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Criterion
Paper illustration for Contextual Inquiry.
UX Research
Contextual Inquiry
Stakeholder Mapping
Facilitation
Stakeholder Mapping
Paper illustration for Alignment Mapping.
Facilitation
Alignment Mapping
Purposedifferent
When work processes are known only from accounts and the real context stays hidden, Contextual Inquiry makes behavior at the workplace visible. Observation and follow-up questions together show how people actually work, get interrupted, and improvise.When an initiative depends on many people, interests, and power dynamics, Stakeholder Mapping systematically orders the environment. It shows who influences, who is affected, and where relationship management or safeguarding matters first.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
MediumLowMedium
Timedifferent
1-3 Wochen60–90 min1-2 h
Participantsdifferent
4-12 Beobachtungen2-84-12
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshop
Outputdifferent
Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain PointsStakeholder Map, Engagement Plan, Risk NotesAlignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions
Tagsno overlap
UX researchObservationContext
StakeholdersAlignmentFacilitationChange
AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation
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Often compared together

Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.

Paper illustration of the McKinsey 7S Framework with seven connected fields
Business Strategy
McKinsey 7S
Paper illustration of Power-Interest Grid with a method-specific labelled workspace.
Facilitation
Power Interest Grid
Paper illustration of Stakeholder Salience Model with its method-specific working model.
Facilitation
Stakeholder Salience Model
Paper illustration for 3-Circle Venn Diagram
Facilitation
3-Circle Venn Diagram