The following is my list of the characteristics of a DSS.

1. Facilitation. DSS facilitate and support specific decision-making activities and/or

decision processes.

2. Interaction. DSS are computer-based systems designed for interactive use by

decision makers or staff users who control the sequence of interaction and the operations performed.

3. Ancillary. DSS can support decision makers at any level in an organization. They are

NOT intended to replace decision makers.

4. Repeated Use. DSS are intended for repeated use. A specific DSS may be used

routinely or used as needed for ad hoc decision support tasks.

5. Task-oriented. DSS provide specific capabilities that support one or more tasks

related to decision-making, including: intelligence and data analysis; identification and design of alternatives; choice among alternatives; and decision implementation.

6. Identifiable. DSS may be independent systems that collect or replicate data from

other information systems OR subsystems of a larger, more integrated information system.

7. Decision Impact. DSS are intended to improve the accuracy, timeliness, quality and

overall effectiveness of a specific decision or a set of related decisions. 8. Supports individual and group decision making: MicroStrategy provides a single platform that allows all users to access the same information and access the same version of truth, while providing autonomy to individual users and development groups to design reporting content locally. 9. Easy to Develop and Deploy: MicroStrategy delivers an interactive, scalable platform for rapidly developing and deploying projects. Multiple projects can be created within a single shared metadata. Within each project, development teams create a wide variety of re-usable metadata objects. As decision support system deployment expands within an organization, the MicroStrategy platform effortlessly supports an increasing concurrent user base. 10. Comprehensive Data Access: MicroStrategy software allows users to access data from different sources concurrently, leaving organizations the freedom to choose the data warehouse that best suits their unique requirements and preferences.

11. Integrated software: MicroStrategys integrated platform enables administrators and

IT professionals to develop data models, perform sophisticated analysis, generate analytical reports, and deliver these reports to end users via different channels (Web, email, file, print and mobile devices). This eliminates the need for companies to spend countless effort purchasing and integrating disparate software products in an attempt to deliver a consistent user experience. 12. Flexibility: MicroStrategy SDK (Software Development Kit) exposes its vast functionality through an extensive library of APIs. MicroStrategy customers can choose to leverage the power of the softwares flexible APIs to design and deploy solutions tailored to their unique business needs.

5. Management requirements of the Decision Support Systems

Information uses and requirements differ at each managerial level.6 Higher managerial levels have a greater reliance on external environmental information and to some degree, less reliance on internally generated information. Top management commonly use information to make decisions about long term planning and thus analyze long term trend information to make their decisions (Gore et al, 1984).3 Also at top-level decision-making, conjoint analysis are crucial and managers need more information about risk and uncertainty, potential outcomes (and their likelihood/probability, etc.) and possible actions to take. At lower management levels, information emphasis is internally generated and relies on short-term goals. However, reports and analyses generated by lower management teams are often used in decision-making efforts of top management, and it is thus crucial that the DSS supports the lower management just as much as it lends itself to top management. In short, the information needs for different levels of management are directed towards supervisory functions for lower management, tactical decision making for middle management and strategic decision making for top management. See appendix 1 for a more elaborate outline of information requirements of managers. Moreover, because the DSS are employed to improve management control, it should address the primary tasks of management control. These are:

i.

Allocating resources to specific activities

ii.

Preparing budgets covering both the expenditure of resources and

the expected achievement goals and objectives iii. iv. v. Observation of results achieved in return for resources used Evaluation of these results Modification of activities and resource allocation in accordance

with the evaluation of results

High-level Decision Support System Requirements:

Data collection from multiple sources (sales data, inventory data, supplier data, market research data. etc.) Data formatting and collation A suitable database location and format built for decision support -based reporting and analysis Robust tools and applications to report, monitor, and analyze the data