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| Criterion |  Delivery Value Stream Mapping |  Operations 5 Whys |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When delivery work dissolves into wait times, handoffs, and hidden effort, Value Stream Mapping makes the actual flow visible. The method exposes bottlenecks, idle time, and feedback loops so lead time and improvement levers become tangible. | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 15-30 min | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 4-10 | 2-6 | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Current-state map, Future-state map, Bottleneck list | Root cause notes, Countermeasures | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan |
Tagsno overlap | LeanFlowWasteDelivery | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident |