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36 Decisions involving multiple objectives: SMART
Value
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
Figure 3.2 – A value scale for office image
0
Addison Square
Elton Street
Filton Village
Denver Street
Gorton Square
Bilton Village
Carlisle Walk
175 ◦ F and 104 ◦ F, respectively. Clearly, the first temperature is no longer
twice the second temperature. However, we can say that an increase
in temperature from 40 ◦ to 80 ◦ C is twice that of an increase from 40 ◦
to 60 ◦ C. You will find that such a comparison does apply, even if we
convert the temperatures to degrees Fahrenheit.
Having established an initial set of values for image, these should
be checked to see if they consistently represent the preferences of the
decision maker. We can achieve this by asking him, for example, if
he is happy that the improvement in image between Elton Street and
Addison Square is roughly as preferable as the improvement in image
between Gorton Square and Denver Street. Similarly, is he happy that
the improvement in image between Carlisle Walk and Denver Street
is less preferable than that between Denver Street and Elton Street?
The answers to these questions may lead to a revision of the values.
Of course, if the owner finds it very difficult to make these sorts of
judgments we may need to return to the value tree and see if we can
break the image down into more measurable attributes. Nevertheless, it
should be emphasized that the numbers allocated by the owner to the
different offices do not need to be precise. As we will see later, the choice
of a course of action is generally fairly robust, and it often requires quite
substantial changes in the figures supplied by the decision maker before
another option is preferred.