How to choose the best concept? How to decide as a team? How to document the process?

How would a group come to consensus? Agreeing on a process Supporting the outcome of the

process Merit-based debating Remaining cool and rational

Emphasis is on discovery

External decision Product champion Intuition Pros and cons Prototype and test Decision matrix

Possible methods of decision making

External decision: Boss Product champion: A member Intuition: Gut feelings and vote

Pros & cons: Discussion & vote of majority.

Prototype and test

Decision matrix: Each concept is rated w/r to specifications and ranked.

Two-stage methodology Concept screening

Initial screening (when > 10 concepts)

Concept screening matrix (> 5 concepts)

Concept scoring Concept scoring matrix (< 5 concepts)

Multi-vote technique Group eliminates unlikely concepts.

Allocate 10 dots to each members Choose the top 10 concepts

Process for using matrix methods 1. Identify the criteria 2. Choose a datum 3. Rate the concepts 4. Rank the concepts

Concept screening matrix Evaluate concepts w/r to

customer needs Use most important criteria Choose a reference (datum)

concept A favorite design A competitive product

Compare each concept with the datum concept

Give a score of + for “better than” datum Give a score of - for “worse than” datum Give a score of 0 for “same as” datum

Rank concepts

PDS Criteria Datum B C D E F

Wall Clearance

0 0 0 1 0 -1

Bolt clearance 0 -1 1 1 0 -1Max Load 0 -1 -1 1 1 -1Adaptability 0 1 1 0 1 0Effectiveness 0 0 1 0 1 0Weight 0 -1 -1 -1 1 -1Cost 0 0 -1 -1 -1 1

Total 0 -2 0 1 3 -3

Combine and improve concepts Select promising concepts. Reflect on the process.

It is important to have a single category for each important criteria. For example do not breakdown “cost” into: Cost Ease of manufacture / Assembly Material availability Labor

This practice inflates some criteria

If it is preferred to break down criteria, make sure the “importance” is also divided between them: Cost Importance 5

Or Materials 2 Labor 2 Tooling 1

This method can be used in Scoring Matrix

Concept scoring matrix The main criteria are listed as before Determine a weighting factor for each

criteria Done in QFD (as importance)

Rating the concepts (1-5): 1 : Much worse than reference concept 2: Worse than reference concept 3: Same as reference concept 4: Better than reference concept 5: Much better than reference concept

Alternate Absolute Scale Scoring Rating the concepts (1-5):

1 : Useless – Very inferior 2: Poor - inferior 3: Acceptable 4: Good or superior 5: Excellent or much superior

Consider buying a TV Selection Criteria

Cost Screen size Image clarity Warrantee Looks

Brand-A Cost: $350, size: 25”, 1 y, 0.28mm, OK looks

Brand-B Cost: $175, size: 19”, 6 month, 0.19mm,

Beautiful Brand-C

Cost: $430, size: 27”, 2 y, 0.28mm, Very ugly Brand-D

Cost $275, size 21”, 1 y, 0.15mm, ugly

Excell Good Adeq Poor Useles

Cost <$200 2-300 3-400 4-500 >$500

Size >=27" 25-27" 21"-25 19-21" 13-19"

Warr >4 y 2,3 1 .75 .25

Image <0.1 mm 0.15 0.20 0.25 >0.3 mm

Looks Snazzy Beautiful Not too bad

Ugly Very Ugly

Weight Brand-A Brand-B Brand-C Brand-D

Cost 0.2 3 5 2 4

Size 0.3 4 2 5 3

Warrty 0.1 3 1 4 3

Image 0.3 1 3 1 4

Looks 0.1 3 4 1 2

Total 2.7 3.0 2.7 3.4

Rate and rank concepts Combine and improve Select one concept

Consider variation in rates and weights on the final results.

Assess how much difference is really significant.

Reflect on the results This is “the point of no return” - Everyone

on the team must be in agreement about it.

Was your favorite option selected? If not, here are your options:1. Ask for a second round of debating 2. Study the decision matrix, why did

your design score lower than others?

3. Can you modify your design to address weaknesses

4. Did the team overlook strengths of your design?