On the Road

Stack Ranking of European Cities

Stack ranking is a popular concept in the Corporate World. It's a way of setting (often inappropriate) criteria and a rating scale so that different people facing different circumstances can be made identical and, theoretically, ranked on an "equal" scale. In reality, it's illogical; there are too many unique circumstances and differences between managers and their perceptions. It's scary that these rankings are used to determine raises, promotions, granting of opportunities, etc. Inevitably, some candidates go to the top of the stack while others wallow at the bottom.

So, here's my stack ranking of the European cities I've visited over the past few months. It's based on attractions, ease of finding decent restaurants, affordability, friendliness, entertainment value, and the like.

In the case of Paris, Paris is Paris and regardless of affordability and friendliness, it ranks Number One. But then again, so does Dublin, the World's Largest Village. And London. Amsterdam? I hated it when I visited there while backpacking after college. Now I see it as a place where the impossible can and does happen.

See what I mean? There are always exceptions. No matter the criteria and qualifications, there's definitely some favoritism at work here.

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