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Selected:Failure Scenario AnalysisATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method)Root Cause Analysis5 Whys
| Criterion |  Engineering Failure Scenario Analysis |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  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. | ATAM helps teams weigh architecture decisions when quality goals compete. The team considers business goals, stakeholder expectations, and technical decisions together. The evaluation shows which risks need further investigation. | 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 | High | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 1-4 h | 15-30 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-8 | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | 3-8 | 2-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Failure Scenarios, Risk Notes, Control Gaps, Test and Response Actions | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan | Root cause notes, Countermeasures |
Tagsno overlap | FailureResilienceRisk | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving |