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Criterion
A hypothetical failure makes concrete risks, signals, and fitting mitigations visible.
Decision Making
Pre-Mortem
Four paper stations connect system purpose, quality goals, risk cards and focused investigation with a target and gap profile.
Architecture
LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews)
Paper illustration for Communication Plan
Delivery
Communication Plan
A paper-based illustration representing arc42 with its core stages and visible working result.
Architecture
arc42
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.LASR helps development teams identify where their software falls short of important quality goals and which improvements to consider. A small group with existing system knowledge can make an initial assessment and investigate open questions in more detail.When many people need to be informed in parallel and messages would otherwise arrive unevenly or too late, a Communication Plan orders communication reliably. Channels, audiences, and cadences interlock so important information doesn't get lost.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.
Complexitydifferent
LowMediumLowLow
Timedifferent
20–45 min3–4 h for initial assessment; preparation and deeper analysis additional45-90 min1-2 Tage
Participantsdifferent
Small cross-functional group1 or a small team; particularly suitable for 3–4 people2-61-4
Formatdifferent
WorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Risk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption logLean Mission Statement describing the software’s purpose, Prioritized quality goals and evaluation criteria, Risks and estimated gaps against quality goals, More closely examined findings and open checksCommunication Plan, Channel Matrix, Message CadenceArchitecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View
Tagsno overlap
RiskDecisionFailurePlanning
ArchitectureQualityRiskAssessmentLean
CommunicationStakeholdersDeliveryPlanning
ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication
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