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 for TRIZ
Innovation
TRIZ
A hypothetical failure makes concrete risks, signals, and fitting mitigations visible.
Decision Making
Pre-Mortem
Paper illustration for Contradiction Analysis.
Innovation
Contradiction Analysis
Paper illustration of an assumption matrix with prioritized test cards
Decision Making
Assumption Surfacing
Purposedifferent
For technical contradictions or trade-offs, the method looks for solutions that resolve opposing requirements at the same time. It translates limits into an explicit picture of conflict that becomes workable. This produces not just compromises but more elegant principles.In early initiatives with many uncertainties, planning quickly turns too optimistic. A pre-mortem makes the expected failure visible in advance and sharpens the view of causes, gaps, and countermeasures.When a system should improve while another measure suffers as a result, the method makes the underlying conflict precisely formulable. It separates the desired effect from its side effect. This makes solutions possible that address the contradiction deliberately instead of half-heartedly.Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it.
Complexitydifferent
HighLowMediumLow
Timedifferent
1-4 h20–45 min60-120 min45-90 min
Participantsdifferent
2-8Small cross-functional group2-82-8
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshopWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Contradiction Statement, Inventive Principles, Solution ConceptsRisk list, Mitigation plan, Assumption logContradiction Statement, Abstraction Notes, Solution Principles, Concept IdeasAssumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan
Tagsno overlap
InnovationProblem solvingContradictionsCreativity
RiskDecisionFailurePlanning
ContradictionsInnovationProblem solving
AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery
Add more methods