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Criterion
Four paper stations connect system purpose, quality goals, risk cards and focused investigation with a target and gap profile.
Architecture
LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews)
Paper illustration of an assumption matrix with prioritized test cards
Decision Making
Assumption Surfacing
Architecture Inception Canvas method illustration showing its working structure
Architecture
Architecture Inception Canvas
Paper illustration of a calibrated five-by-five risk matrix with response cards.
Decision Making
Risk Matrix
Purposedifferent
LASR helps development teams identify where their software falls short of important quality goals and which improvements to consider. A small group with existing system knowledge can make an initial assessment and investigate open questions in more detail.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.The Architecture Inception Canvas bundles the first architecture questions into a compact decision picture. It fits when an initiative is still in motion but still needs clear guardrails.When a project faces many possible disruptions, it quickly becomes unclear which risks deserve attention first. It separates options, evaluation criteria, and open risks. The result is captured as a Risk Matrix and a Top Risk List.
Complexitydifferent
MediumLowLowLow
Timedifferent
3–4 h for initial assessment; preparation and deeper analysis additional45-90 min1-2 h30-60 min
Participantsdifferent
1 or a small team; particularly suitable for 3–4 people2-83-83-10
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Lean Mission Statement describing the software’s purpose, Prioritized quality goals and evaluation criteria, Risks and estimated gaps against quality goals, More closely examined findings and open checksAssumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning PlanInception Canvas, Risks, Goal List, Open QuestionsRisk Matrix, Top Risk List
Tagsno overlap
ArchitectureQualityRiskAssessmentLean
AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery
AlignmentArchitectureCanvas
RiskDecisionPrioritizationAssessment
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