View methods side by side.
Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.
| Criterion | ![]() Knowledge Modeling IBIS | ![]() Decision Making Assumption Surfacing | ![]() Business Strategy Value Chain Analysis | ![]() Decision Making Argument Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | IBIS structures thinking about complex questions as a sequence of issues, ideas, and arguments. The method keeps discussions open without forcing them into premature consensus. | Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it. | Value Chain Analysis shows where value is created, costs accrue, and differentiation becomes possible along the process. It compares strengths, risks, market logic, and courses of action. The result is captured as a value-chain map and lever list. | When statements, evidence, and counterarguments get mixed up, a debate quickly loses its structure. Argument Mapping breaks a thesis down into its reasoning and makes visible what it really rests on. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 45-90 min | Half day | 1-3 h |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 2-8 | 3-8 | 1-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Issue Map, Positions, Argument Notes | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan | Value Chain Map, Lever List | Argument Map, Evidence Gaps, Decision Rationale |
Tagsno overlap | RationaleKnowledgeDecision | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery | StrategyBusiness modelDiagnosisAnalysis | SensemakingDecisionRationale |



