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| Criterion |  Decision Making Option Framing |  Architecture Views and Beyond |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |  Business Strategy TOWS Matrix |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | In early decisions, alternatives are often still vague, incomplete, or blended together. Option Framing brings every possibility into a comparable form and makes visible which variant actually fits the question. | Views and Beyond organizes architecture into several views so no single diagram has to do everything at once. This makes it possible to choose the representation that fits the stakeholder's question. | 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. | The TOWS Matrix connects internal strengths and weaknesses with external opportunities and threats into action-oriented strategies. It goes a step further than a pure stocktaking. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 45-120 min | 1-3 Tage | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-8 | 1-4 | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Option Frames, Assumption Notes, Comparable Shortlist, Decision Inputs | Architecture Views, Cross-view Notes, Rationale | Domain functions mapped to components and connections, Quality attributes and evaluation criteria, Typical tasks and their effects on the architecture, Reasoned evaluation or comparison of alternatives | TOWS Matrix, Strategic Options, Priority Actions |
Tagsno overlap | OptionsDecision framingStrategyComparison | DocumentationStakeholdersArchitecture | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality | StrategyAnalysisOptions |