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| Criterion |  Delivery Value Stream Mapping |  UX Research Contextual Inquiry |  Operations A3 Problem Solving |
|---|---|---|---|
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. | When work processes are known only from accounts and the real context stays hidden, Contextual Inquiry makes behavior at the workplace visible. Observation and follow-up questions together show how people actually work, get interrupted, and improvise. | For a complex deviation with several people involved, the method bundles problem, analysis, and decision onto one page. It creates a shared working space where causes, countermeasures, and follow-up fit together. |
Complexitysame | Medium | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 1-3 Wochen | 45-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 4-10 | 4-12 Beobachtungen | 2-5 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Current-state map, Future-state map, Bottleneck list | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | A3 Report, Action Plan, Root Cause Analysis |
Tagsno overlap | LeanFlowWasteDelivery | UX researchObservationContext | LeanProblem solvingCoachingOperations |
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Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.
