An Analysis of Job Change Decision Using a Hybrid Mcdm Method: A Comparative Analysis

Abstract

<p>This paper investigates the decision process relating to job change which mostly depends on individual’s expectations about a job. Failing to fully understand the factors shaping these expectations leads to dissatisfaction and poor work performance; which produces unwanted consequences for both individuals and businesses. Since job change decision is defined as a multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) problem. This study uses a hybrid approach as a methodology combining fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Analysis (AHP) and fuzzy TOPSIS (Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) for the job change decision of a faculty working in a university. In this approach, while the use of fuzzy AHP method helps determine the weight of the decision criteria; fuzzy TOPSIS enables the evaluation of the alternatives. In order to investigate the methods’ applicability in multiple dimensions of decision problem space, a comparison analysis is conducted with the three methodologies; fuzzy AHP, fuzzy TOPSIS and the proposed hybrid approach (named fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS) in the same decision making context. Four factors are considered for the comparison: adequacy to changes of criteria or alternatives; agility in the decision process; computational complexity; and the number of criteria and alternatives. Analysis shows that three methods achieve the same results. This verifies their robustness and indicates that MCDM methods are viable in job change decisions. However; comparison analysis shows that based on the four factors; the proposed hybrid fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS method provide more consistent results than fuzzy AHP and fuzzy TOPSIS methods. Thus the proposed hybrid fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS method is more appropriate to use on a wide range of job change decision problems.</p>