The impact of criterion weights in facilities management decision making: an Australian case study

Purpose - Making appropriate decisions concerning the ongoing management of existing built facilities is an important activity for property and facilities managers. Such decisions comprise multiple criteria, and the relative importance of these criteria typically reflects the implicit preferences or biases of the decision maker(s). This paper seeks to apply a new property management 3D decision model known as iconCUR to investigate the impact of criterion weights on the decision to intervene. Design/methodology/approach - A retrospective case study of a real project in Sydney (Australia) that underwent adaptive reuse transformation in 2008 is used to test the sensitivity of implied decision-maker preferences in practice. Findings - It is found that significant change to individual criterion weights relating to aspects of building condition, space utilization and triple bottom line reward has minimal influence on the derived spatial coordinates that underpin the 3D decision model and hence the recommended intervention strategy in the particular case studied. Practical implications - It is further suggested that changes in criterion weights over time as expectations and situations may dictate can be accommodated without undermining the integrity of the decision-making process. Originality/value - The deployment of this type of approach, at least, documents the decision-making process involved in important property management strategies and exposes the frequently implicit preferences of decision makers. These preferences are shown not to be as critical as might have been suspected. This may add further confidence to the use of MCDA in facilities management decisions.