MGS 351 Exam 2 Review Chapter 4

Question 1

Four Phases of Decision Making

Answer 1

(1) Intelligence Phase -What is the Problem “Find what to fix” “Stop and Think”
(2) Design Phase- Create the solution “Find fix”
(3) Choice Phase- “Pick a Fix”
(4) Implementation Phase- “Apply the fix”

Question 2

Structured Decision

Answer 2

Either Right or Wrong answers

-Entry employees do this

Question 3

Unstructured Decision

Answer 3

Infinite answers with better answers available

-Higher employees

Question 4

Semi-Structured Decision

Answer 4

Some right answers, Some wrong answers
Retail Example: There is a return policy, you need to have a receipt to return–> Customer is trying to return something but does not have the receipt —> The employee talks to the manager—> The manager decides to accept the return but only for store credit.

Question 5

Recurring Decision

Answer 5

Regular timed basis decisions

-Reports in advanced are helpful

Question 6

Ad-Hoc

Answer 6

Random “out of the blue” decisions

-Most of the decisions are from this

Question 7

Decision Support System (DSS)

Answer 7

• **Highly “flexible and interactive” IT system that is designed to “support unstructured and semi-structured decision-making”
• Expertise and judgment are needed to make a decision- The answer is not just given
• Different level management have different info/decision making needs

Question 8

Components of Decision support Systems (DSS)

Answer 8

• User
• Database
• TPS - Transaction processing system (online)
• External data (e.g. financial reports)
• Software and models
• OLAP and data mining

Question 9

Model Management

Answer 9

Consists both the DSS model and the DSS model management system
-How are the models stored and used?

Question 10

Data management

Answer 10

Performs the function of storing and maintaining the info that you want the DSS to use
-Store data

Question 11

User Interface Management

Answer 11

Allows you to communicate with the DSS

-For users

Question 12

Sensitivity Analysis DSS

Answer 12

The study of the effect that changes in one or more parts of a model have on other parts of models
-Ripple effect

Question 13

What -If- Analysis

Answer 13

Checks the impact of a change in the assumptions or other input data on the proposed solution

• Monitoring GPA
• Changing values to see your overall GPA
• Spreadsheet models
• Excell

Question 14

Goal-Seeking analysis

Answer 14

Find the value of the inputs necessary to achieve a desired level of output
-Start with what you want to see - The ideal solutions
-All possible combinations to get you to the goal
giving you combinations of grades to get you a specific GPA

Question 15

Collaboration Systems=Group decision Support System

Answer 15

Interactive computer-based system that facilitates the “solution of semi-structured and unstructured problems by groups of decision makers”

• Tools it includes: Electronic questionnaires, Electronic brainstorming tools, idea organizers, anonymous voting, etc…
• Mainly used for entities in differing geographic locations (electronic communication)

Question 16

Benefits of Collaboration systems (GDS)

Answer 16

• improved preplanning
• Increased participation
• Open, collaborative meeting atmosphere
• “Criticism-free idea generation”
• Evaluation objectivity
• Idea organization and evaluation
• Setting priorities and making decisions
• Documentation of meetings
• Access to external information

Question 17

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Answer 17

Computer system that can analyze and display data using digitized maps. Enables display and analysis of spatial information
Example: Location analysis (opening Mighty taco), Law enforcement (track crimes), identifying efficient delivery routes, etc…

Question 18

Artificial Intelligence system (AIS)

Answer 18

Branch of Computer science that deals with ways of representing knowledge, using symbols rather than numbers, and heuristics, or rules of thumb, rather than algorithms for processing information
-“If a machine does or exhibits something that we would consider intelligent”—–> AIS goes about it a different way

Question 19

Objectives of AIS

Answer 19

• Make machines smarter
• Understand what intelligence is
• Make machines more useful
• —–Difficult to build——

Question 20

Expert Systems (Commercial AIS)

Answer 20

AIS gathers information to solve very specific problems.
These systems utilize expert knowledge and can replace an expert in the decision making process
-Developed to retain the information and to use it when ever it is needed — not to replace the expert
-Good for diagnostic (Whats wrong?) and prescriptive (what to do?) problems
-A knowledge engineer works with an expert to map out the thought process and mimic it
-Deals with very specific problems
-How do you code in a gut feeling
Example: “What whale did I see”
Focuses on the problem– Replaces the expert because he is no longer needed

Question 21

Components of Expert Systems

Answer 21

• Knowledge base (Database)
• Knowledge acquisition
• Inference engine (Electronic brain- applies logic to data and works with knowledge base)
• User interface
• Explanation module