A company is planning on expanding and building a new plant in one of three Southeast Asian countries. Chris Ellis, the manager charged with making the decision, has determined that five key success factors can be used to evaluate the prospective countries. Ellis used a rating system of 1 (least desirable country) to 5 (most desirable) to evaluate each factor.

KEY SUCCESS FACTOR WEIGHT CANDIDATE COUNTRY RATINGS TAIWAN THAILAND SINGAPORE Technology 0.2 4 5 1 Level of education 0.1 4 1 5 Political and legal aspects 0.4 1 3 3 Social and cultural aspects 0.1 4 2 3 Economic factors 0.2 3 3 2

a) Which country should be selected for the new plant?

b) Political unrest in Thailand results in a lower score, 2, for Political and legal aspects. Does your conclusion change?

c) What if Thailand’s score drops even further, to a 1, for Political and legal aspects? Lop9