The real estate selection process might be regarded as a typical Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) problem. With current literature concentrating predominantly on institutional investment decision making, additional effort should be directed towards studying inexperienced homebuyers who want to buy a property in which to live. In this context, authors have described the decision environment as a complex decision process with restricted access to property data, high financial burdens partially due to the illiquid nature of the investment, the unfamiliarity with the decision task and low transparency in information aggregation. Consequently, this situation could benefit from a more structured approach that assists homebuyers in their actions. In order to guide the decision making process and provide a suitable support mechanism, it is necessary to first structure the problem and extract the required information. A thorough literature review shows that little guidance is available for MCDM problem structuring. Consequently, this research first proposes an MCDM problem-structuring framework to decompose complex problems into smaller parts. Foremost, the application is intended for high-involvement consumer products and services. This framework is derived from MCDM and methodology literature, where the former provides the elements that need to be defined in any MCDM problem situation, and the latter suggests suitable data collection and analysis methods to obtain the information. As a result, the first contribution to existing literature is the introduction of an MCDM problem-structuring framework, which consists of a carefully designed sequential exploratory mixed method procedure. Next, following the proposed structure, the real estate selection problem in Majorca (Spain) is defined. Whilst providing the inherent problem elements and establishing a comprehensive list of evaluation criteria to assess luxury properties, the fieldwork also offers behavioural insights, contributing and supplementing existing real estate research. In particular, major misunderstandings and false assumptions during real estate agent and client interactions are observed, stressing the need to optimise communication and targeting strategies. On the basis of the relevant real estate evaluation criteria, a dataset of alternative houses is created and subsequently rated by prospective luxury-homebuyers. This provides the basis for the third research focus, the construction of a decision support model for real estate selection. In accordance to the problem features and model requirements, the Evidential Reasoning (ER) rule is identified to offer a powerful and transparent evidence aggregation process, with the potential to have a superior performance than other methods in addressing the selection decision. Due to the ER rule’s short history (2013), application studies in general are practically non-existing and unprecedented in the real estate domain. Therefore, the use of a modified ER model can provide the real estate literature with a prescriptive multi-criteria decision support mechanism, whilst simultaneously offering an application study for the MCDM community and other relevant decision analysis domains. In closing, modelling a real problem using the ER rule highlights the method’s advantages and might in turn increase awareness, leading to more applications.

Inköp och leverantörsval påverkar företags konkurrenskraftighet. För att behålla sin position på marknaden och skapa långsiktiga relationer måste företag välja rätt partnerföretag. Företag kan uppnå sitt mål med leverantörsrelationer med hjälp av begränsat antal samarbetspartner, rätt bedömning och segmentering av leverantörer. Inköpsprocess och bedömningsmetod studerades på ett fallföretag för att erhålla information om ett nuvarande läge som sedan med hjälp av teori kunde operationaliseras och analyseras. Detta görs i huvudsak med hjälp av Multi-Criteria Decision Making, Kraljic matris och inköpspolicy. Resultatet presenterades med hjälp av sex leverantörer. För att leverantörerna ska vara godtagbar skall alla ‘obligatoriska’ krav uppfyllas i inköpspolicyn och erhålla ett önskat läge i Kraljic matris. Nyckelord: Kraljic matris, leverantörsbedömning, standardiserad bedömningsmall, inköpsprocess, Multi-Criteria Decision Making, Analytical Hierarchical Process, BFP-Bedömningsmall för produktleverantörer.

Companies today are aggressively finding ways to improve top-line growth by introducing innovative products faster to the market. To achieve both innovation and accelerated rollout, many are turning to techniques such as Stage Gate approaches to improve engineering and marketing collaborations to clarify short term resource allocations (day to day plan with employee assignment). While Stage Gate approaches have been shown to result in better project coordination and faster time to market by doing projects right, research also indicates the need to ensure alignment to company strategy by doing the right projects within the allocated annual budget through medium term (rough cut capacity plan with employee requirements) and long term resource allocations (business / strategic plan with funding requirements). Today, such medium to long term resource allocation methodologies tend to be broadly consolidated under Research and Development (R&D) product portfolio management. We argue that there is value in a philosophical change in viewing R&D product portfolio management from the context of (1.) long and medium term resource allocation phases separately, (2.) focusing on the overlapping regions between long and medium term and between medium and short term resource allocation phases and (3.) the evolving resource allocation perspective (monetary to headcount to skillset) through these phases. Cooper et al note that for R&D product portfolio management and the Stage Gate process to work together, one can expect one of two scenarios - a gates dominated approach (where the prioritization and resource decisions are made at short term focused Stage Gates) or a portfolio reviews dominated approach (where the prioritization and resource decisions are made at the long term focused portfolio reviews). We propose that with appropriate focus given to the medium term phase, a third approach that we call a Hybrid Gates approach can exist in a "gates dominated" environment. A case study on Freescale Semiconductor was used as an empirical inquiry to gain deeper understanding on the perceived value of this approach within a real-life context. Triangulating between structured surveys, unstructured surveys, and focused interviews; we were able to show perceived value to the organization in the following areas: (1.) Enhancing the understanding of decision maker's decision and solution spaces, (2.) Clarifying strategic expressions and "stress testing" new strategies, (3.) Improving horizontal and vertical communication within the organization and (4.) Aiding in objectivity in R&D investment allocation. Furthermore, we were able to conceptually show how this approach retains the advantages of the gates dominated and portfolio dominated approaches while minimizing their respective weaknesses. This research is novel and unique as we have not found any research literature that focuses on a Hybrid Gates approach perspective or studies where the implementation of MO-ZOLP is: (1.) this large in scale and (2.) designed specifically to support a Stage Gate dominated environment. We believe that this research contributes to the practising educator and researcher by providing them with an alternative approach on R&D project portfolio management in complex organizations that are using a Stage Gate process. We also believe that this research is valuable to the practitioner by providing them with a practical process and methodology in which change management for such activities can be achieved. In addition, we assessed the on-going value added to the organization, thus linking theory to practice and finally, to outcome.

For a little less than twenty years, researchers have worked on integrating Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Multi-Criteria Decision Aid (MCDA). Several contributions have been done by integrating DEA with different MCDA methods to bring this field to what it is today. After studying the course of Multi-Criteria Data Envelopment Analysis (MCDEA) integration through numerous works, the future of such an attempt can be questionable. For this aim, the PROMETHEE method in MCDA has been integrated with DEA. To the best of our knowledge, this synergy has been done for the first time in this thesis.Two synergies have been conducted: Using PROMETHEE in DEA and vice versa. The first contribution applies PROMETHEE in DEA to develop a new weight restricted DEA model. This new model has two main characteristics: more discrimination power between efficient units and engaging a priori information of decision makers in DEA. The second contribution uses both DEA and PROMETHEE to propose a new ranking technique. DEA is employed to generate a pairwise comparison matrix to be used in PROMETHEE for the purpose of ranking alternatives. The last contribution uses DEA in PROMETHEE. It presents a new algorithm to propose weights in the context of the PROMETHEE II method based on DEA. Furthermore, these two methods can be used in parallel. Comparing the results obtained from DEA and PROMETHEE in evaluating the performance of units enriches the analysis of decision-making problem by confirming the robustness of answers. The purpose of this integration is to provide some tools to help decision makers in the process of evaluating the performance of alternatives and analyzing the multicriteria decision-making problems. / Doctorat en Sciences de l'ingénieur et technologie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Nos travaux sont menés dans le cadre des architectures logicielles pour des applications interactives dont le principe général d’exécution adaptative a été défini au sein du laboratoire. Nous nous plaçons dans l’hypothèse où une application interactive est contextualisée au moyen de situations. L’utilisateur exécute des actions dans le contexte de situations successives pour avancer dans l’application interactive jusqu’à atteindre un ou plusieurs objectifs prédéfinis par le concepteur. Au cours de son déroulement, il se peut que l’utilisateur ne puisse plus continuer selon la logique du concepteur à cause des blocages du système ou une insuffisance de données pour poursuivre la logique d’exécution. Pour y remédier, un système d’aide à la décision est indispensable pour permettre au système et/ou à l’utilisateur de faire un choix adapté au contexte pour poursuivre l’exécution de l’application. Nous proposons d’améliorer le processus de décision en utilisant les traces des exécutions précédentes. Pendant l’exécution de l’application, un système à base de traces (système de gestion de traces) va collecter toutes les traces générées par l’utilisateur et les traces d’activité (les logs) au cours de l’interaction avec le système. Les contributions de nos travaux se situent à plusieurs niveaux : la conception d’un algorithme à base de traces pour la pondération des critères de décision ; la conception d’un algorithme de détermination des alternatives ; la définition et la formalisation des logiques de choix de l’utilisateur (utilisation de la logique subjective) et du système (PROMETHEE II à base de traces) pour classer les alternatives et l’agrégation des différents choix pour suggérer à l’utilisateur un choix final à exécuter. Un cas d’étude Tamagotchi est présenté pour valider nos contributions. / Our work deals with software architectures for adaptive interactive applications. We assume that one application is structured with contextual interaction sequences called situations. Users perform actions in successive situations to reach one or more predefined designer’s objectives. During its execution, it could happen that the user cannot fulfil designer’s logic because of some system’s blockings or missing data. Our challenge is to propose a method that chooses the most appropriate situation according to the given one. We propose to improve the decision-making process by using the generated traces during previous executions. These traces represent users’ interactions and system activity logs. A trace-based system collects and manages all users’ generated traces (logs). Our main contributions are: the design of a trace-based algorithm for criteria weighting; the design of an alternatives determination algorithm; the design and the formalisation of the users’ choice (using the trace-based subjective logic) and the system’s choice (using the trace-based PROMETHEE II) to classify all the identified alternatives and the aggregation of different choices to suggest to the user the right option to follow. A Tamagotchi case study is presented to validate our contributions.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Use of Performance Measurement Systems through multi-criteria analysis to support the decision is constituted as an important tool that can support the diagnosis of competitiveness of organizations. Since the approach is intertwined with the business results and more specifically to the competition, this work focuses on measuring the performance of companies in the wine industry in southern Brazil, from business and industry dimensions. For this we opted for a qualitative and quantitative research, exploratory and descriptive, conducted through a multi case study. From the development of modeling and application in the wine sector in the region under study, it became possible to verify the criteria and critical success factors in the competitive landscape, that through multi-criteria analysis and use of performance indicators enabled the identification of prioritizing factors and the distinction regarding organizational performance in the context of the evaluated dimensions. The overall picture shows that only one of the companies surveyed can be considered fully competitive, confirming the strength of the pressures on the sector and the absence of strategies that allow companies a representative expansion. / O uso de Sistemas de Medição de Desempenho (SMD) através da análise multicritério como suporte a decisão se constitui como uma importante ferramenta capaz de subsidiar o diagnóstico da competitividade das organizações. Visto que a abordagem se entrelaça com os resultados empresariais e de maneira mais específica com a competição, esse trabalho concentra-se em medir o desempenho das empresas do setor vitivinícola na região sul do Brasil, a partir das dimensões empresarial e setorial. Para isso optou-se por uma pesquisa de natureza qualitativa e quantitativa, exploratória e descritiva, realizada através de um estudo multicaso. A partir do desenvolvimento da modelagem e aplicação no setor vitivinícola da região em estudo, tornou-se possível verificar os critérios e os fatores críticos de sucesso do cenário competitivo, que através da análise multicritério e utilização de indicadores de desempenho viabilizaram a identificação da priorização dos fatores e da distinção, no que tange o desempenho organizacional no contexto das dimensões avaliadas. O panorama geral mostra que apenas uma das empresas pesquisadas pode ser considerada plenamente competitiva, o que confirma a intensidade das pressões sobre o setor e a ausência de estratégias que permitam as empresas uma representativa expansão.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The oil discoveries in Brazilian pre-salt began a strong mobilization of government and also private companies to the rescue of the shipbuilding industry in the country. With the objective to become the Brazilian industry globally competitive, various government incentives provided growth, expansion and modernization of this industry that already ranks fourth in the ranking of the largest craft producing countries of the world. In this context, despite not being a young industry in Brazil, shipbuilding, especially focused on oil exploration (offshore) proved to be important element for the growth of the economy, creating jobs, developing producing regions and boosting the entire chain productive. Despite the favorable environment in which shipbuilding and offshore industries are, there are still gaps that undermine competitiveness these organizations in the global market, as the skilled labor available, the adequacy of suppliers to their demands and the large need for investment in technology. Thus, this dissertation project aims at proposing a model able to measure the level of innovation in Brazilian shipbuilding and offshore, in the structural and business fields, based on a literature and documentary research on the characteristics of the industry sector, using for both assumptions regarding the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and the concepts of multi-criteria decision aid. The proposed model will be put to test in real companies, returning in its evaluation phase an index that represents the competitive performance of each industry evaluated, thus allowing comparison and discussion of the results. Subsequently, will be proposed recommendations able to leverage the innovation of those who submit the most unsatisfactory levels, thus demonstrating the relevance of modeling to increase the sector's competitiveness against the scenario that presents itself. / As descobertas de petróleo no pré-sal brasileiro iniciaram uma grande mobilização do governo e também de empresas privadas para o resgate da indústria de construção naval em todo país. Com o objetivo de tornar o setor brasileiro mundialmente competitivo, vários incentivos do governo proporcionaram o crescimento, expansão e modernização desta indústria que já ocupa a quarta posição no ranking dos maiores países produtores de embarcações do mundo. Neste âmbito, apesar de não ser um setor jovem no Brasil, a construção naval, em especial a voltada para exploração de petróleo (offshore) mostrou-se elemento importante para o crescimento da economia, criando empregos, desenvolvendo regiões produtoras e impulsionando toda a cadeia produtiva. Apesar do ambiente favorável em que se encontram as indústrias de construção naval e offshore na última década, ainda existem lacunas que prejudicam a inovação e a competitividade destas organizações no mercado global, como a qualificação da mão-de-obra disponível, as adequações dos fornecedores às suas demandas e a grande necessidade de investimento em tecnologia. Assim, este projeto de dissertação tem por objetivo propor uma modelagem capaz de mensurar o nível de gestão da inovação em indústrias de construção naval e offshore brasileiras, fundamentada em uma pesquisa bibliográfica e documental sobre as características do setor, utilizando-se para tanto dos pressupostos referentes aos Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) e dos conceitos da abordagem multicritério de apoio à decisão. A modelagem proposta foi submetida a teste em empresas reais, retornando em sua fase de avaliação um índice que representa o desempenho em inovação de cada indústria avaliada, permitindo-se assim a comparação e discussão dos resultados obtidos. Posteriormente, foram propostas recomendações capazes de alavancar a gestão da inovação daquelas que apresentaram os níveis mais insatisfatórios, demonstrando-se assim a relevância da modelagem para elevar a inovação do setor frente ao cenário que se apresenta.

