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| Criterion |  Systems Thinking Futures Wheel |  Innovation How Might We |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|
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. | With a stuck problem carrying many implicit assumptions, the method translates observations into open, workable questions. It sharpens the problem frame without pre-thinking the solution, turning frustration or fuzziness into a search space with clear direction. | When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 60-120 min | 30–45 min | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 1-10 | 4-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Futures Wheel, Consequence Chains, Strategic Signals | HMW Questions, Challenge Framing, Idea Prompts | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions |
Tagsno overlap | ForesightSystems thinkingSignals | FramingOpportunityIdeationQuestions | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation |
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