AUBREY

Decision making can be classified as either structured or unstructured. Why is top level management more associated with unstructured decisions, while the lower level has more contact with structured decisions?

Top Management

The top level of management deals with decisions that are the broadest in scope and cover the widest time frame. Typical titles of managers at this level are chief executive officer (CEO), chief operating officer (COO), chief financial officer (CFO), treasurer, controller, chief information officer (CIO), executive vice president, and senior partner. Top managers include only a few powerful people which are in charge of the four basic functions of a business-marketing, accounting and finance, production, and research and development. Decisions made at this level are unpredictable, long range, and related to the future, not just past and/or current activities. Therefore, they demand the most experience and judgment. Examples of unstructured decisions include deciding five year goals for the company, evaluating future financial resources, and deciding how to react to the actions of competitors.

Lower management

The largest level of management, lower (operational) management, deals mostly with decisions that cover a relatively narrow time frame. Lower management, also called supervisory management, actualizes the plans of middle management and controls daily operations-the day to day activities that keep the organization humming. Most decisions at this level require easily defined information about current status and activities within the basic business functions-for example, the information needed to decide. This information is generally given in detail reports that contain specific information about routine activities. These reports are structured, so their form can usually be predetermined. Daily business operations data is readily available, and its processing can be easily computerized. Managers at this level typically make structured decisions. A structured decision is a predictable decision that can be made by following a well defined set of predetermined, routine procedures.

What is a Decision Support System?

A decision support system (DSS) is a computer-based information system that supports business or organizational decision-making activities. DSSs serve the management, operations, and planning levels of an organization and help to make decisions, which may be rapidly changing and not easily specified in advance.

DSSs include knowledge-based systems. A properly designed DSS is an interactive software-based system intended to help decision makers compile useful information from a combination of raw data, documents, personal knowledge, or business models to identify and solve problems and make decisions.