causeTimeline | RiskDecisionFailurePlanning | LeanProblem solvingCoachingOperations | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident |