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| Criterion |  Systems Thinking Evaporating Cloud |  Operations 5 Whys |  Product Discovery Assumption Mapping |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | The method makes visible why two seemingly incompatible demands arise and which assumption must be tested to resolve the conflict. | 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. | When assumptions still sit unordered in the room, it weighs uncertainty against leverage. It makes visible which hypotheses should be checked first. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 60-120 min | 15-30 min | 45-60 min | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 2-6 | 2-8 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Conflict Cloud, Assumption List, Breakthrough Ideas, Next Experiments | Root cause notes, Countermeasures | Assumption map, Test backlog, Risk ranking | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan |
Tagsno overlap | Theory of ConstraintsAssumptionsSystems thinking | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving | AssumptionsRiskExperimentsValidation | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident |