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| Criterion |  Decision Making Decision Tree |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |  Engineering Goal Question Metric |  Facilitation Six Thinking Hats |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | For decisions with follow-on paths and dependencies, a linear comparison is often not enough. A Decision Tree shows how options branch under conditions and which consequences hang on each branch. | 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. | Helps clarify technical problems, hypotheses, and next steps in concrete terms. It breaks a technical problem into testable parts. The result is captured as a GQM table and metric briefs. | When a topic gets stuck too quickly in the same thinking mode, Six Thinking Hats deliberately separates the perspectives. This means facts, risks, creativity, and emotional signals get worked through one after another instead of mixed together. |
Complexitysame | Medium | Medium | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 1-2 h | 90-180 min | 45-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-6 | 4-12 | 3-6 | 4-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Decision Tree, Option Map, Assumption List | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions | GQM Table, Metric Profiles | Perspective Notes, Decision Inputs, Action Items |
Tagsno overlap | DecisionTreeOptions | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation | MetricsMeasurementEngineeringAlignment | FacilitationOptionsDecision |