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| Criterion |  Innovation How Might We |  Operations Fishbone Diagram |  Decision Making Pareto Analysis |  Operations ABC 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 a problem has several possible contributing factors, the method sorts causes by cause areas. It prevents an initial hunch from blocking the view of other plausible drivers. | In many problem situations, effect is distributed unequally across many causes. A Pareto Analysis separates the few drivers with high leverage from the long remainder and focuses attention on what measurably moves the needle. | With many similar objects of differing economic significance, the method prioritizes effort by effect. It separates what needs regular steering from what rarely needs attention. |
Complexitysame | Low | Low | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 30–45 min | 30-60 min | 30-60 min | 30-60 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-10 | 2-8 | 1-6 | 1-5 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | Async |
Outputdifferent | HMW Questions, Challenge Framing, Idea Prompts | Fishbone Diagram, Cause Categories, Investigation Backlog | Pareto Chart, Top Causes, Focus List | ABC Classification, Focus Rules, Control List |
Tagsno overlap | FramingOpportunityIdeationQuestions | Root causeQualityOperations | PrioritizationQualityFocusRoot cause | PrioritizationOperationsPortfolio |