A decision-making process for selecting of lean tools implementation methods by means of analytical hierarchy process in health center

Abstract

Decision making is contemplated as a serious task in management context and it becomes more challenging when appropriate alternatives should be selected among various options based on some criteria. Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is one of the multi-criteria decision making methods, which is widely used in management science because of its reliable and acceptable performance. In this study, a novel execution of adjusted AHP in decision making was utilized in a case study in Iran in order to find the best method for application of lean concept among alternatives. Previous-mentioned alternatives are consulting, college student, and internal human resource. Case study results demonstrated that using consultants for carrying out lean tools is the best method. The degree of consistency is satisfactory and proved the accuracy and correction of application of AHP in finding the best method for implementation of lean tools. © 2013 Penerbit UTM Press. All rights reserved.