Criteria screen

Notes


 * M = Mandatory
 * O = Optional
 * Mandatories are pass/fail
 * Optionals are ranked from 1-5 (or similar)
 * Eliminate any option that fails a mandatory
 * Total remaining options Optional ratings

This tool can be used to discuss a variety of opitons or select from them. It is most useful when there are five or more options to select from.

The process is to go through all criteria, and classify each as either mandatory or optional. Each option will be checked against the mandatory criteria and will either pass or fail. Any option that fails any mandatory criterium is dropped, reducing the number of options left.

Then all the optional criteria are ranked with a numeric score for each remaining option. A simple method is to assign each option/criterium a number between 1 (worst) and 5 (best). Alternatively, you could weight some criteria more than others by giving them a wider spread (say 1 to 10 for a criteria that was more important).

Assign values to each optional criterium for each option and then total the amount for each option. Some options will have higher totals and should be considered more viable than others. Often at this point, the choice becomes clear.

If you do need to futher trim down the selection, you can drop each option that falls below a certain threshold, or you can take a fresh look at your optional. Which of them might you now want to consider mandatory? This can also reduce the number of viable options remaining.