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Selected:PESTLE AnalysisSAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method)Stakeholder MappingATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method)
| Criterion |  Business Strategy PESTLE Analysis |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |  Facilitation Stakeholder Mapping |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | PESTLE Analysis makes political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental influences visible. The environment of an initiative is thereby read systematically instead of through isolated trends. | 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 an initiative depends on many people, interests, and power dynamics, Stakeholder Mapping systematically orders the environment. It shows who influences, who is affected, and where relationship management or safeguarding matters first. | ATAM helps teams weigh architecture decisions when quality goals compete. The team considers business goals, stakeholder expectations, and technical decisions together. The evaluation shows which risks need further investigation. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Low | High |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope | 60–90 min | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope |
Participantsdifferent | 2-10 | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting | 2-8 | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | PESTLE Map, External Risks, Strategic Questions | 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 | Stakeholder Map, Engagement Plan, Risk Notes | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations |
Tagsno overlap | StrategyMarketAnalysis | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality | StakeholdersAlignmentFacilitationChange | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders |