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| Criterion |  UX Research User Interviews |  Architecture Software Architecture Canvas |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |  Architecture Architecture Inception Canvas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When teams derive needs only from assumptions and real motives are missing, user interviews give direct access to behavior and meaning. Conversations from the target group's everyday life make patterns, tensions, and open questions solidly visible. | The Software Architecture Canvas reduces a system to the most important architecture decisions, constraints, and interfaces. It is useful when teams need a resilient overall picture quickly. | 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. | The Architecture Inception Canvas bundles the first architecture questions into a compact decision picture. It fits when an initiative is still in motion but still needs clear guardrails. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 30–60 min per interview | 1-2 h | 1-2 h | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | 1 participant per interview | 3-10 | 4-12 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Interview Notes, Themes, Insight Summary | Architecture Canvas, Goals, Constraints, Quality Attributes | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions | Inception Canvas, Risks, Goal List, Open Questions |
Tagsno overlap | QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery | CanvasArchitectureAlignmentWorkshop | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation | AlignmentArchitectureCanvas |