# Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) Worksheet

## Overview
Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis is a structured approach to evaluate complex decisions involving multiple, often conflicting criteria. This framework helps make transparent, defensible decisions by systematically weighing different factors.

## Decision Context

### Decision Statement
**What decision needs to be made?**
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

**Decision Deadline:** _____________
**Decision Maker(s):** _________________________
**Key Stakeholders:** _________________________

### Decision Objectives
**Primary Objective:**
_________________________________________________________________

**Secondary Objectives:**
1. _________________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________________
3. _________________________________________________________________

## Criteria Development

### Criteria Identification
List all relevant decision criteria:
1. _________________________
2. _________________________
3. _________________________
4. _________________________
5. _________________________
6. _________________________
7. _________________________
8. _________________________

### Criteria Hierarchy
**Category 1: Financial Criteria**
- [ ] Initial cost
- [ ] Operating cost
- [ ] ROI/Payback
- [ ] Revenue potential
- [ ] Other: _________________________

**Category 2: Technical Criteria**
- [ ] Performance
- [ ] Reliability
- [ ] Compatibility
- [ ] Scalability
- [ ] Other: _________________________

**Category 3: Strategic Criteria**
- [ ] Alignment with strategy
- [ ] Competitive advantage
- [ ] Market position
- [ ] Innovation potential
- [ ] Other: _________________________

**Category 4: Risk Criteria**
- [ ] Implementation risk
- [ ] Technical risk
- [ ] Market risk
- [ ] Regulatory risk
- [ ] Other: _________________________

**Category 5: Other Criteria**
- [ ] Environmental impact
- [ ] Social responsibility
- [ ] Employee satisfaction
- [ ] Customer satisfaction
- [ ] Other: _________________________

## Criteria Weighting

### Pairwise Comparison Matrix
Compare each criterion against others (1-9 scale: 1=equal importance, 9=extremely more important)

| Criteria | C1 | C2 | C3 | C4 | C5 | C6 | C7 | C8 | Geometric Mean | Weight |
|----------|----|----|----|----|----|----|----|----|----------------|--------|
| C1 | 1 | | | | | | | | | % |
| C2 | | 1 | | | | | | | | % |
| C3 | | | 1 | | | | | | | % |
| C4 | | | | 1 | | | | | | % |
| C5 | | | | | 1 | | | | | % |
| C6 | | | | | | 1 | | | | % |
| C7 | | | | | | | 1 | | | % |
| C8 | | | | | | | | 1 | | % |

**Consistency Ratio:** _____ (should be < 0.10)

### Direct Rating Method (Alternative)
| Criterion | Importance (1-100) | Normalized Weight |
|-----------|-------------------|-------------------|
| | | % |
| | | % |
| | | % |
| | | % |
| | | % |
| Total | 100 | 100% |

## Alternative Identification

### Options Under Consideration
**Alternative 1:** _________________________
Description: _________________________________________________________________

**Alternative 2:** _________________________
Description: _________________________________________________________________

**Alternative 3:** _________________________
Description: _________________________________________________________________

**Alternative 4:** _________________________
Description: _________________________________________________________________

**Alternative 5:** _________________________
Description: _________________________________________________________________

## Performance Evaluation

### Performance Matrix
Rate each alternative on each criterion (1-10 scale or actual values)

| Criterion | Weight | Alt 1 | Alt 2 | Alt 3 | Alt 4 | Alt 5 |
|-----------|--------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|
| | % | | | | | |
| | % | | | | | |
| | % | | | | | |
| | % | | | | | |
| | % | | | | | |
| | % | | | | | |
| | % | | | | | |
| | % | | | | | |

### Value Function Transformation
For criteria with actual values (e.g., cost, time), transform to 0-100 scale:

| Criterion | Worst Value | Best Value | Alt 1 Score | Alt 2 Score | Alt 3 Score |
|-----------|-------------|------------|-------------|-------------|-------------|
| Cost | $ | $ | | | |
| Time | | | | | |
| Quality | | | | | |

## Scoring Methods

### Simple Additive Weighting (SAW)
| Alternative | Weighted Score Calculation | Total Score | Rank |
|-------------|---------------------------|-------------|------|
| Alt 1 | | | |
| Alt 2 | | | |
| Alt 3 | | | |
| Alt 4 | | | |
| Alt 5 | | | |

### TOPSIS Method (Optional)
**Ideal Solution:**
- Best values for each criterion: _________________________

**Negative-Ideal Solution:**
- Worst values for each criterion: _________________________

| Alternative | Distance to Ideal | Distance to Negative-Ideal | Relative Closeness | Rank |
|-------------|------------------|---------------------------|-------------------|------|
| Alt 1 | | | | |
| Alt 2 | | | | |
| Alt 3 | | | | |

## Sensitivity Analysis

### Weight Sensitivity
**Critical Criteria to Test:**
| Criterion | Current Weight | Test Range | Impact on Ranking |
|-----------|----------------|------------|------------------|
| | % | ±% | |
| | % | ±% | |
| | % | ±% | |

### Performance Sensitivity
**Critical Scores to Test:**
| Alternative | Criterion | Current Score | Break-even Point |
|-------------|-----------|---------------|------------------|
| | | | |
| | | | |

