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| Criterion | ![]() Facilitation Lean Coffee | ![]() Facilitation Consensus Workshop | ![]() Facilitation Nominal Group Technique | ![]() Facilitation Alignment Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a group without a fixed agenda needs to get into useful conversations quickly, Lean Coffee structures the start around interests rather than a presentation. The group itself negotiates which topics get time first and which wait. | When a group needs a solid decision without outvoting individual factions, a Consensus Workshop creates a negotiable common ground. It makes agreement, reservations, and open tensions discussable at the same time. | When loud voices could dominate a round, Nominal Group Technique protects individual thinking time from group effects. It collects ideas separately first and only then enables shared weighting. | When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 1-3 h | 60-120 min | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-20 | 5-30 | 5-12 | 4-12 |
Formatsame | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Prioritized Topics, Discussion Notes, Action Items | Consensus Clusters, Theme Titles, Priority Areas | Ranked Ideas, Clarified Options, Group Priority | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions |
Tags1 shared | FacilitationAutonomyDialogue | FacilitationConsensusWorkshopAlignment | FacilitationPrioritizationVotingInclusion | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation |



