Rapid scoring of alternatives

Everyone wants to make quick, hiqh quality decisions.  It’s important to find a balance between “analysis paralysis” and “speed kills”.  For example, I encourage the folks that I mentor to take their time when defining criteria; understanding their stakeholders’ needs, walkaway points (must limits) and priorities is crucial to a high quality decision.  The best way to save time on this step is to start from a proven criteria pattern so all you have to do is “personalize” each factor to match your circumstances.

To save time, I recommend a very rapid scoring “first-pass” through the alternatives.  This captures your initial judgments about the relative effectiveness of the alternatives against each factor.  It also highlights when you need to do additional homework.

I designed the Think it Through tool within Decision Driven® Strategy and Life to encourage this rapid scoring process.

 

Users can simply drag an alternative icon into an appropriate scoring band and then capture a few “notes to self” to record the “why” behind their scoring judgment.  For a typical decision (10 criteria, 4 alternatives) these 40 scoring judgments can be easily done in 20 minutes as a first pass through the evaluation.  This will uncover areas for additional research; focusing the user on the most important “unknowns that need to be known” to make a confident decision.

Because the criteria have been previously weighted by dropping them into priority bands, users know they can spend less effort when scoring against the low priority factors; they are less likely to drive the decision.  This helps them avoid a “one-size-fits-all” mechanical approach to scoring that seems to be fostered by “spreadsheetitis”.

I then recommend a quick sanity check on the initial scoring pass.  We provide a Compare Alternatives tool that highlights the relative advantages/disadvantages (pros-cons, strengths-weaknesses) between any pair of alternatives.   Seeing their scoring judgments visually helps identify whether the decision is a “slam dunk” (all the factors point toward the same answer) or a toss-up that hinges on careful understanding of a few drivers.

  

Users can click on any bar to see their scoring rationale and determine whether additional homework is justified to refine and confirm their judgments.