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Selected:SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method)Team Topologies Interaction ModesATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method)McKinsey 7S
| Criterion |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |  Team Design Team Topologies Interaction Modes |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  Business Strategy McKinsey 7S |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | When several teams collaborate repeatedly, it describes the right interaction mode for each interface between them. It clarifies responsibility, interaction, and load between teams. The result is captured as an interaction heat map and pairwise agreements. | 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. | McKinsey 7S checks whether Strategy, Structure, Systems, Shared Values, Skills, Style, and Staff fit together. Organizational misalignments become visible across multiple levers as a result. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Medium | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope | Half day | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 2-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting | Team-Leads plus Architecture | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | 3-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop |
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 | Interaction Heat Map, Agreements per Pair | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations | 7S Assessment, Alignment Gaps, Change Actions |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality | TeamAlignmentCollaborationOrganization | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | OrganizationStrategyAlignmentChange |