Alternatives Analysis
A decision-making technique that compares available options to choose the most suitable approaches for accomplishing the project's work.
Key Points
- Uses defined criteria (cost, schedule, scope, quality, risk, resources) to compare viable choices.
- Can be qualitative or quantitative, using tools such as cost-benefit analysis, scoring models, trade-off analysis, and make-or-buy evaluations.
- Applied during planning and whenever selecting methods, designs, suppliers, or risk responses throughout the project.
- Produces a documented recommendation with rationale, assumptions, and constraints for stakeholder review and approval.
Example
The team must decide how to host a new application: on-premises, in a public cloud, or as a managed SaaS platform. They score each option against total cost, time to deploy, security, performance, and operational risk. The analysis shows SaaS delivers faster rollout with acceptable risk and cost, so the project selects the SaaS option.
PMP Example Question
While planning, a project manager compares several technical solutions using weighted criteria for cost, schedule impact, quality, and risk to justify a recommended approach. Which tool or technique is being used?
- Alternatives analysis
- Decomposition
- Parametric estimating
- Benchmarking
Correct Answer: A — Alternatives analysis
Explanation: Alternatives analysis evaluates and contrasts different options against defined criteria to select the best approach for performing project work.
