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Criterion
A hypothetical failure makes concrete risks, signals, and fitting mitigations visible.
Decision Making
Pre-Mortem
A paper-based illustration representing arc42 with its core stages and visible working result.
Architecture
arc42
Paper illustration of Decision Rights Mapping with its method-specific working model.
Decision Making
Decision Rights Mapping
Paper illustration of two considered options leading to a decision record with a marked status and visible consequences.
Architecture
Architecture Decision Record
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.arc42 structures architecture knowledge so teams can document system, decisions, and risks consistently. The template builds a living understanding of the architecture instead of scattered notes.In organizations with many stakeholders, it often blurs who actually decides and who is merely consulted. It separates options, evaluation criteria, and open risks. The result is captured as a Decision Rights matrix and an agreement.An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable.
Complexitydifferent
LowLowMediumLow
Timedifferent
20–45 min1-2 Tage90-180 min15-45 min
Participantsdifferent
Small cross-functional group1-44-121-3
Formatdifferent
WorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshopAsync
Outputdifferent
Risk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption logArchitecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment ViewDecision Rights Matrix, AgreementADR File, Decision Log, Rationale
Tagsno overlap
RiskDecisionFailurePlanning
ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication
DecisionGovernanceAlignmentResponsibility
ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance
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