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| Criterion |  Innovation How Might We |  Product Discovery Context Canvas |  Operations Fault Tree Analysis |  Operations Failure Mode and Effects Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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 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. | For a critical top event with several possible triggers, the method logically models failure paths. It makes visible which combinations of conditions can lead to damage. | For a process, product, or service with noticeable failure risks, the method assesses possible failure modes in advance. It directs attention to combinations of occurrence, effect, and detectability. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | High | High |
Timedifferent | 30–45 min | 45-90 min | 2-6 h | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | 1-10 | 3-10 | 3-8 | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | HMW Questions, Challenge Framing, Idea Prompts | Context canvas, Open questions, Shared context notes | Fault Tree, Critical Paths, Cause Hypotheses, Control Actions | FMEA Table, Risk Priority, Mitigation Actions |
Tagsno overlap | FramingOpportunityIdeationQuestions | ContextFramingRequirementsCanvas | RiskRoot causeSafety | RiskQualityOperationsRoot cause |