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| Criterion |  Engineering Kanban |  Delivery Value Stream Mapping |  Architecture Architecture Communication Canvas |  Architecture C4 Model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When work sits in too many parallel streams, throughput suffers and no one sees the bottlenecks. Kanban makes the flow of work visible and limits overload so a system becomes calmer and more predictable. | When delivery work dissolves into wait times, handoffs, and hidden effort, Value Stream Mapping makes the actual flow visible. The method exposes bottlenecks, idle time, and feedback loops so lead time and improvement levers become tangible. | The Architecture Communication Canvas plans architecture communication so the right people receive the right message. The method turns technical complexity into deliberate communication design. | The C4 Model makes a system legible across several resolution levels, from context down to code. It suits situations where different audiences need to understand the same architecture from different altitudes. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | Ongoing | 1-3 h | 60-120 min | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 2-12 | 4-10 | 2-8 | 1-5 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Kanban board, WIP policies, Flow metrics | Current-state map, Future-state map, Bottleneck list | Communication Canvas, Stakeholder Messages, Architecture Communication Plan | Context Diagram, Container Diagram, Component Diagram |
Tagsno overlap | FlowVisual managementDelivery | LeanFlowWasteDelivery | ArchitectureCommunicationStakeholdersCanvas | ArchitectureCommunicationVisualization |