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Criterion
Paper illustration of an IBIS map with issues, positions and arguments
Knowledge Modeling
IBIS
A hypothetical failure makes concrete risks, signals, and fitting mitigations visible.
Decision Making
Pre-Mortem
Paper illustration of an assumption matrix with prioritized test cards
Decision Making
Assumption Surfacing
Paper illustration for Argument Mapping
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.In early initiatives with many uncertainties, planning quickly turns too optimistic. A pre-mortem makes the expected failure visible in advance and sharpens the view of causes, gaps, and countermeasures.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.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
MediumLowLowMedium
Timedifferent
1-3 h20–45 min45-90 min1-3 h
Participantsdifferent
2-8Small cross-functional group2-81-8
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Issue Map, Positions, Argument NotesRisk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption logAssumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning PlanArgument Map, Evidence Gaps, Decision Rationale
Tags1 shared
RationaleKnowledgeDecision
RiskDecisionFailurePlanning
AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery
SensemakingDecisionRationale
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