Teresa Quek

The decision-making approach that this colleague is recommending is known as the rational choice paradigm which employs rationally and logic in its practice. Decision makers, in this practice, start by identifying the problem or recognize an opportunity.
Why is it this recommendation useful? It is important to identify the relevant factors for each agency as that would help to determine if an agency is suitable or not in meeting the demands of my organization of 2000 employees. Furthermore, weighing the importance of each factor will aid my company in scoping down the most appropriate choice according to the importance level.

However, the rational choice paradigm has its shortcomings. For one, the model assumes that people are efficient and logical information processing machines. However, we know that the greatest source of problem is always humans. When humans are involved, feelings and emotions are involved as well and thus, there will be times that decisions cannot be made rationally since emotions cannot be put aside. As said, the rational choice paradigm is so logical and therefore it is too ideal to be realized. Also, there are certain things which cannot be measured mathematically, as suggested by my colleague. For example, it is not possible to really calculate the amount of reliability of the agency mathematically. Therefore, this paradigm remains an ideal decision-making model which people would strive towards. In reality, this paradigm is rarely practiced in reality. There are other factors to consider when choosing which travel agency such as the quality of service, or the amount of reliability of that recommended agency.

Teresa Q