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| Criterion |  Innovation Crazy 8s |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |  Innovation Brainstorming |  Operations 5 Whys |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | 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. | 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. | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 8-15 min | 1-4 h | 30-60 min | 15-30 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-10 | 3-8 | 4-12 | 2-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Sketch Set, Idea Shortlist, Direction Options | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan | Idea pool, Theme clusters, Shortlist | Root cause notes, Countermeasures |
Tagsno overlap | BrainstormingSketchingSpeedDivergenceDesign sprint | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident | BrainstormingIdeationCreativityWorkshopDivergence | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving |