Nothing changes the course of world history, public policy and business results like decision-making. Good decisions are based on an in-depth understanding of the benefits, opportunities, costs and risks inherent in our choices. To make the best choices, decision-makers need information. Those decisions are hampered by the growing tidal wave of undifferentiated information that is the sign of our times.
By some estimates, the amount of digital information is increasing tenfold every five years. We have reached an amazing point in human history: We are collecting so much information that it is impossible to know what we know. Hidden among the bits and bytes, encoded as zeros and ones, are trends, connections and insights that both define and shape our world.
How can businesses and government institutions find meaningful and actionable insights to inform decisions and improve performance?
This article looks at one way to uncover those trends, connections and insights: a mathematical principle called the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Developed in the 1970s, AHP is now being integrated into complicated decision-making processes by both public sector and private industry.
