Decision Support Systems ( DSS ) Applications and Uses

Learn some specific uses for DSS in business

As one of a variety of new tools coming out of modern computing and data modeling, DSS is getting a lot of attention from many businesses as a way to promote better projections, management and analysis within a company or business. DSS comes in many forms, and the term basically refers to a computer-aided system that helps managers and planners make decisions. DSS combines the power of human thought with the power of modeling systems to get optimal, informed decision making.

That said, there are a lot of different ways managers can use decision support software to their advantage if they are open to exploring decision support systems (DSS) applications and uses. Typically, business planners will build a DSS system according to their needs and use it to evaluate specific operations, including:

1. A large stock of inventory, where decision support system applications can provide guidance on establishing supply chain movement that works for a business.

2. A sales process, where decision support systems software is a "crystal ball" that helps managers theorize how changes will affect results.

3. Other specialized processes related to a field or industry.

 

Look at decision support systems designed to manage inventory

DSS can come in handy by evaluating stock held in a facility, or any other type of business asset that can be moved around or otherwise optimized. This is often one way a business can profit from "itemizing" its assets with DSS.
Try: Articles like this one at AccessMyLibrary focus on how DSS can be used in vendor managed inventory applications, and others that relate to stock supply. See more on DSS for inventory control at sites like SageJournals.

Use DSS for sales optimization and sales projections

Decision support technology can also be a tool that analyzes sales data and makes predictions, or monitors existing patterns. Whether it's big picture decision support tools, active or passive solutions, or any other kind of DSS tool, planners often tackle sales numbers using a variety of decision support resources.
Try: Find sales equations by decision support solutions and more from papers like this one from the Interdisciplinary Journal of Information, Knowledge, and Management. See more on how DSS can impact a variety of industries at SAS.

Utilize DSS to optimize industry-specific systems

There are other uses for this powerful software option - to make good projections on the future for a business, or to get an overall "bird's eye view" of events that determine company's progress. This can come in handy in difficult situations where a lot of financial projection may be necessary when determining expenditures and revenues.
Try: See an interesting case study of how DSS could assist state budget planners at Ask Dan! about DDS. Read about options for using DSS with medical data at Storming Media.

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