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Criterion
Paper illustration of Request for Comments (RFC) with its method-specific working model.
Architecture
Request for Comments
Paper fishbone diagram with a measurable effect at the head and six labeled cause branches.
Operations
Fishbone Diagram
Paper illustration: scenarios and architectural decisions are connected to identified risks.
Architecture
ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method)
Paper illustration for Kepner-Tregoe
Operations
Kepner-Tregoe
Purposedifferent
An RFC clarifies architecture context, options, and consequences. It structures technical context, alternatives, tradeoffs, open questions, and review feedback, and captures the result as an RFC document, reviewer comments, and a decision rationale.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.ATAM helps teams weigh architecture decisions when quality goals compete. The team considers business goals, stakeholder expectations, and technical decisions together. The evaluation shows which risks need further investigation.For a disturbance that's hard to pin down, the method cleanly separates problem, cause, and decision. It reduces mixing when symptoms allow several interpretations.
Complexitydifferent
MediumLowHighHigh
Timedifferent
1-3 Wochen vom Draft bis zur Entscheidung30-60 minSeveral meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope2-8 h
Participantsdifferent
3-20 Reviewer2-8Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders2-8
Formatdifferent
AsyncWorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
RFC document, Reviewer comments, Decision rationale, Follow-up ADR or ticketsFishbone Diagram, Cause Categories, Investigation BacklogPrioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigationsProblem Analysis, Decision Analysis, Risk Plan
Tagsno overlap
ArchitectureDecisionAsyncGovernance
Root causeQualityOperations
ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders
Problem solvingRoot causeDecisionOperations
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