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| Criterion |  Engineering Failure Scenario Analysis |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |  Operations 5 Whys |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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. | An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 15-45 min | 1-4 h | 15-30 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-8 | 1-3 | 3-8 | 2-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Failure Scenarios, Risk Notes, Control Gaps, Test and Response Actions | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan | Root cause notes, Countermeasures |
Tagsno overlap | FailureResilienceRisk | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving |