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| Criterion |  Decision Making Decision Tree |  Engineering Failure Scenario Analysis |  Operations Root Cause Tree Analysis |  Decision Making Pre-Mortem |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | In critical processes, it is not enough to plan only for the normal case. Failure Scenario Analysis looks at the path into failure and shows which failures, chains, and control gaps cause the most damage. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 1-3 h | 1-3 h | 20–45 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-6 | 3-8 | 2-8 | Small cross-functional group |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Decision Tree, Option Map, Assumption List | Failure Scenarios, Risk Notes, Control Gaps, Test and Response Actions | Cause Tree, Evidence Notes, Countermeasures | Risk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption log |
Tagsno overlap | DecisionTreeOptions | FailureResilienceRisk | Root causeTreeIncidentQuality | RiskDecisionFailurePlanning |