CS 334 Management Information System

1. CS 334Management Information System Improving Decisions with Decision Support Systems Management Information Systems, Third Edition; David Kroenke & Richard Hatch; McGraw-Hill, 1994.Chapter 14, page 686

2. Content • DSS Goals and Applications • Components of DSS • Hardware • Programs • Data • People • Procedures • DSS Development

3. WHAT IS DSS • An interactive computer-based system • facilitates the solution of unstructured • (& semistructured) problems • specialized type of business info sys • To cut across personal, workgroup, & enterprise levels. • Example • Suppose Legacy Systems faces an extended labor strike • and needs to determine • the impact of reduced operations • on the company & its financial position. • There is no fixed, predefined set of rules for this. • When the answer is developed • it will be difficult to know • how accurate it is, whether it was the best answer.

4. Fundamental DSS Program Structure The 3 program components: Dialogue M C - users interface w/ it. Its a set of programs that manage the user interface & translates the user’s requests into commands for the other 2 components. Model M C - stores & executes business activity models, including spreadsheets, operations research models, financial models, & simulation models. Data M C - maintains DSS data. Manages DSS database & provides an interfaces to enterprise data & other external sources data. Note: Not all DSSs have all the components.

5. DSS Task Environment • 4 dimensions to DSS task Environment : • Degree of Structure • Level of Application • Phase of the Decision Process • Recurrency

6. Degree of Structure • DSSs are designed • to address unstructured (or semistructured) problem environments. • But the degree of structure • isn’t the main part of the problem; • the process for addressing the problem is more important: • “How structured is the process for solving the problem?” • not “How structured is the problem?” • Example: • weather is very unstructured. • But most of its prediction is done • by a well-known, predefined & highly structured process. • So it doesn’t fall into an unstructured problem environment.

7. Level of Application • Refers to the level of management : • operational control, • management control, • and strategic planning. • Although DSSs may seen to apply at higher levels, • DSSs can be used for all of the levels , • that require unstructured or semistructured process. • Example of how it applies at operational level: • At a production scheduling activity of company X; • accelerating a critical order is an operational control issue. • To do this within the limitations of X’s manufacturing system, • the production schedulers need to adjust/adapt • the week’s production activities • using a very unstructured process.

8. Phase of the Decision Process • Refers to 3 primary phases of decision making: • - intelligence gathering • to produce info that shows • the key elements of problems • & the interrelationships of those elements • - alternative development & • to identify, create, & communicate • alternative courses of action & other decision alternatives • - choice. • To facilitate choice by estimating costs & benefits, • by projecting other outcomes of decisions, • by communicating these projected results to decision makers • DSSs can be used for all three phases.

9. Recurrency • DSS tasks may or may not recur. • Some DSS applications deal with problems • that will never occur again. • example: maybe the labor strike • Some tasks regularly recur. • example: the scheduling production- must be done every day of every week • Some tasks are intermittent • (recur but not regularly). • example: the need to assemble a construction crew • for an offshore drilling operation • is an unstructured problem • that recurs, but not regularly

10. Decision Support Systems: GDDSs • Initially, DSSs were seen • as tools for individual decision makers or analysts, • where the results of the individual’s DSS would be • viewed, • printed, • graphed • for the individual’s decision • or taken to a meeting to discuss the results. • However, Group Decision Support Systems (GDDSs) • move the DSS into the group environment. • Members of a group communicate • with each other • and with the DSS facilities • via computer workstations

11. Groupware • information system • facilitate & coordinate group activities, • including decision making. • The purpose is • to reduce or eliminate process losses of the group interaction • so the group reaches or exceeds its task. • A number of factors that lead to process losses

12. Group Process Losses

13. Groupware Products • Groupware products to facilitate group meetings: • Electronic brainstorming • provides an interactive computer environment • where participants enter & share ideas about a topic. • Idea organization • participants group the comments • that resulted from the electronic brainstorming • into logical categories.

14. Groupware Processes • 3 ways of facilitating processes using groupware (in meetings): • Chauffeured process: • a meeting facilitator is the only user of the groupware program. • Enters comments on behalf of the group. • Groupware purpose is to record & reduce Failure to Remember • Supported process: • the group members are both verbal & electronic means • to communicate with one another. • Interactive process: • almost all group communication occurs • through the groupware application

15. Functions of DSS Applications Used to identify relationships among key elements of the problem -what is dependent on what Ex: eliminating 10 bulldozers may save $1 in logistic support costs; but saves $10 in support costs Ex: a plot of sales data on a map can reveal differences in market size or sales effectiveness; the same plot repeated over some time periods can help identify trends Ex: DSS can estimate the impact on sales of doubling the size of the sales team, inc advertising, or new product. DSS can develop one or more equations that relate output to input. Ex: An Equation relating sales to no of sales personnel, or sales to advertising, or both Ex: solving the problem of allocating people to jobs.If eliminate 50 bulldozers, 500 employees become available. Some of their skills will be in demand, some not. Need a match between alternative skills & available jobs. Decisions are made by consensus. Even a single authority relies on the input of other team members.

16. COMPONENTS OF A DSS • 5 components: • Hardware • Programs • Data • People • Procedures

17. DSS : PROGRAM • 4 categories of programs defined for personal, workgroup, & enterprise MIS also apply to DSS applications : • - System programs • - Horizontal Market programs • - Vertical Market programs • - Custom-developed programs

18. Horizontal Market Programs (or DSS shells) • Provides features & functions DSSs components across many industries. • It’s also called DSS shells or DSS generators • Sometimes DSS shells are constructed • from off-the-shelf horizontal market applications • Sometimes no single horizontal market program • can fulfill all requirements for a DSS application • so a DSS shell is created by integrating a number of different horizontal products

19. Vertical Market DSS Programs • Provide support • for a specific class of problems • and for problems in a particular industry. • It’s also called generalized DSSs. • Ex: Manufacturing scheduling DSSs

20. Vertical Market DSS Program Packages

21. Custom-Developed DSS Programs • Created for a purpose for a particular user, workgroup, or enterprise. • The most expensive style of application program development • because the cost of development must be carried by one organization • It’s • time-consuming development • does not meet the schedule requirements of most DSS problems.

22. DATA COMPONENT OF A DSS • 2 types of data are managed for DSS applications: • Model data • 2 problems of data in DSS applications : • the risk of data incompatibilities • the need for multiple versions of the same data • DSS Database data

23. End of Chapter 14 Improving Decisions with Decision Support Systems