Weighted Scoring Model
Score each option against weighted criteria to find the objectively best choice.
When to Use
Use weighted scoring when you have multiple options and clear evaluation criteria. It removes emotion from the process by forcing numerical comparison. Excellent for vendor selection, feature prioritization, hiring decisions, and any multi-criteria evaluation where you need a defensible, documented rationale.
Steps
- 1
Define evaluation criteria
List the factors that matter: cost, speed, risk, strategic alignment, user impact, technical feasibility, etc.
- 2
Assign weights
Distribute 100 points across criteria based on relative importance. Cost might get 30, speed might get 20, etc.
- 3
Score each option
Rate each option on each criterion using a consistent scale (e.g., 1-5). Be specific about what each score means.
- 4
Calculate weighted scores
Multiply each score by its weight. Sum the weighted scores for each option. Highest total wins.
- 5
Validate and decide
Review the results. If the winner feels wrong, your criteria or weights need adjustment. That's valuable signal too.
Real-World Example
A procurement team evaluating three CRM vendors used weighted scoring with criteria: integration capability (30%), total cost of ownership (25%), user adoption risk (20%), vendor stability (15%), and customization options (10%). The model revealed that the cheapest option scored lowest overall due to poor integration support, saving the company from a costly mistake.
Pros
- Objective and defensible, great for audits and compliance
- Surfaces hidden trade-offs between options
- Scalable to any number of options or criteria
- Creates a documented decision trail
Cons
- Garbage in, garbage out: biased weights produce biased results
- Can create false precision (3.7 vs 3.8 isn't meaningful)
- Time-consuming for simple binary decisions
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