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| Criterion |  Facilitation Dot Estimation |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |  Product Strategy Counter Metrics |  Engineering Goal Question Metric |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When size or effort can only be estimated roughly, Dot Estimation condenses the group's experience into a quick range. It turns individual contributions into a visible selection. The result is captured as an Effort Heatmap, Risk Signals, and Discussion Targets. | 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. | When a headline metric could mask side effects, it adds guardrail signals against unwanted outcomes. It connects customer value, product logic, and decision priorities. The result is captured as a counter-metric list and guardrail definitions. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 5-20 min | 1-2 h | 30-60 min | 90-180 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-20 | 4-12 | 2-6 | 3-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Effort Heatmap, Risk Signals, Discussion Targets | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions | Counter Metric List, Guardrail Definitions | GQM Table, Metric Profiles |
Tagsno overlap | EstimationEffortRisk | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation | MetricsMeasurementStrategyExperiments | MetricsMeasurementEngineeringAlignment |