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Criterion
Paper illustration for TOWS Matrix.
Business Strategy
TOWS Matrix
Four paper stations connect system purpose, quality goals, risk cards and focused investigation with a target and gap profile.
Architecture
LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews)
Paper illustration of Power-Interest Grid with a method-specific labelled workspace.
Facilitation
Power Interest Grid
Paper illustration for Alignment Mapping.
Facilitation
Alignment Mapping
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.LASR helps development teams identify where their software falls short of important quality goals and which improvements to consider. A small group with existing system knowledge can make an initial assessment and investigate open questions in more detail.When many stakeholders compete for attention at once, the Power Interest Grid sorts them by influence and stake. It turns individual contributions into a visible selection. The result is captured as a Power Interest Grid and a stakeholder-specific strategy.When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable.
Complexitydifferent
MediumMediumLowMedium
Timedifferent
1-2 h3–4 h for initial assessment; preparation and deeper analysis additional30-60 min1-2 h
Participantsdifferent
3-101 or a small team; particularly suitable for 3–4 people2-84-12
Formatdifferent
WorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshop
Outputdifferent
TOWS Matrix, Strategic Options, Priority ActionsLean Mission Statement describing the software’s purpose, Prioritized quality goals and evaluation criteria, Risks and estimated gaps against quality goals, More closely examined findings and open checksPower Interest Grid, Strategy per StakeholderAlignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions
Tagsno overlap
StrategyAnalysisOptions
ArchitectureQualityRiskAssessmentLean
StakeholdersFacilitationAlignmentPlanning
AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation
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