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| Criterion |  Decision Making Pre-Mortem |  Decision Making Decision Tree |  Business Strategy Value Chain Analysis |  Business Strategy TOWS Matrix |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | For decisions with follow-on paths and dependencies, a linear comparison is often not enough. A Decision Tree shows how options branch under conditions and which consequences hang on each branch. | Value Chain Analysis shows where value is created, costs accrue, and differentiation becomes possible along the process. It compares strengths, risks, market logic, and courses of action. The result is captured as a value-chain map and lever list. | 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 | Low | Medium | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 20–45 min | 30-90 min | Half day | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | Small cross-functional group | 1-6 | 3-8 | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Risk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption log | Decision Tree, Option Map, Assumption List | Value Chain Map, Lever List | TOWS Matrix, Strategic Options, Priority Actions |
Tagsno overlap | RiskDecisionFailurePlanning | DecisionTreeOptions | StrategyBusiness modelDiagnosisAnalysis | StrategyAnalysisOptions |