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| Criterion |  Systems Thinking Futures Wheel |  Operations Theory of Constraints |  Operations After-Action Review |  Operations Bottleneck Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | For a system that does not get faster despite effort, the method directs attention to the bottleneck. It concentrates improvement on the point that actually limits throughput. | After missions or project phases with unclear outcomes, the method makes visible what actually happened and what can be learned from it. It separates course, effect, and causes so experience turns into solid improvement. | For a flow that backs up at one point, the method looks for the capacity limit with the greatest leverage. It explains why extra effort elsewhere barely improves throughput. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 60-120 min | 2-4 h Analyse, laufend | 20-45 min | 1-3 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 3-12 | 3-12 | 3-8 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Futures Wheel, Consequence Chains, Strategic Signals | Constraint Map, Improvement Plan, Flow Metrics | Lessons learned, Action items, Event summary | Bottleneck Map, Flow Metrics, Improvement Options, Follow-up Measures |
Tagsno overlap | ForesightSystems thinkingSignals | OperationsConstraintsFlowImprovement | LearningOperationsImprovement | FlowMeasurementConstraints |