Abstract Groundwater, a key part of the hydrological cycle, is under increasing pressure from different land uses and changing climate. However, less attention has been paid to integrated groundwater management than surface waters. This thesis combined hydrological and socio-economic research for the case study of the Rokua esker aquifer in order to update current concepts of groundwater management. The Rokua area contains groundwater-dependent lakes and a periodic water level decline has raised concerns about the future of these lakes. Peatland drainage in the vicinity of the aquifer has been accused of changing the aquifer conditions. Groundwater discharge from the esker aquifer to drained peatland was studied to identify relevant hydrological processes for groundwater-surface water interactions. The results revealed a connection between the aquifer and the peatland whereby groundwater can enter the ditches through seepage or preferential flow. Modeling was used to determine critical factors in the management of the esker aquifer-peatland system. The results showed that climate and land use can affect esker groundwater, while peatland drainage in the vicinity can have similar impacts to groundwater abstraction and drought. Peatland restoration by filling in drainage ditches could possibly restore the aquifer groundwater levels. However, for the Rokua aquifer, which will possibly experience less severe dry periods in the future, extensive drainage restoration is currently too major, uncertain, and expensive a measure relative to the expected benefits. Multi-criteria decision analysis was used to identify ways of facilitating stakeholder involvement and learning in groundwater management. The results obtained with this participatory process confirmed that it can foster learning on complicated groundwater issues and collaboration in a process encompassing disputes and diverse interests. The decision analysis process led to the initiation of dialogue on more integrated management, where the preferences of all stakeholders were discussed and taken into account. Overall, this thesis shows how different aspects of aquifer management, such as land use, climate, ecological and economic values, and stakeholder preferences, can all be taken into account using a combined method which reduces the mistrust between opposing interests through research and information, resulting in more robust future planning. / Tiivistelmä Pohjaveteen, hydrologisen kierron avainosaan, kohdistuu kasvavia paineita eri maankäytön muodoista ja ilmastonmuutoksesta. Pohjaveden hallintaan ei kuitenkaan ole kiinnitetty tarvittavaa huomiota. Tässä väitöstyössä yhdistettiin hydrologista ja sosioekonomista tutkimusta Rokuan harjualueella pohjaveden hallintakonseptin päivittämiseksi. Rokuan alueella on useita pohjavedestä riippuvaisia järviä, joiden vedenpinta on kausittain laskenut voimakkaasti. Pintojen lasku on kasvattanut paikallisten huolta järvien tilasta. Harjua ympäröivät metsäojitetut turvemaat, ja ojituksia on syytetty pohjaveden tilan ja sitä kautta myös järvien tilan heikkenemisestä. Työn ensimmäisessä osassa tutkittiin pohjaveden hydrologisia purkautumisprosesseja harjun pohjavesiesiintymästä ojitetulle suoalueelle. Tulokset osoittivat hydraulisen yhteyden akviferin ja turvemaan välillä: pohjavesi pääsi purkautumaan metsäojiin joko suotautumalla tai turpeen kaksoishuokoisuusrakenteiden kautta. Seuraavassa vaiheessa työtä pohjavesimallinnusta käytettiin määrittämään kriittisiä pohjaveden tilaan vaikuttavia tekijöitä pohjavesi-turvemaa-systeemissä. Mallinnustulosten perusteella niin ilmasto kuin maankäyttökin vaikuttavat kumpikin suoraan pohjaveden pinnankorkeuden tilaan. Turvemaiden ojituksilla pohjavesialueella voi olla samoja vaikutuksia pohjaveden pinnankorkeuden tasoihin kuin pohjaveden otolla tai kuivilla kausilla. Turvemaiden ennallistaminen ojia täyttämällä voi osittain palauttaa vedenpinnan tasoja pohjavesialueella. Rokuan harjualueen tapauksessa suuren mittakaavan oja-alueiden ennallistaminen todettiin kuitenkin liian epävarmaksi ja kalliiksi toimenpiteeksi hyötyihin nähden, varsinkin jos kuivien kausien vaikutus suurilla harjualueilla heikkenee tulevaisuudessa sademäärien kasvun myötä. Työn kolmannessa osassa käytettiin monitavoitearviointia eri sidosryhmien osallistamiseen ja oppimiseen pohjavesien hallinnassa. Osallistavasta prosessista saadut tulokset vahvistivat, että menetelmää voidaan käyttää oppimisen edesauttamiseen vaikeissa pohjavesiasioissa sekä yhteistyön muodostamiseen ristiriitaisessa ja monimutkaisessa tapauksessa. Monitavoitearvioinnin prosessi johti keskustelun avaukseen yhtenäisemmän suunnittelun puolesta, joka ottaa huomioon eri sidosryhmien näkökulmat ja tuo ne osaksi keskustelua. Tämä väitöstyö osoitti miten eri pohjavesialueen hallintaan tarvittavat näkökulmat, kuten maankäyttö, ilmasto, ekologiset ja ekonomiset arvot, sekä sidosryhmien mielipiteet voidaan kaikki ottaa huomioon yhdistämällä eri metodeja. Näin tutkimuksella ja informoinnilla vähennetään epäluottamusta eri intressitahojen välillä ja luodaan pohja vakaammalle pohjavesialueiden tulevaisuuden suunnittelulle.

