View methods side by side.
Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.
| Criterion |  Operations Visual Management |  UX Research Contextual Inquiry |  Product Strategy Counter Metrics |  Business Strategy Balanced Scorecard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | With high tempo and many parallel topics, the method makes status, deviations, and priorities visible at a glance. It reduces search effort and prevents what matters from getting lost in daily work. | 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. | When a headline metric could mask side effects, it adds guardrail signals against unwanted outcomes. It connects customer value, product logic, and decision priorities. The result is captured as a counter-metric list and guardrail definitions. | Balanced Scorecard translates strategy into a few interconnected perspectives and metrics. It holds impact, steering, and learning together in daily work instead of narrowing strategy down to financial figures. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low | High |
Timedifferent | Ongoing | 1-3 Wochen | 30-60 min | Halber Tag bis mehrere Wochen |
Participantsdifferent | 1-20 | 4-12 Beobachtungen | 2-6 | 4-12 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Visual Board, Status Indicators, Exception Cues | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | Counter Metric List, Guardrail Definitions | Balanced Scorecard, Strategic Measures, Initiative Map |
Tagsno overlap | SignalsOperationsVisual management | UX researchObservationContext | MetricsMeasurementStrategyExperiments | StrategyMetricsExecution |