methodatlas
Compare

View methods side by side.

Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.

Criterion
Paper illustration with architecture components and concrete change tasks for comparison.
Architecture
SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method)
Red Teaming method illustration showing its working structure
Decision Making
Red Teaming
Paper illustration of Request for Comments (RFC) with its method-specific working model.
Architecture
Request for Comments
Paper illustration for Argument Mapping
Decision Making
Argument Mapping
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.For strategic decisions with high reach, agreement and gut feeling are often not enough. Red teaming brings deliberate opposition into the situation and tests where a plan breaks under real counterarguments.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 statements, evidence, and counterarguments get mixed up, a debate quickly loses its structure. Argument Mapping breaks a thesis down into its reasoning and makes visible what it really rests on.
Complexitydifferent
HighHighMediumMedium
Timedifferent
Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope1-4 h1-3 Wochen vom Draft bis zur Entscheidung1-3 h
Participantsdifferent
Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting3-83-20 Reviewer1-8
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshopAsyncWorkshop + 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 alternativesChallenge Findings, Risk Register, Mitigation PlanRFC document, Reviewer comments, Decision rationale, Follow-up ADR or ticketsArgument Map, Evidence Gaps, Decision Rationale
Tagsno overlap
ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality
RiskDecisionSensemaking
ArchitectureDecisionAsyncGovernance
SensemakingDecisionRationale
Add more methods