Making Digitalisation Priorities Visible: Using the AHP Tool to Bridge Internal Perspectives
A case study conducted with TotalControlPro
Case Study Authors
Dolores Sanders (TotalControlPro), Dr Ayse Begüm Kilic-Ararat and Dr Arsham Atashikhoei (University of Bath)
Context
Digital technology solutions such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) can significantly improve operational efficiency, reduce costs, and improve customer service within the manufacturing sector. However, when developing and implementing these solutions, organisations often encounter a common challenge: different departments can have varying perspectives on the value of certain metrics. This misalignment can result in unclear decision-making and hinder the overall effectiveness.
To address this challenge, we have developed a structured decision-making approach using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Using pairwise comparison, the tool allows stakeholders to evaluate different criteria, such as productivity improvement, cost reduction, or customer satisfaction, and assign relative importance to each. Through this process, diverse expert opinions can be transformed into a set of prioritised metrics.
Objective
TotalControlPro are a software company offering a suite of digital technology solutions. Recognising that alignment across organisations can significantly influence decision-making, the company aimed to ensure its own internal teams shared a unified view of their technology’s impact. This shared understanding would support both customer engagement and future strategic goals. Once internal alignment was achieved, the same approach could be extended to clients to foster a shared understanding of their needs and ensure alignment across stakeholder groups.
Approach
We started by deploying the AHP tool internally. Employees across product development, sales, marketing, and operations completed a survey comparing 36 metrics related to operations, business performance, and human factors, including efficiency, cost, customer experience, employee engagement, resilience and supply chain. The survey results generated a clear ranking of priorities, revealing where employees’ perceptions aligned and where they diverged. Visual graphs of the results facilitated a discussion with the team, helping address differences and ensuring a shared understanding of technology priorities. We also outlined how the tool could be used with clients to gather insights that would inform product development and client engagement.
Insight
The AHP analysis revealed how different teams within TotalControlPro perceive the value of their technology. Data-driven decision-making and financial performance were consistently prioritised across all groups, reinforcing the company’s core focus. The Leadership team leaned toward human-centric outcomes such as customer satisfaction, public image, and employee growth, reflecting a broader strategic outlook. The Technical team emphasised business performance indicators such as company value and financial risk, while the Commercial team prioritised operational metrics like supplier quality and production visibility.
The session helped surface both common ground and differences between departments, offering a clear view of how each team defines success. This shared experience deepened understanding across roles and created a space to appreciate the motivations behind each perspective. Participants saw the tool’s potential not only for internal clarity but also as a resource to help clients uncover their own alignment challenges during digital transformation initiatives.
Teams also noted how the process can support clearer messaging and engagement strategies by highlighting which outcomes matter to different stakeholders. The exercise encouraged more thoughtful reflection on change, resistance, and the importance of aligning across business functions. The tool was recognised as fast, intuitive, and practical, with strong potential to refine discovery conversations and strengthen TotalControlPro’s value proposition.
Impact
“Applying the AHP tool internally delivered clear benefits for TotalControlPro. Our teams responded very positively, immediately recognising its broad applicability in a manufacturing environment. The structured framework helped us assess internal perspectives, improve alignment, and identify gaps. The visualised results sparked focused discussions, enhanced communication across teams, and clarified the impact of digital technologies.
We were impressed by how quickly meaningful insights could be gathered, which informed product development by helping us prioritise features aligned with key outcomes. The exercise also prompted valuable conversations around refining internal messaging, better reflecting client language in survey content, and improving external discovery sessions.
This momentum has led us to explore using the tool with clients to surface internal differences, build consensus, and guide digital transformation efforts with greater confidence.”
Dolores Sanders Co-CEO, TotalControlPro
For further information on this case study please contact the P-LD at P-LD@bath.ac.uk
Acknowledgement
This work was supported by the Innovate UK led Made Smarter Innovation Programme: People-Led Digitalisation Engagement and Impact Acceleration [Grant Reference UKRI1436] Centre for People-Led Digitalisation, at the University of Bath, University of Nottingham, and Loughborough University.