CHAPTER 9

Managerial Support Systems

CHAPTER OUTLINE
9.1 Managers and Decision Making
9.2 Business Intelligence, Multidimensional
Data Analysis, Data Mining, and Decision
Support Systems
9.3 Digital Dashboards
9.4 Data Visualization Technologies
9.5 Intelligent Systems
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 Describe the concepts of management,
decision making and computerized support
for decision making.
 Describe multidimensional data analysis and
data mining
 Describe dashboards
LEARNING OBJECTIVES (continued)
 Describe data visualization, and explain
geographical information systems and virtual
reality.
 Describe artificial intelligence (AI).
 Define an expert system and identify its
components.
 Describe natural language processing and
natural language generation, and neural
networks.
Chapter Opening Case
9.1 Managers and Decision Making

Management is a process by which

organizational goals are achieved
through the use of resources (people,
money, energy, materials, space,
time).
The Manager’s Job and Decision Making

Managers have three basic roles (Mintzberg

1973)
Interpersonal roles
Informational roles
Decisional roles
The Manager’s Job & Decision Making
(continued)
 Decision refers to a choice that individuals
and group make among two or more
alternatives.
 Decision making is a systematic process
composed of three major phases:
intelligence, design and choice (Simon 1977)
 Implementation phase was added later.
Decision Making Process
Why Managers Need IT Support
 The number of alternatives to be considered
constantly increases.
 Decisions must be made under time
pressure.
 Decisions are more complex
 Decision makers can be in different locations
and so is the information.
A Framework for Computerized
Decision Analysis
 Problem Structure
The first dimension deals with the problem
structure, where does the decision making
processes fall along the continuum ranging
from highly structured to highly unstructured
decisions.
Structured
Unstructured
Semistructured
The Nature of Decisions

The second dimension of decision support

deals with the nature of decisions
Operational control
Management control
Strategic planning
9.2 BI, Multidimensional Data
Analysis, Data Mining, and DSSs
Business Intelligence (BI)
Two types of BI Systems:
 Those that provide data analysis tools
 Multidimensional data analysis (or online
analytical processing)
 Data mining
 Decision support systems
 Those that provide information in structured
format
 Dashboards
How Business Intelligence Works
(Figure 9.3)
Multidimensional Data Analysis
 Provides users with a look at what is
happening or what has happened.
 Allows users to analyze data in such a way
that they can quickly answer business
questions.
Data Mining
 Searching for valuable business information
in a large database or data warehouse.
 Data mining performs two basic operations:
 Predicting trends and behaviors
 Identifying previously unknown patterns and
relationships
9.2 Decision Support Systems (DSS)
 Decision support systems
 DSS capabilities
 Sensitivity analysis
 What-if analysis
 Goal-seeking analysis
Group Decision Support Systems
(GDSS)
 Group decision support system (GDSS) is
an interactive computer-based system that
supports the process of finding solutions by a
group of decision makers.
 Decision Room is a face-to-face setting for a
group DSS, in which terminals are available
to the participants.
Organizational Decision Support
System (ODSS)
 Organizational Decision Support System
(ODSS) is a DSS that focuses on an
organizational task or activity involving a
sequence of operations and decision makers.
9.3 Digital Dashboards
 Dashboards:
 Provide rapid access to timely information.
 Provide direct access to management reports.
 Are very user friendly and supported by
graphics.
Sample Performance Dashboard
(Figure 9.4)
Another Example of Dashboard
Executive Dashboard Demo

http://www.informationbuilders.com/rfr/qtdem
o/AdvVis_ExecDash/AdvVis_ExecDash.html
A Bloomberg Terminal (Figure 9.5)
Management Cockpit (Figure 9.6)
Management Cockpit
 A strategic management room that enables top-level
decision makers to pilot their businesses better.
 The environment encourages more efficient
management meetings and boosts team performance
via effective communication.
 Key performance indicators and information relating
to critical success factors are displayed graphically
on the walls of the meeting room.
 External information can be easily imported to the
room to allow competitive analysis.
Halliburton’s CyberWell (IT’s About Business 9.3)

3D image
similar to that
produced by
CyberWell
9.4 Data Visualization Systems
 The Power of Visualization
 Even though a picture is “worth a thousand
words,” we have to be very careful about just
what we are seeing.
 Remember, on the Internet, it is “user
beware!”
New York City Police Department
Command Center

Data visualization in action

Example of data visualization

Hans Rosling at the TED Talks

Types of data visualization systems

Geographical Information Systems

Virtual Reality
Geographic Information System
GIS for
existing
land use
 GISMO

GISMO is a geographical information system

developed for the city of Corvallis, Oregon.
Virtual Reality
Technology of Data Glove
Virtual Reality manipulation with data glove
Driving Simulator
Flight Simulator

External view Internal view

VR Head-Mounted Display at
Dentist’s Office
Virtual Tour of a museum
Virtual Reality
(continued)
The VirtuSphere
VR Body Suit
9.5 Intelligent Systems
Intelligent systems
Artificial intelligence (AI)
 Expert Systems
Expertise
Expert systems (ESs)

Star Trek
Voyager’s doctor:
a 24th century
expert system
Expert Systems (continued)
The transfer of expertise from an expert to a
computer and then to a user involves four
activities:
 Knowledge acquisition
 Knowledge representation
 Knowledge inferencing
 Knowledge transfer
The Components of Expert Systems
Knowledge base
Inference engine
User interface
Blackboard
Explanation subsystem
Structure and Process of an Expert
System
Natural Language Processing & Voice
Technologies
 Natural language processing (NLP)
 Natural language understanding / speech
(voice) recognition
 Natural language generation/voice synthesis
Neural Networks
 Neural network is a system of programs and
data structures that approximates the
operation of the human brain.
 Neural networks are particularly good at
recognizing subtle, hidden and newly
emerging patterns within complex data as
well as interpreting incomplete inputs.
Neural Network
Fuzzy Logic
 Fuzzy logic deals with the uncertainties by
simulating the process of human reasoning,
allowing the computer to behave less
precisely and logically than conventional
computers do.
 Involves decision in gray areas.
 Uses creative decision-making processes.
Chapter Closing Case
GPS
sensor