methodatlas
Compare

View methods side by side.

Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.

Criterion
Paper illustration of an eight-panel idea sheet with varied sketches beside a timer set to eight minutes.
Innovation
Crazy 8s
A hypothetical failure makes concrete risks, signals, and fitting mitigations visible.
Decision Making
Pre-Mortem
Paper illustration of an assumption matrix with prioritized test cards
Decision Making
Assumption Surfacing
A paper-based illustration representing Brainstorming with its core stages and visible working result.
Innovation
Brainstorming
Purposedifferent
With only a few minutes available and a still-fuzzy solution search, the method forces a wide range of variants. It produces fast sketches before the first idea can settle in, making different directions directly comparable and open to further development.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.Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it.When a team faces an open question with many obvious directions, the method first creates breadth instead of premature commitment. It separates idea flow from evaluation and makes lines of thought visible, creating a pool for selection and further development.
Complexitysame
LowLowLowLow
Timedifferent
8-15 min20–45 min45-90 min30-60 min
Participantsdifferent
1-10Small cross-functional group2-84-12
Formatdifferent
WorkshopWorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshop
Outputdifferent
Sketch Set, Idea Shortlist, Direction OptionsRisk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption logAssumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning PlanIdea pool, Theme clusters, Shortlist
Tagsno overlap
BrainstormingSketchingSpeedDivergenceDesign sprint
RiskDecisionFailurePlanning
AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery
BrainstormingIdeationCreativityWorkshopDivergence
Add more methods