OrganizationWeaver uses Nobel Prize winning algorithm

It was with positive surprise we learned yesterday that Alvin E. Roth and Lloyd S. Shapley shared the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for their work on matching supply and demand for everything from single men and women to organ donors and their recipients.

The so-called Gale-Shapley algorithm from 1962, which is the basis for the prize, plays an important role in OrganizationWeaver’s “Match” module.

The algorithm is used to solve the so-called “Stable marriage problem”, which is about how males and females can form couples in such a way that everyone is happy with the result, and no-one wishes to break up. And this is exactly how the algorithm contributes in our staffing workflow: OrganizationWeaver Match combines employees with positions in such a way that employees are happy with the position and the position is filled by a well suited employee. An optimal solution.

It’s worth noting that the simplicity of such an elegant algorithm as the Gale-Shapley algorithm limits its reach somewhat. To extend its applicability to more real world employee matching problems, the OrganizationWeaver Match modules combines this algorithm with several other workflow elements and alternative mathematical matching algorithms. None-the-less, Gale-Shapley is at the core of OrganizationWeaver, and helps our customers build stronger organizations than was previously possible.

We congratulate the worthy winners.