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| Criterion |  Decision Making Constraint Analysis |  Operations ALPEN Method |  Systems Thinking Evaporating Cloud |  Systems Thinking Current Reality Tree |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When an initiative stalls, the limit often lies not in the idea but in hard or soft boundary conditions. Constraint Analysis separates these limits and shows which of them can actually be shaped. | With an overloaded day full of too many tasks, a realistic picture of the day emerges. The method connects estimating, deciding, and buffer thinking so planning fits available energy and time. | The method makes visible why two seemingly incompatible demands arise and which assumption must be tested to resolve the conflict. | A Current Reality Tree condenses many symptoms into a few causal chains. The method makes visible which core problems drive several negative effects at once. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium | High |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 10-20 min daily | 60-120 min | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 1 | 2-8 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Constraint List, Hard/Soft Classification, Option Impact Notes, Decision Boundaries | Daily Plan, Time Estimates, Review Notes | Conflict Cloud, Assumption List, Breakthrough Ideas, Next Experiments | Current Reality Tree, Core Problems, Intervention Ideas |
Tagsno overlap | ConstraintsDecisionPlanningOptions | PlanningTime managementProductivityOperations | Theory of ConstraintsAssumptionsSystems thinking | Systems thinkingRoot causeConstraintsCausality |