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Criterion
Paper mind map with a central course onboarding question, colored main branches, keywords and cross-links.
Facilitation
Mind Mapping
Paper illustration with architecture components and concrete change tasks for comparison.
Architecture
SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method)
Paper illustration of several people silently writing ideas and passing sheets around with arrows.
Innovation
Brainwriting
Purposedifferent
When a topic is still unclear and too many thoughts surface at once, Mind Mapping creates an open surface for ordering them. It makes connections, subtopics, and starting points visible without fixing them too early.SAAM helps teams judge an architecture’s suitability for selected tasks and changes. It is particularly useful for examining modifiability and comparing architecture alternatives with clear reasoning.When loud voices or hierarchy distort the idea search, the method creates a quiet entry into joint development. It gives everyone thinking space and gathers contributions without social brakes, making diversity more visible and easier to build on.
Complexitydifferent
LowHighLow
Timedifferent
15-45 minPreparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope15-30 min
Participantsdifferent
1-10Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting3-12
Formatsame
Workshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Mind Map, Topic Clusters, Open QuestionsDomain functions mapped to components and connections, Quality attributes and evaluation criteria, Typical tasks and their effects on the architecture, Reasoned evaluation or comparison of alternativesIdea sheets, Expanded concepts, Prioritized list
Tagsno overlap
BrainstormingIdeasMappingStructureFacilitation
ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality
BrainstormingCollaborationInclusionIdeas
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Often compared together

Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.

Paper illustration for Round Robin Brainstorming
Innovation
Round Robin Brainstorming
Paper illustration for 1-2-4-All.
Facilitation
1-2-4-All
Paper illustration for 3-Circle Venn Diagram
Facilitation
3-Circle Venn Diagram
Paper illustration: scenarios and architectural decisions are connected to identified risks.
Architecture
ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method)