### Scenario Analysis
**Scenario 1: Conservative**
- Emphasis on: _________________________
- Weight adjustments: _________________________
- Winning alternative: _________________________

**Scenario 2: Aggressive**
- Emphasis on: _________________________
- Weight adjustments: _________________________
- Winning alternative: _________________________

**Scenario 3: Balanced**
- Emphasis on: _________________________
- Weight adjustments: _________________________
- Winning alternative: _________________________

## Negotiations

### Stakeholder Positions
| Stakeholder | Preferred Alternative | Key Concerns | Negotiable Points |
|-------------|---------------------|--------------|------------------|
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |

### Negotiation Strategy
**Common Ground:**
- Shared objectives: _________________________
- Agreed criteria: _________________________
- Acceptable alternatives: _________________________

**Trade-offs Available:**
1. _________________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________________
3. _________________________________________________________________

**BATNA (Best Alternative to Negotiated Agreement):**
_________________________________________________________________

## Investment Analysis

### Financial Metrics Comparison
| Alternative | Initial Investment | NPV | IRR | Payback Period | Risk-Adjusted Return |
|-------------|-------------------|-----|-----|----------------|-------------------|
| Alt 1 | $ | $ | % | years | % |
| Alt 2 | $ | $ | % | years | % |
| Alt 3 | $ | $ | % | years | % |

### Investment Risk Profile
| Alternative | Market Risk | Technical Risk | Regulatory Risk | Overall Risk | Risk Mitigation |
|-------------|-------------|----------------|-----------------|--------------|-----------------|
| Alt 1 | H/M/L | H/M/L | H/M/L | H/M/L | |
| Alt 2 | H/M/L | H/M/L | H/M/L | H/M/L | |
| Alt 3 | H/M/L | H/M/L | H/M/L | H/M/L | |

### Portfolio Impact
**Current Portfolio Characteristics:**
- Expected return: _____%
- Risk (σ): _____%
- Sharpe ratio: _____

**Portfolio with Each Alternative:**
| Alternative | New Expected Return | New Risk | New Sharpe Ratio | Diversification Benefit |
|-------------|-------------------|----------|------------------|----------------------|
| Alt 1 | % | % | | |
| Alt 2 | % | % | | |
| Alt 3 | % | % | | |

## Business Operations

### Operational Impact Assessment
| Alternative | Process Changes | System Integration | Training Needs | Implementation Time |
|-------------|-----------------|-------------------|----------------|-------------------|
| Alt 1 | | | | |
| Alt 2 | | | | |
| Alt 3 | | | | |

### Resource Requirements
| Alternative | Personnel | Technology | Infrastructure | Working Capital |
|-------------|-----------|------------|----------------|-----------------|
| Alt 1 | FTE | $ | $ | $ |
| Alt 2 | FTE | $ | $ | $ |
| Alt 3 | FTE | $ | $ | $ |

### Operational KPIs
| Alternative | Efficiency Gain | Quality Impact | Customer Satisfaction | Employee Productivity |
|-------------|-----------------|----------------|---------------------|---------------------|
| Alt 1 | % | +/-% | +/-pts | +/-% |
| Alt 2 | % | +/-% | +/-pts | +/-% |
| Alt 3 | % | +/-% | +/-pts | +/-% |

## Decision Documentation

### Final Rankings
1. **Winner:** _________________________ (Score: _____)
2. **Runner-up:** _________________________ (Score: _____)
3. **Third:** _________________________ (Score: _____)

### Key Decision Drivers
1. _________________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________________
3. _________________________________________________________________

### Assumptions and Limitations
**Key Assumptions:**
1. _________________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________________

**Limitations:**
1. _________________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________________

## Implementation Roadmap

### Pre-Implementation Checklist
- [ ] Final approval obtained
- [ ] Resources allocated
- [ ] Team assembled
- [ ] Risks identified and mitigated
- [ ] Success metrics defined
- [ ] Communication plan ready

### Implementation Phases
**Phase 1 (Months 1-3):**
- [ ] _________________________________________________________________
- [ ] _________________________________________________________________

**Phase 2 (Months 4-6):**
- [ ] _________________________________________________________________
- [ ] _________________________________________________________________

**Phase 3 (Months 7-12):**
- [ ] _________________________________________________________________
- [ ] _________________________________________________________________

### Success Monitoring
| Metric | Baseline | 3-Month Target | 6-Month Target | 12-Month Target |
|--------|----------|----------------|----------------|-----------------|
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
| | | | | |

## Example Application

**Decision:** Select new ERP system
**Alternatives:** SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, Custom Build

**Criteria & Weights:**
- Total Cost (25%)
- Functionality Fit (20%)
- Implementation Risk (15%)
- Scalability (15%)
- User Experience (10%)
- Vendor Support (10%)
- Integration Capability (5%)

**Result:** Microsoft Dynamics selected
- Scored highest on cost-effectiveness and user experience
- Acceptable functionality with lower implementation risk
- Strong integration with existing Microsoft infrastructure

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*Date Completed:* _____________
*Decision Maker:* _____________
*Review Date:* _____________