A decision support system linking research and development project selection with business strategy

Selecting a research and development (R&D) project involves a complex decision-making process. This article describes a planning process for linking project decision-making with business strategy, one that links R&D project activities with business unit objectives. It outlines the seven steps of developing this process, one known as mission, objectives, strategies (MOS). It then explains how to implement MOS using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), a methodology that permits hierarchical relationships and accommodates both subjective and uncertain information. It also describes an approach for rating projects and a method for allocating project resources, both of which use spreadsheets to aid in the decision-making process.