Consultancy Management Techniques in Decision Making - Essay Example

The decision to call for the refurbishment of the press number two was a smart decision as they had the option of replacing the entire line. They also appreciated the fact that they did not have the capacity to do the actual work but they could outsource for another team of experts with enough qualifications to undertake the works. This forms the second step of the smart model of decision-making that identifies a preferable course of action (Harvard Business School 2006).

The mechanism of identifying the best person or firm best suited to conduct the predetermined works forms the next step of the smart model of decision-making. The terms of experts at WM pressings proceed to examine the four companies on the basis of their portfolios on previous performance indices, abilities to deliver on intended duty, innovation and versatility and most important of all, the multi-functional team wanted to catch a glimpse of the company’s’ sensitivity. These elements are examined against the protection of the environment through the analysis of these innovations on cutting down their energy consumption and other environmentally friendly initiatives.

Identification of the Relevant Attributes.

More often than not, decision makers are often caught up in a difficult situation when they are presented with various alternatives against a backdrop of an equally challenging array of organizational objectives. It is for this reason that the identification of all the required attributes based on the different characteristics of the alternatives come in handy in the smart model. For the case of the company, it was realized that all the companies in contention for the contract had non cost attributes that were in contrast with the company’s preferences hence the team was directed to produce equivalent swing weights for the purposes f measuring the comparable performances of the four groups in sync with the objectives of the intended purposes of hiring.

Analysis of the attribute’s Perfomance for each Alternative.

The next step in a SMART model of decision-making is the development of value trees or swing weights for the four companies. The analysis of the four company could now be conducted both qualitatively that would be quite complicated and quantitatively that involved a simple comparison of the numerical attributes of the aspects selected by the team of experts. A rating system would be created for qualitative analysis of the attributes, as the comparisons are quite complicated for the swing weights.

Determination of the Weights per Attribute

The comparable analysis and determination of the competitiveness of the cost attribute form the backbone of the smart model in decision making from where one of the four companies would be awarded the contract based on competitive costing of their contracts as a direct factor of benefit to the WM pressing company. Finally, from the assessment of the performance benefit attributes the contract is awarded to the Drystone Company.

Weighted averages per Attribute

The Drystone company is the best suited to carry out the refurbishment at the WM pressings due to the high scores on its attributes when the rating system was developed where the most preferential option most appealing to the team of experts was accorded the highest score for each attributes and the worst performing company awarded the least score. This is justified by the application of the outranking method where data availability is assumed similar to the one required for the Maut method (Vincke 1992).In this scenario, a number of pairwise similarities were performed inside the compounding segments of the swing weights and again at an elevated level of the swing structures.

Provisional Decision-Making

Additionally, in the determination of the weighted scores among the four companies, the team of experts adopted the used of the method of pairwise comparisons in determining the comparable weighted scores of the swing weights of all the contenders for the award of the contract as per the criteria used in assessing the companies. It alsois seen that Drystone Company presented the most consistent weighted scores in the four non cost attributes beating Arndale and Bell companies by a very wide margin (Converse 1964).

Sensitivity Analysis

A sensitivity analysis is important in aiding the processes of decision making from the resulting uncertainties. Sensitivity analysis involves the variation of input parameters of a particular model, the SMART model for this case and the observations of the changes that result in the output of the model. The process also examines variations in the models’ output. Therefore, sensitivity analysis of the OIL project would test the quality of the model used in making its decisions and for the verification of the whole process of analysis (Rios 1990).

Heuristics may not have been instrumental in making decisions especially for large cooperate entities as the WM pressings, but it surely did provide answers on the limitations of its applications, and the tendency, so to speak of simplifying decision-making processes. The majority of policy makers are highly ignorant of the methods of making decisions and heuristics in management will most likely remain to be the rarest documented facts in the fields of strategic decision-making and Cooperate leadership (Lam and Wong 2011).

A minority of people understand the dynamics involved in making decisions and this course has equipped me with the prerequisite understanding of the dynamics involved in taking honor in the making of important decisions of both short term and long-term significance to my life and the life of others. From this module and the OIL project, in particular, I have quipped myself with a mountain of knowledge on various aspect involving the reasonable identification, adoption and utilization of quality data and information regarding my academic and professional maturity. From the OIL project, I garnered invaluable information on the operations, mandate, and the methods and tools employed in making decisions in ten of the world’s most renowned management and financial consulting firms. Moreover, the OIL Project Group Work activity in the creation of Google documents on Jaguar Land Rover Company’s environmental analysis added to my list of new knowledge and experience in decisions appraisals and formulating global expansionary strategic decisions. TARUC’S activity quenched my incapacities in understanding different techniques in global financial consultancy foreign to my native system.

In addition to the selection, identification, and interaction with positive and beneficial data from this particular model, I have gained unrivalled abilities in putting together the pieces of data and information at my discretion to make all the correct decisions concerning my social, academic, and financial aspects of my life. Moreover, logical analysis of the information has enabled me to sharpen my presentation skills at various platforms including the interactions over the social media. I have also come to interact with a range of numerous methods, techniques, and tools currently being employed by today’s managerial personnel hence instilling in my person the urge to go out there and be the positive change that the youth of today yearn for (Forman and Selly 2001).

In conclusion, the skill gained in understanding the SMART model of decision making and its application and the benefits of the accuracies of the decisions made, will continue to inspire me and the careers I intend to pursue in future hoping of getting to a point where I will be looked upon to make decisions touching various aspects of the people and the environment surrounding us.