An expert support system for R&D project selection

Abstract

The research and development (R&D) project selection decision is concerned with the allocation of resources to a set of proposals for scientific and engineering activities. The project selection and resource allocation process can be viewed as a multiple-criteria decision-making problem, within the business strategic planning process. This paper develops an expert support system for industrial R&D project selection based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process. The modeling framework links the mission, objectives and strategy of the business unit with the criteria which are used for selecting R&D projects. The rating of individual projects is accomplished in a spreadsheet format because of the large number of project proposals which typically require evaluation. Benefit-cost analysis and integer programming are used to assist in the resource allocation decision. The paper concludes with an evaluation of the suitability of this approach as an expert support system, and directions for future research.