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| Criterion |  Operations Process Mapping |  Operations Failure Mode and Effects Analysis |  Decision Making Assumption Surfacing |  Operations Fishbone Diagram |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | For a process, product, or service with noticeable failure risks, the method assesses possible failure modes in advance. It directs attention to combinations of occurrence, effect, and detectability. | Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it. | When a problem has several possible contributing factors, the method sorts causes by cause areas. It prevents an initial hunch from blocking the view of other plausible drivers. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 2-6 h | 45-90 min | 30-60 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 3-10 | 2-8 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Process Map, Handoff List, Improvement Backlog | FMEA Table, Risk Priority, Mitigation Actions | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan | Fishbone Diagram, Cause Categories, Investigation Backlog |
Tagsno overlap | ProcessOperationsImprovement | RiskQualityOperationsRoot cause | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery | Root causeQualityOperations |