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| Criterion |  Operations Process Mapping |  Product Discovery Smoke Test |  Operations 5 Whys |  Product Discovery Fake Door Test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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 demand only needs to be roughly verified, it tests interest with minimal effort. It measures whether people would take a next step at all. | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. | When demand is still unclear, it measures interest in a feature before it is built. It separates real behavior from polite agreement and deliberately keeps build effort small. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 1-5 Tage | 15-30 min | 1-5 Tage |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | Nutzertraffic | 2-6 | Nutzertraffic |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Async | Workshop | Async |
Outputdifferent | Process Map, Handoff List, Improvement Backlog | Interest Metrics, Conversion Signal, Learning Note | Root cause notes, Countermeasures | Click Data, Interest Signal, Learning Decision |
Tagsno overlap | ProcessOperationsImprovement | ValidationExperimentsDemandGrowth | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving | ValidationExperimentsDemandDiscovery |