information technology
Evaluation Matrix
An important tool you can use to make informed decisions
Decisions Can Be Difficult
- When making a choice among several options, it helps to know at the outset what is of greater or lesser importance to you
- Most of us cannot “have it all”
- The “yardsticks” you will use to measure how each option rates on different factors can be called criteria (singular is “criterion”)
Car Purchase
- Some factors (criteria) that may be important:
- Gas mileage
- Seating capacity
- Cost
- Warranty
- Cost of maintenance
- Cargo capacity
College Transfer Choices
- Cost
- Scholarships, Financial Aid (travel home-school)
- Courses Offered
- Transferable Credits
- Dual-Enrollment Programs
- Policies on Vehicles
- Housing
- Coed/ Single Apartments
- Legacy
- Known for certain educational program; HBCU; Ivy League
- Campus Activities
- Extra- Curricular; Greek Life; Sports
- Environment
- Community- large or small
- Close to home or not
Computer Choices
- Speed
- Memory
- Features
- Cost
- Brand reputation
- Operating system
- Style
- Warranty
Evaluating Study Aids
- Type of learning
- Environment (can it be done at home?)
- Timing (how much time do I have to invest learning how to use it?)
- Learning mode (single? Group?)
- Study source
Word Processors
- Price
- Compatibility
- Features
- Popularity
- User friendly formatting
Cell Phones
- Voice Minutes
- Data plan
- Style of phone
- Capacity of memory
- Complexity
- Service (signal strength)
- Smart phone
- Service provider
Determine your criteria and construct a matrix in Excel. Each criteria will be given a weight to reflect its relative importance
| Evaluation Matrix for Purchasing a Computer | |||||||
| Criteria | Weight | System 1 | System 2 | System 3 | |||
| Rating | Weighted score | Rating | Weighted score | Rating | Weighted score | ||
| processor speed | |||||||
| memory capacity | |||||||
| multimedia capability | |||||||
| vendor support | |||||||
| initial cost | |||||||
| Totals |
Memory capacity is our most important criteria so receives the highest weight. Cost, while still a concern, is not as critical as other factors.
| Evaluation Matrix for Purchasing a Computer | |||||||
| Criteria | Weight | System 1 | System 2 | System 3 | |||
| Weighted | Weighted | Weighted | |||||
| Rating | Score | Rating | Score | Rating | Score | ||
| processor speed | 25% | ||||||
| memory capacity | 30% | ||||||
| multimedia capability | 15% | ||||||
| vendor support | 20% | ||||||
| initial cost | 10% | ||||||
| Totals | 100% |
Rank the 3 systems on how well they meet criteria. System 1 did well on speed and cost, but poor on memory (important to us!). System 2 was good on memory but poor on vendor support.
| Evaluation Matrix for Purchasing a Computer | |||||||
| Criteria | Weight | System 1 | System 2 | System 3 | |||
| Weighted | Weighted | Weighted | |||||
| Rating | Score | Rating | Score | Rating | Score | ||
| processor speed | 25% | 90 | 75 | 75 | |||
| memory capacity | 30% | 60 | 90 | 80 | |||
| multimedia capability | 15% | 75 | 75 | 60 | |||
| vendor support | 20% | 75 | 60 | 75 | |||
| initial cost | 10% | 85 | 75 | 80 | |||
| Totals | 100% |
At this point you could total the ratings to get a raw score. This shows that System 1 scored the best.
| Evaluation Matrix for Purchasing a Computer | |||||||
| Criteria | Weight | System 1 | System 2 | System 3 | |||
| Weighted | Weighted | Weighted | |||||
| Rating | Score | Rating | Score | Rating | Score | ||
| processor speed | 25% | 90 | 75 | 75 | |||
| memory capacity | 30% | 60 | 90 | 80 | |||
| multimedia capability | 15% | 75 | 75 | 60 | |||
| vendor support | 20% | 75 | 60 | 75 | |||
| initial cost | 10% | 85 | 75 | 80 | |||
| Totals | 100% | 385 | 375 | 370 |
You should compute a weighted score by multiplying the weight you assigned times the rating you gave for a criteria.
| Evaluation Matrix for Purchasing a Computer | |||||||
| Criteria | Weight | System 1 | System 2 | System 3 | |||
| Weighted | Weighted | Weighted | |||||
| Rating | Score | Rating | Score | Rating | Score | ||
| processor speed | 25% | 90 | 22.50% | 75 | 18.75% | 75 | 18.75% |
| memory capacity | 30% | 60 | 18.00% | 90 | 27.00% | 80 | 24.00% |
| multimedia capability | 15% | 75 | 11.25% | 75 | 11.25% | 60 | 9.00% |
| vendor support | 20% | 75 | 15.00% | 60 | 12.00% | 75 | 15.00% |
| initial cost | 10% | 85 | 8.50% | 75 | 7.50% | 80 | 8.00% |
| Totals | 100% | 385 | 375 | 370 |
Sum up the weighted scores and a winner will emerge. System 2 appears to meet more of the criteria that we weighted as important to us.
| Evaluation Matrix for Purchasing a Computer | |||||||
| Criteria | Weight | System 1 | System 2 | System 3 | |||
| Weighted | Weighted | Weighted | |||||
| Rating | Score | Rating | Score | Rating | Score | ||
| processor speed | 25% | 90 | 22.50% | 75 | 18.75% | 75 | 18.75% |
| memory capacity | 30% | 60 | 18.00% | 90 | 27.00% | 80 | 24.00% |
| multimedia capability | 15% | 75 | 11.25% | 75 | 11.25% | 60 | 9.00% |
| vendor support | 20% | 75 | 15.00% | 60 | 12.00% | 75 | 15.00% |
| initial cost | 10% | 85 | 8.50% | 75 | 7.50% | 80 | 8.00% |
| Totals | 100% | 385 | 72.25% | 375 | 76.5% | 370 | 74.75% |
The summed up weighted score give a better result because it shows the one that rated the highest on things that were important to us!