When a group makes a decision, that decision carries a lot more weight
than when just one person does it. Think of the founding fathers of the
American constitution and how much power and influence their ideas have
had in the entire world for more than two hundred years. Also think of
gravity, a universal force brought about by an enormous number of minute
particles that band together to make a universal law. Together, they
create a massive force, a law of nature; alone they can barely be
noticed.
That is how our minds work by deciding together to create a
power that transcends our individuality. Group decision making is a gift
and an opportunity to create greater influence through the working
together of many minds.
This book shows how to use the Analytic
Hierarchy Process for hierarchical decision making and the Analytic
Network Process for decision making in networks with dependence and
feedback in group decision making. Part I discusses the group and the
decision and shows the importance of using a structured process,
particularly for those high value decisions involving many powerful
parties with different interests. It discusses how to facilitate a group
decision, combine individual judgments and smooth differences to arrive
at a decision that everyone can live with and get behind.
Part II
discusses the group in planning and how to draw out differences. Part
III is about conflict resolution and Part IV is about how to address
significant issues that come up in group decision making and shows that
it is possible to construct an overall group preference.