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| Criterion |  Facilitation Lean Coffee |  Operations Root Cause Tree Analysis |  Operations Barrier Analysis |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | For a problem with several suspected causes, the method builds a causal structure instead of a mere list. It makes visible how causes connect and where the strongest points of leverage lie. | For a risk that can only be managed through multiple layers of protection, the method examines the effectiveness of each barrier. It shows where safeguards are missing, too weak, or fail under real conditions. | When a problem keeps recurring and the cause stays unclear, the method exposes the underlying mechanism. It separates symptom, guess, and robust explanation from one another. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 1-3 h | 2-4 h | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-20 | 2-8 | 2-6 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Prioritized Topics, Discussion Notes, Action Items | Cause Tree, Evidence Notes, Countermeasures | Barrier Inventory, Failure Analysis per Barrier, Action Backlog | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan |
Tagsno overlap | FacilitationAutonomyDialogue | Root causeTreeIncidentQuality | Root causeSafetyIncident | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident |