week 3 - Genius Papers

Assigned Readings:Chapter 4. Life-Cycle CostingInitial Postings: Read and reflect on the assigned readings for the week. Then post what you thought was the most important concept(s), method(s), term(s), and/or any other thing that you felt was worthy of your understanding in each assigned textbook chapter.Your initial post should be based upon the assigned reading for the week, so the textbook should be a source listed in your reference section and cited within the body of the text. Other sources are not required but feel free to use them if they aid in your discussion.Also, provide a graduate-level response to each of the following questions:

Discuss the effect of taxes on the life-cycle costing (LCC) of passenger cars. Compare domestic and imported cars.
Discuss the effect of LCC on the decision to locate a new warehouse.

Maurice Micklewhite has decided to replant his garden. Show him what the cost is of making an erroneous decision at various stages of the project, starting with conceptual design and ending with the ongoing maintenance of the garden.

This is to be in narrative form and should be as thorough as possible. Bullet points should not to be used. The paper should be at least 1.5 – 2 pages in length, Times New Roman 12-pt font, double-spaced, 1 inch margins and utilizing at least one outside scholarly or professional source related to project management. The textbook should also be utilized. Do not insert excess line spacing. APA formatting and citation should be used.

Assigned Readings:Chapter 5. Portfolio ManagementProject Screening and SelectionChapter 6. Multiple-Criteria Methods for Evaluation and Group Decision MakingInitial Postings: Read and reflect on the assigned readings for the week. Then post what you thought was the most important concept(s), method(s), term(s), and/or any other thing that you felt was worthy of your understanding in each assigned textbook chapter.Your initial post should be based upon the assigned reading for the week, so the textbook should be a source listed in your reference section and cited within the body of the text. Other sources are not required but feel free to use them if they aid in your discussion.Also, provide a graduate-level response to each of the following questions:

Identify a project that you are planning to pursue either at home or at work. List all of the components, decision points, and chance events. What is the measure of success for the project? Assuming that there is more than one measure, how can you reconcile them?
What experiences have you had with group decision making? What difficulties do you see arising when trying to perform a multiple-criteria analysis with many interested parties involved? How might these difficulties be overcome, or at least mitigated?

Activity I: Three new-product ideas have been suggested. These ideas have been rated as shown in the Table below Product* CriteriaABCWeight (%)Development costPFVG10Sales prospectsVGEG15ProducibilityPFG10Competitive advantageEVGF15Technical riskPFVG20Patent protectionFFVG10Compatibility with strategyVGFF20 100* P = poor, F = fair, G = good, VG = very good, E = excellent

Using an equal point spread for all five ratings (i.e., P = 1 , F = 2 , G = 3 , VG = 4 , E = 5 P=1, F=2, G=3, VG=4, E=5), determine a weighted score for each product idea. What is the ranking of the three products?
Rank the criteria, compute the rank-sum weights, and determine the score for each alternative. Do the same using the rank reciprocal weights.
What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of this method of product selection?.

Activity II: Using MAUT and the AHP, perform an analysis to select a graduate program. Explain your assumptions and indicate which technique you believe is most appropriate for this application.