Wind Power Project Development is a complicated, capital and resource-inclusive process, where a wide variety of factors have to be considered and several stakeholders have a significant say in the process. Decision making in such an environment is complex and has to be approached comprehensively. In order to sustain a structured and clear decision-making process, the sustainable energy industry has recognized Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) method as a suitable set of tools to aid in the decision-making process. One of the MCDA tools – PROMETHEE II, has been examined in this master thesis, to evaluate its eligibility as a decision making aid in wind power project development. To structurally and realistically evaluate the tool, it has been applied to a case study in Ventspils region, in Latvia. The author of this thesis has a preliminary agreement with the owners of the sites to develop the project, therefore, this thesis has a strong potential for a practical implementation in future. Four scenarios have been developed for an evaluation, contributing to four variations of the different amount of turbines erected, with two different hub heights, on two differently sized sites. The scenarios are assessed based on the interests of six key stakeholders. Their opinion on twelve criteria is examined. Input data for each criterion has been generated via WindPro and MS Excel software or by authors assessment based on the researched literature. PROMETHEE II is used to extrapolate a comprehensive and clear representation of the results. The evaluation of the MCDA method proved that MCDA tools, and PROMETHEE II, in particular, can provide excellent support in decision making in wind power development. A wide variety of input data, as well as the various and often contradicting interests by different stakeholders, can be taken into account, while, at the same time, a clear result that can assist in decision making, is generated.  Wind Power Project Development is a complicated, capital and resource-inclusiveprocess, where a wide variety of factors have to be considered and severalstakeholders have a significant say in the process. Decision making in such anenvironment is complex and has to be approached comprehensively. In order to sustaina structured and clear decision making process, sustainable energy industry hasrecognized Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) method as a suitable set of tools toaid in the decision making process. One of the MCDA tools – PROMETHEE II, hasbeen examined in this master thesis, to evaluate its eligibility as a decision making aidin wind power project development.To structurally and realistically evaluate the tool, it has been applied on a case study inVentspils region, in Latvia. The author of this thesis has a preliminary agreement withthe owners of the sites to develop the project, therefore, this thesis has a strongpotential for a practical implementation in future. Four scenarios have been developedfor an evaluation, contributing to four variations of different amount of turbines erected, with two different hub heights, on two differently sized sites. The scenarios are assessed based on the interests of six key stakeholders. Their opinion on twelve criteria examined. Input data for each criterion has been generated via WindPro and MS Excel software orby authors assessment based on the researched literature. PROMETHEE II is used to extrapolate a comprehensive and clear representation of the results.The evaluation of the MCDA method proved that MCDA tools, and PROMETHEE II in particular, can provide excellent support in decision making in wind power development. Wide variety of input data, as well as the various and often contradicting interests by different stakeholders can be taken into account, while, at the same time, a clear result that can assist in decision making, is generated.

De nombreuses industries ont mené des recherches en vue de choisir la méthode appropriée afin d'améliorer les résultats, notamment Lean manufacturing et Six Sigma. Ce travail de thèse s’intéresse principalement à l’influence de l’implémentation de ces méthodes au sein des entreprises françaises, selon trois critères : financier, opérationnel et innovation. Les résultats de nos recherches montrent que les entreprises, appliquant Lean manufacturing et Six Sigma, sont plus efficacies pour l'amélioration des performances en matières financière et opérationnelle. Par ailleurs, les entreprises qui utilisent juste une partie des pratiques de Lean manufacturing et/ou de Six Sigma ont montré des améliorations limitées. En ce qui concerne le volet innovation, nous avons montré que l’implémentation de Lean manufacturing est suffisante pour avoir une amélioration des performances. En outre, nous avons constaté que les pratiques de Lean manufacturing et Six Sigma, telles que One Piece Flow, Kanban, 5S, etc. contribuent fortement à l’amélioration des performances. Les résultats statistiques montrent également que les facteurs clés, de la réussite de la mise en place de Lean et Six Sigma, peuvent être significativement différents selon la méthode. / Many industries conduct research in order to decide on the appropriate methodology for delivering optimal performance outcomes such as Lean Manufacturing or Six Sigma. Therefore, this research shows the influence of different categories based on the implementation method against three criteria: financial performance, operational performance and innovation performance. Research results indicate that companies implementing Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma were more effective in improving company performance across financial and operational dynamics. Additionally, it shows companies who implemented Lean Manufacturing only saw improvements in innovation performance. Moreover, we found that Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma practices such as One Piece Flow, Kanban, 5S, etc, supported increases in companies’ performance. The statistical results also show that the key factors for the success of Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma implementation could differ depending on the method employed.