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| Criterion |  Operations Gemba Walk |  UX Research User Interviews |  Operations 5 Whys |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When there is uncertainty about the real course of a process, the method brings observation to the place where work happens. It combines perception, follow-up questions, and process knowledge so decisions rest on actual workflows instead of assumptions. | When teams derive needs only from assumptions and real motives are missing, user interviews give direct access to behavior and meaning. Conversations from the target group's everyday life make patterns, tensions, and open questions solidly visible. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30-120 min | 30–60 min per interview | 15-30 min | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 2-6 | 1 participant per interview | 2-6 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Observation Notes, Improvement Ideas | Interview Notes, Themes, Insight Summary | Root cause notes, Countermeasures | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan |
Tagsno overlap | LeanObservationProcessOperations | QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident |