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| Criterion |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |  Decision Making Force Field Analysis |  Decision Making Assumption Surfacing |
|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | SAAM helps teams judge an architecture’s suitability for selected tasks and changes. It is particularly useful for examining modifiability and comparing architecture alternatives with clear reasoning. | In change initiatives, supporting and restraining forces sit at the table at the same time. Force Field Analysis makes these tensions explicit and shows where change can be pushed forward by strengthening or relieving. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope | 45-90 min | 45-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting | 3-12 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Domain functions mapped to components and connections, Quality attributes and evaluation criteria, Typical tasks and their effects on the architecture, Reasoned evaluation or comparison of alternatives | Force Field Map, Change Levers, Risk Notes | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality | ChangeDecisionStrategy | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery |
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