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| Criterion |  Business Strategy TOWS Matrix |  Operations Causal Factor Analysis |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |  Operations Barrier Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | The TOWS Matrix connects internal strengths and weaknesses with external opportunities and threats into action-oriented strategies. It goes a step further than a pure stocktaking. | For an event with a complicated course, the method breaks down the contributing factors along the timeline. It shows how conditions, decisions, and reactions together produce a course of events. | When a problem keeps recurring and the cause stays unclear, the method exposes the underlying mechanism. It separates symptom, guess, and robust explanation from one another. | For a risk that can only be managed through multiple layers of protection, the method examines the effectiveness of each barrier. It shows where safeguards are missing, too weak, or fail under real conditions. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-2 h | 2-6 h | 1-4 h | 2-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 3-10 | 3-8 | 2-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | TOWS Matrix, Strategic Options, Priority Actions | Event Timeline, Causal Factor Chart, Cause List, Corrective Actions | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan | Barrier Inventory, Failure Analysis per Barrier, Action Backlog |
Tagsno overlap | StrategyAnalysisOptions | CausalityIncidentRoot causeTimeline | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident | Root causeSafetyIncident |