methodatlas
Compare

View methods side by side.

Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.

Criterion
Paper illustration of Futures Wheel with its method-specific working model.
Systems Thinking
Futures Wheel
Paper illustration for Contextual Inquiry.
UX Research
Contextual Inquiry
Paper illustration of a yellow story card, blue rule cards, green example cards and a red question card on a light workspace.
Agile
Example Mapping
A paper-based illustration representing Context Canvas with its core stages and visible working result.
Product Discovery
Context Canvas
Purposedifferent
The Futures Wheel helps explore the consequences of a decision, a trend, or a strategic move in a structured way. It makes visible which first, second, and third-order effects could arise from an event.When work processes are known only from accounts and the real context stays hidden, Contextual Inquiry makes behavior at the workplace visible. Observation and follow-up questions together show how people actually work, get interrupted, and improvise.When a story carries business rules and exceptions, it brings clarity before implementation. It makes examples, open questions, and boundaries visible enough that the logic becomes jointly sound.When an environment of users, systems, and constraints is hard to grasp, it puts the context compactly on the table. It creates a clear reading of influence, boundary, and dependency.
Complexitydifferent
MediumMediumLowLow
Timedifferent
60-120 min1-3 Wochen30-60 min45-90 min
Participantsdifferent
3-104-12 Beobachtungen3-73-10
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshop
Outputdifferent
Futures Wheel, Consequence Chains, Strategic SignalsField Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain PointsExample Map, Acceptance Criteria, Open QuestionsContext canvas, Open questions, Shared context notes
Tagsno overlap
ForesightSystems thinkingSignals
UX researchObservationContext
Behavior-Driven DevelopmentRequirementsExamplesRefinement
ContextFramingRequirementsCanvas
Add more methods