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Selected:SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method)Three HorizonsStakeholder MappingATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method)
| Criterion |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |  Business Strategy Three Horizons |  Facilitation Stakeholder Mapping |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | Three Horizons helps clarify strategic options across different timeframes. It compares strengths, risks, market logic, and investment choices, and captures the result as a horizon map, portfolio view, and initiatives per horizon. | When an initiative depends on many people, interests, and power dynamics, Stakeholder Mapping systematically orders the environment. It shows who influences, who is affected, and where relationship management or safeguarding matters first. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Medium | Low | High |
Timedifferent | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope | Halbtags-Workshop, dann iterativ | 60–90 min | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope |
Participantsdifferent | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting | 3-12 | 2-8 | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | 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 | Horizon map, Portfolio view, Initiatives per horizon, Resource plan | Stakeholder Map, Engagement Plan, Risk Notes | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality | StrategyInnovationPortfolioForesight | StakeholdersAlignmentFacilitationChange | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders |