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| Criterion |  Innovation Lotus Blossom |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |  Operations 8D Problem Solving |  Operations 5 Whys |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a central question feels too large, the method breaks it into neighboring topic fields with their own depth of ideation. It holds structure and openness at the same time, so adjacent perspectives don't get lost. This grows an idea space out of a core problem. | 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. | For an acute quality or delivery problem, the method structures immediate protection and root cause work together. It keeps the situation stable while the actual cause is investigated cleanly. | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | High | Low |
Timedifferent | 45-90 min | 1-4 h | 1-6 Wochen | 15-30 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 3-8 | 4-10 | 2-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Lotus Diagram, Idea Themes, Shortlist | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan | 8D Report, Containment Plan, Root Cause Evidence, Corrective Action Plan | Root cause notes, Countermeasures |
Tagsno overlap | BrainstormingIdeationCreativityDivergenceWorkshop | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident | QualityProblem solvingRoot cause | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving |