Decision support systems
Decision support systems (DSS) envolve a great group of tools which help to the communication and qualitative reasoning during all solution process
All OR/MS concepts focus on communication of the results and recommended course of actions (strategies). This helps all involved to build a consensus concerning the possible outcomes and recommended course of action. The decision-maker might incorporate some other perspectives of the problem, such as cultural, political, psychological, etc., into the management scientist's recommendations.
Successful OR/MS modeling approach to decision making demands a proper attitude as well as an understanding of more technical matters. Although both the OR/MS analyst and decision-maker should understand problem identification, model building, and solution techniques, the attitudes of both are probably the most important elements of successful application. Although proper attitude is not sufficient for successful application, it is necessary. An analyst who focuses more on techniques for solution than on model formulation will not be successful. The analyst's main interest should be in providing assistance in decision making and not in finding methods of solution that are more elegant or marginally faster than existing methods. A decision maker who thinks that she or he can turn the analyst loose without guidance and expect to get relevant information back that can be applied directly to the problem and then forgotten will not make the best use of quantitative inputs. Instead, the interaction between the decision-maker and OR/MS analyst must be open, interactive, and focused on the ultimate goal of the effort: to develop and make the best use of the quantitative input to a decision problem.