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| Criterion |  Decision Making Pre-Mortem |  Operations ALPEN Method |  Operations After-Action Review |  Operations Failure Mode and Effects Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | In early initiatives with many uncertainties, planning quickly turns too optimistic. A pre-mortem makes the expected failure visible in advance and sharpens the view of causes, gaps, and countermeasures. | With an overloaded day full of too many tasks, a realistic picture of the day emerges. The method connects estimating, deciding, and buffer thinking so planning fits available energy and time. | After missions or project phases with unclear outcomes, the method makes visible what actually happened and what can be learned from it. It separates course, effect, and causes so experience turns into solid improvement. | For a process, product, or service with noticeable failure risks, the method assesses possible failure modes in advance. It directs attention to combinations of occurrence, effect, and detectability. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Low | High |
Timedifferent | 20–45 min | 10-20 min daily | 20-45 min | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | Small cross-functional group | 1 | 3-12 | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Risk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption log | Daily Plan, Time Estimates, Review Notes | Lessons learned, Action items, Event summary | FMEA Table, Risk Priority, Mitigation Actions |
Tagsno overlap | RiskDecisionFailurePlanning | PlanningTime managementProductivityOperations | LearningOperationsImprovement | RiskQualityOperationsRoot cause |