After mapping, profiling and matching are conducted. Profiling assesses the complexity of the case, while matching evaluates the “suitability,” meaning the openness of the approach. The better these align, the more appropriate the approach will be.
This canvas is relatively complex and not easy to complete. However, it can be very helpful in identifying and prioritizing – which challenges and complexities are critical and important for your project, and where and how can you address these requirements through effective process design? The canvas focuses on the six central requirement dimensions of processes. In addition to the three dimensions from the mapping matrix (right side), three more are added, which pertain to the implementation framework (left side).
Profiling:
Write down points for each dimension that increase or decrease complexity. In profiling, the following dimensions are considered:
Topic Complexity
How complex is your topic? Is it clear or not? Do you know where to get the important information? How
controversial is the topic? Do you have the necessary expertise within the project? Etc.
Actor Complexity
Which actors are you dealing with? Is collaboration challenging? How is your relationship with your target groups?
Do you have access to them, are they cooperating, or are they possibly even in conflict? Are there language barriers?
Procedural Complexity
How demanding are the methods and procedures you are using in your project? Do you know which ones you
need and can handle them well? Are the participants ready for them (e.g., for online tools)? Etc.
Resource
Scarcity
How scarce are your temporal, personnel, financial, etc., resources? Do you have enough helpers? Is there clear
funding? Do you perhaps not even need financing? Etc.
Time
Pressure
How high is the time pressure? Is there a deadline by which the project must be completed? How soon? How relaxed
and flexible are you, and can you, if necessary, take detours by extending deadlines or using iterative learning loops?
Binding
Requirements
How extensive are the obligations you and external parties need to meet for the project? Do you have to follow certain
guidelines or complete the project in a specific way? Should the results even be collectively binding – for example,
legal authority? Etc.
Next, evaluate each dimension based on its complexity (0 = low complexity; 10 = high complexity). Mark a cross on the respective axis. By connecting the crosses, you will create the individual complexity profile of your process or project. This will allow you to see clearly where to focus your attention and what should be prioritized. It’s normal for a few dimensions to have a fairly high level of complexity. However, there shouldn’t be too many, as this can make things challenging. In such cases, consider whether and how you can reduce the complexity of certain dimensions. High complexity does not mean your project is “bad.” Rather, it indicates that your process design should be well adapted to it. For instance, if you are organizing a neighborhood meeting on sustainability where diverse people from conflicting groups are coming together, your actor complexity will be high. Your procedural complexity will also be high because you will need well-thought-out methods to engage and integrate the diversity of people and opinions. However, you also have the opportunity to create an excellent event that brings people together and achieves a lot. To ensure success and find the right processes for your project, you have matching.
Matching:
Matching is about responding to the various levels of complexity and adapting the process design so that it meets your expectations and remains feasible. For a neighborhood event with a heterogeneous group of participants, for example, you’ll need good, welcoming moderation, among other things.
After you’ve recorded the requirements profile during profiling, use a different color to map out the performance profile of your currently planned approach. This will show how well your approach is suited to handling the specific complexity and making it manageable. Where the performance profile significantly deviates from the complexity profile, you should make process adjustments (re-designing). Matching helps you optimize processes, methods, and procedures to meet the requirements.
During matching, the openness of the process is measured, analogous to the dimensions of complexity. The question is: How suitable, or open, is our process design to effectively address and manage the six dimensions? To explain how you arrived at each value (0 to 10), note down the key arguments that either increase (+) or decrease (-) complexity. A (+) indicates an open process when measuring the performance profile, while a (-) represents a factor that makes the process more difficult.
You can find the German Canvas here.
You can find the English Canvas here.
You can find the Spanish Canvas here.