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Criterion
Process Mapping method illustration showing its working structure
Operations
Process Mapping
Paper illustration for Affinity Estimation.
Agile
Affinity Estimation
Paper illustration for Ideal Days.
Agile
Ideal Days
Paper illustration for Dot Estimation.
Facilitation
Dot Estimation
Purposedifferent
With a confusing workflow that has many handoffs, the method makes the actual process visible. It shows where work is passed on, delayed, or duplicated, so improvement targets the right spots.When many tasks need to be classified quickly, it sorts them by perceived effort and similarity. It reduces the effort of fine-grained estimation for large volumes.When effort needs to be thought of as real working time, it offers a simple common denominator for comparison. It sorts work by value, risk, and delivery ability. The result is captured as Ideal Day Estimates, Assumption Notes, and Capacity Caveats.When size or effort can only be estimated roughly, Dot Estimation condenses the group's experience into a quick range. It turns individual contributions into a visible selection. The result is captured as an Effort Heatmap, Risk Signals, and Discussion Targets.
Complexitydifferent
MediumMediumLowLow
Timedifferent
1-3 h30-90 min15-60 min5-20 min
Participantsdifferent
3-103-122-93-20
Formatdifferent
WorkshopWorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshop
Outputdifferent
Process Map, Handoff List, Improvement BacklogAffinity Size Map, Grouped Estimates, Unclear ItemsIdeal Day Estimates, Assumption Notes, Capacity CaveatsEffort Heatmap, Risk Signals, Discussion Targets
Tagsno overlap
ProcessOperationsImprovement
EstimationBacklogRelative sizing
EstimationEffortAgile
EstimationEffortRisk
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