Decision Trees
A decision tree, another useful tool of analysis, is a visual representa-
tion of the alternative courses and their probable outcomes. Think
of it as a road map of the various choices.
Figure 5-1 represents the decision tree for a company that is cur-
rently developing a new product. At this point, management must
choose between two alternatives: A, abandon the project, and B,
continue development.
Abandonment naturally leads to a dead end. Continuation,
however, is bound to produce one of two outcomes: a successful
product launch or a failed launch. Each of those outcomes has an as-
sociated probability (P). Probability represents a n