What is a decision matrix?

Imagine you have to make a decision between several options, but that are clear strengths and weaknesses of each option, which makes it difficult to choose between them. When there’s not a straightforward option to choose from, a decision matrix can help you to reach one. It’s worth using a decision matrix when you have the following considerations to make:

• When you need to select one choice from several different options;
• When you have to select a choice based on different criteria;
• When you can only develop one product or service;
• When you have to take one approach to solving a problem;
• When you only have a limited time to select an option from a selection of choices.

How to create a decision matrix

While there are several different types of decision matrix, there are some basic considerations to make first while designing your matrix. In order to reach a decision using a decision matrix, you’ll need to create a list of criteria which you need to include, as well as any criteria that you believe won’t be necessary in the process. That way, you can work out what criteria are most important, and will help you to make the best choice. For example, you might look at health and safety, customer value, and costs as key criteria.

Let’s look at a simple decision matrix example so that you can get a clearer idea of how you can use one, before examining a few other possible alternatives:

Step one: identify your decision outcome

Identify what you are trying to decide on. This might be whether to hire someone as your new employee, how to reduce customer waiting times, or whether to give an employee a promotion or raise. Let’s imagine you’re trying to decide whether to hire a particular candidate as an employee. Incorporate this into the title of your decision matrix so that you know what the aim of it will be.

Step two: create a table

A decision matrix usually takes the form of a table. You might assign a different factor to each column, such as a candidate’s leadership skills in the first column, analytical skills in the second column, communication skills in the third column, and so forth. You can then choose your first candidate for the first row, your second candidate for the second row, and so forth.

Step three: assign scores and select the option that receives the highest total

Each candidate can be given a score from one to five for each skill column (or other decision influencing factor), whereby if they meet the criteria extremely well, they score a five, and where they don’t meet the criteria at all, they score a one. Each candidate receive a score depending on how well they meet the criteria you set out. The candidate with the highest total score – the one that meets the majority of your criteria most effectively – is the one you select out of the group.

Weighted decision matrix

A weighted decision matrix might be more useful to you if the different criteria you’re looking to assess an option by have certain levels of priority. When creating a weighted decision matrix, therefore, you should first start by identifying what the most important criteria are in your process.

Once you’ve decided on the criteria which are likely to be part of the outcome of your decision, you can assign a weight to them, which is a number ranging between one to give. The criteria with the most weight – or the criteria you give the highest priority to – receives a five, and the criteria with the least weight – or the criteria you give the lowest priority to – receives a one.

Using our example of selecting a candidate in the previous section, imagine that you have different priorities when selecting a candidate. Perhaps you’ve decided that leadership skills are the most important skill for your managerial role, and second to that are communication skills. The least important skill out of the group is tech skills – you’ve decided – but these are still a consideration to make when selecting your candidate, and you’ll still be assessing for this skill during the interview.

Using our scoring system of one to five, you’ll assign leadership with a score of five, communication with a score of four, and so on. You then multiply the score each candidate receives for meeting the criteria (on a scale of one to five as in our simple decision matrix), meaning that even if a candidate only scores well on your most important criteria, there’s a good chance that this will boost their final total score, making them your preferred choice. A candidate that meets your less important criteria well may not be selected if they do not score highly on your most important criteria.

If you shuffle the different weighted scores of your criteria, you might find that a different candidate receives the highest score. Therefore, a weighted decision matrix is not only useful in helping you to reach a decision in terms of your priorities, but also helps you to look at whether you might change the order of your priorities – you might decide to hire a candidate that goes against your original priority order, thus highlighting new factors to prioritise in the hiring process. In our scenario, you might find that a candidate who scores highly on tech skills rather than leadership skills brings a different perspective to your business, and you choose to hire them over another candidate.

Eisenhower decision matrix

An Eisenhower decision matrix might be more useful to you if you’re looking to work out what tasks to complete in order of both urgency and importance. This therefore makes it a useful matrix if you’re looking to make key decisions in a limited timeframe. It can be a great way to boost you and your team’s productivity, as it means that you’re able to distinguish between your urgent and important tasks.

It also means that you’re able to separate your different tasks by what to complete first, what to delegate to a different employee, what to get rid of, and what to schedule in for later.

To use an Eisenhower decision matrix, start by creating your ‘to-do list’ of different tasks that you’re looking to complete. Then, you’ll need to separate these different tasks into four quadrants, represented by the labels ‘urgent’, ‘not urgent’, ‘important’, and ‘not important’. Tasks that are both urgent and important are tasks that you should be completing as soon as possible, so these take your priority.

Tasks that are not important but urgent can be delegated instead, as they still need to be completed according to an upcoming deadline but don’t require your specialist skills. Those that are important but not urgent can be scheduled for later, as they can help you reach your goals but don’t have an upcoming deadline. Finally, tasks that are not important and not urgent can be deleted, as they take up valuable time and don’t contribute to you reaching your aims.

A decision matrix is a great way to work out what decision to make when all the options to hand look promising. What’s more, decision matrices like the Eisenhower matrix enable you to structure the completion of tasks based on importance and urgency. A weighted decision matrix allows you to assign priorities to different factors influencing your key decisions. When you’re using decision matrices to solve problems, you can increase productivity as it allows you to make more confident choices when faced with multiple possibilities.