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| Criterion |  Decision Making Decision Tree |  Systems Thinking Evaporating Cloud |  Operations Root Cause Tree Analysis |  Decision Making Assumption Surfacing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | The method makes visible why two seemingly incompatible demands arise and which assumption must be tested to resolve the conflict. | For a problem with several suspected causes, the method builds a causal structure instead of a mere list. It makes visible how causes connect and where the strongest points of leverage lie. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 60-120 min | 1-3 h | 45-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-6 | 2-8 | 2-8 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Decision Tree, Option Map, Assumption List | Conflict Cloud, Assumption List, Breakthrough Ideas, Next Experiments | Cause Tree, Evidence Notes, Countermeasures | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan |
Tagsno overlap | DecisionTreeOptions | Theory of ConstraintsAssumptionsSystems thinking | Root causeTreeIncidentQuality | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery |