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| Criterion |  Operations Process Mapping |  Decision Making Decision Matrix |  Decision Making Constraint Analysis |  Decision Making Trade-off Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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 several options collide with several criteria, comparison quickly becomes subjective. A Decision Matrix makes the trade-off visible and brings weighting, criteria, and options into a shared logic. | When an initiative stalls, the limit often lies not in the idea but in hard or soft boundary conditions. Constraint Analysis separates these limits and shows which of them can actually be shaped. | With limited resources, quality, speed, cost, and risk almost always compete with each other. Trade-off Analysis makes these tensions explicit and prevents decisions from producing hidden side effects. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 45-90 min | 30-90 min | 45-120 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 2-8 | 2-8 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Process Map, Handoff List, Improvement Backlog | Decision Matrix, Scoring Rationale, Selected Option | Constraint List, Hard/Soft Classification, Option Impact Notes, Decision Boundaries | Trade-off Matrix, Criteria List, Decision Rationale, Accepted Downsides |
Tagsno overlap | ProcessOperationsImprovement | DecisionCriteriaScoringTradeoffs | ConstraintsDecisionPlanningOptions | TradeoffsDecisionCriteriaOptions |