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| Criterion |  Operations Fishbone Diagram |  Operations Change Analysis |  Operations ALPEN Method |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a problem has several possible contributing factors, the method sorts causes by cause areas. It prevents an initial hunch from blocking the view of other plausible drivers. | For a deviation after a change, the method isolates the influence of the altered condition. It narrows down which differences are relevant and which are just accompanying noise. | With an overloaded day full of too many tasks, a realistic picture of the day emerges. The method connects estimating, deciding, and buffer thinking so planning fits available energy and time. | SAAM helps teams judge an architecture’s suitability for selected tasks and changes. It is particularly useful for examining modifiability and comparing architecture alternatives with clear reasoning. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low | High |
Timedifferent | 30-60 min | 45-120 min | 10-20 min daily | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 2-6 | 1 | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Fishbone Diagram, Cause Categories, Investigation Backlog | Change Matrix, Cause Hypotheses, Validation Questions, Action List | Daily Plan, Time Estimates, Review Notes | Domain functions mapped to components and connections, Quality attributes and evaluation criteria, Typical tasks and their effects on the architecture, Reasoned evaluation or comparison of alternatives |
Tagsno overlap | Root causeQualityOperations | ChangeRoot causeTroubleshootingComparison | PlanningTime managementProductivityOperations | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality |