Decision support systems are a class of computer based systems that assist in some or all levels of decision making within an organisation. Recently, the growth of data captured that is useful or even critical to the successful running or conclusion of projects in science and industry has been remarkable. Thus, the development of decision support systems that are scalable in terms of the size of data processed. the number of stakeholders, and their geographical span has become of the essence. This thesis identifies the issues in developing distributed decision support systems. Building on that. an architectural style for the development of scalable and extensible software systems is introduced. Subsequently, a framework for the design of distributed decision support systems is developed. This new architectural style is the Resource Oriented Services Architecture (ROSA). It builds on Representational State Transfer (REST), an architectural style that describes the venerable design of the world wide web. An architectural design based on REST revolves around resources, representations, and hyperlinks. \Vhat it lacks is a standardised way to represent computations as resources in a scalable and extensible manner. For systems that cannot be adequately described as a web of documents, this is a shortcoming. ROSA overcomes this by defining a means of representing executable resources in a manner that is consistent with the statelessness and cacheability constraints of REST. The resulting architecture enables the scalability of the system. Additionally, desirable features such as dynamic discovery of resources and extensibility and loose coupling are attained. To illustrate this framework, two new learning algorithms are introduced and implemented as services. The first is a data structure suitable for proximity queries over large datasets of low intrinsic dimension. The other uses a random projection to carry out novelty detection over high dimensional datasets.

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Dans le secteur de la santé, les décisions sont complexes et parfois difficiles à prendre et à justifier. Les outils d’aide à la prise de décision multicritère (dénommées MCDA pour « Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis ») ont prouvé leur intérêt dans le domaine de la santé avec de nombreuses applications depuis plusieurs décennies. Ces méthodes, tirées de la recherche opérationnelle, permettent d’intégrer de multiples critères et encouragent la participation de l’ensemble des parties prenantes lors de la création d’un outil d’aide à la prise de décision. L’objectif de ce projet de thèse est d’une part de contribuer à la littérature scientifique sur l’utilisation des méthodes d’aide à la prise de décision multicritère, et d’autre part de définir comment ces méthodes devraient être appliquées dans le domaine de la santé afin de promouvoir leur utilisation dans ce secteur. Cette thèse s’articule autour de trois articles scientifiques, afin de répondre à trois problématiques spécifiques liées à la prise de décision en santé. Le premier article fait état de la littérature et évalue comment les méthodes sont appliquées dans les différents contextes de la santé. Les deux articles suivants se concentrent sur l’utilisation d’un outil d’aide à la prise de décision afin d’accompagner l’équipe de l’hôpital de jour d’un centre de cancérologie dans un processus de prise de décision. / Decisions in healthcare are often complex and difficult to make and justify. Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) is a decision-making tool that has been proven to be useful in numerous applications in healthcare contexts. Specifically, this operations research tool enables the integration of multiple conflicting criteria and encourages stakeholders to participate in the decision-making process. The purpose of this PhD dissertation is to contribute to the scientific literature on MCDA methods and how they should be applied in healthcare contexts, which are characterised by complex decision-making, by expanding these methods’ possible applications. This research is composed of three essays, each of which answers a specific research question related to decision-making in healthcare. The first essay maps the literature and assesses how the steps of the MCDA process are followed in different healthcare contexts. The second essay combines the business process improvement (BPI) methodology and lean methods to assess a chemotherapy outpatient service that suffers from difficulties in the patient flow process and propose improvement opportunities. The third essay builds on the findings of the second and applies the ELECTRE III method to define which actions could help improve the quality of care and patient satisfaction of the outpatient service.

Prior research suggests management can employ cognitively demanding job attributes to promote employee creativity. However, it is not clear what specific type of cognitive demand is particularly important for creativity, what processes underpin the relationship between demanding job conditions and creativity and what factors lead to employee perceptions of demanding job attributes. This research sets out to address the aforementioned issues by examining: (i) problem-solving demand (PDS), a specific type of cognitive demand, and the processes that link PSD to creativity, and (ii) antecedents to PSD. Based on social cognitive theory, PSD was hypothesized to be positively related to creativity through the motivational mechanism of creative self-efficacy. However, the relationship between PSD and creative self-efficacy was hypothesized to be contingent on levels of intrinsic motivation. Social information processing perspective and the job crafting model were used to identify antecedents of PSD. Consequently, two social-contextual factors (supervisor developmental feedback and job autonomy) and one individual factor (proactive personality) were hypothesized to be precursors to PSD perceptions. The theorized model was tested with data obtained from a sample of 270 employees and their supervisors from 3 organisations in the People’s Republic of China. Regression results revealed that PSD was positively related to creativity but this relationship was partially mediated by creative self-efficacy. Additionally, intrinsic motivation moderated the relationship between PSD and creative self-efficacy such that the relationship was stronger for individuals high rather than low in intrinsic motivation. The findings represent a productive first step in identifying a specific cognitive demand that is conducive to employee creativity. In addition, the findings contribute to the literature by identifying a psychological mechanism that may link cognitively demanding job attributes and creativity.

The proliferation of data throughout the strategic, tactical and operational areas within many organisations, has provided a need for the decision maker to be presented with structured information that is appropriate for achieving allocated tasks. However, despite this abundance of data, managers at all levels in the organisation commonly encounter a condition of ‘information overload’, that results in a paucity of the correct information. Specifically, this thesis will focus upon the tactical domain within the organisation and the information needs of management who reside at this level. In doing so, it will argue that the link between decision making at the tactical level in the organisation, and low-level transaction processing data, should be through a common object model that used a framework based upon knowledge leveraged from co-ordination theory. In order to achieve this, the Co-ordinated Business Object Model (CBOM) was created. Detailing a two-tier framework, the first tier models data based upon four interactive object models, namely, processes, activities, resources and actors. The second tier analyses the data captured by the four object models, and returns information that can be used to support tactical decision making. In addition, the Co-ordinated Business Object Support System (CBOSS), is a prototype tool that has been developed in order to both support the CBOM implementation, and to also demonstrate the functionality of the CBOM as a modelling approach for supporting tactical management decision making. Containing a graphical user interface, the system’s functionality allows the user to create and explore alternative implementations of an identified tactical level process. In order to validate the CBOM, three verification tests have been completed. The results provide evidence that the CBOM framework helps bridge the gap between low level transaction data, and the information that is used to support tactical level decision making.

A laboratory study of the factors of that influence the propensity of organisations to copy the strategic decisions of others, based around the BRANDMAPS simulation, investigated the effects of contingencies relating to the environment, the decision and the firm itself, in the absence of binding resource constraints and legal pressures. The proportion of isomorphic decisions diminished with industry age: isomorphic behaviour did not become institutionalised. It was positively associated with industry dynamism - isomorphism was possibly used for risk reduction. No association with industry concentration was found: field structuration did not affect isomorphic behaviour. Pressures to imitate their peers, as perceived by participants, appeared unrelated to firms' performance or socio-cultural characteristics other than team diversity. Isomorphic behaviour was unrelated to isomorphic pressures, suggesting that unconscious rationality in managerial behaviour. Knowledge of opponents' decisions was associated with isomorphic behaviour, indicating that isomorphism was not simply a response to the task environment. However, the association was positive for some decisions and negative for others, inconsistent with common explanations of isomorphism as deriving from a desire for legitimation. Rather, isomorphic behaviour results from managers making efficient use of available information on competitors' practices. Combinatorially complex bundles of decisions were not isomorphic between firms that had taken similar individual decisions. There was no evidence of an "iron cage" constraining them to become more similar. Isomorphism between firms is not necessarily linked to institutionalisation or stimulated by causes - notably legitimation - suggested by institutional theory. A model of isomorphic behaviour in firms is proposed, based on the perceived value of the practice being copied, the nature of the decision, contingent properties of the business environment and of the organisational field and the situation and internal properties of the firm. The implications for managerial praxis are explored.

Decision Support Systems (DSS) are computer tools that combine models and data, to a user interface to help decision-makers solve complex problems. Despite their perceived usefulness, DSS are often not used. Past and recent reviews of existing decision support tools have shown a lack of implementation. Reasons behind their rejection were multiple, from poor design to more complex organisational and personal issues. Researchers have advocated the use of a more user-centred design framework for DSS development. A series of approaches aimed at involving users in the design process have been developed and applied with mixed results. In this thesis, I argue that DSS success or failure may be due to a lack of fit between the design process and the culture of the organisation in which it is being implemented. Through literature reviews on science, decision-making, DSS and organisational culture and two case studies, I show how the assumptions taken by scientists and DSS developers on decision-making and problem-solving become embedded within the systems they produce and may conflict with that of users. I further propose a novel approach that is centred on an understanding of the cultural system in which DSS will be used. The culture-centred iterative design approach is based on a constructivist theoretical perspective using methodologies borrowed from the social sciences. It follows an iterative design process such as that described by Sprague and Carlson (1982) with an embedded investigation of the working culture of the organisation. The study of culture is performed through group and individual interviews and aims at identifying areas of potential frictions between the DSS stated aims and user norms and values. The results from the analyses are then used to produce a DSS that will maximise outputs whilst minimising the risk of rejection. The approach was applied to the development of TooiHab, a DSS for prioritising habitat enhancement work on rivers for the Environment Agency Thames Region Fisheries section. The Environment Agency is a government organisation responsible for the management and regulation of river ecology, pollution, discharge, abstraction and for the protection of land and property against flooding. Through this case study, I show how the use of a cultural enquiry as part of the design process can lead to the resolution of potential conflicts and a greater acceptance of DSS.

This thesis documents a study of the factors associated with Boards of Directors’ strategic decisions. The premise upon which such a research initiative is founded concerns the increased interest of academics and business practitioners in Board of Directors in the U.K and in U.S in part arising from recent financial scandals made in major public companies. Despite this increased attention to Board of Directors, it is acknowledged that Boards of Directors is one of the most under-researched management topics and its research is limited in scope and scale. An extensive review of the literature revealed that a useful contribution to knowledge could be derived from the investigation of the factors that influence Boards’ strategic decisions in quoted organisations. The research objectives is then to investigate the strategic decisions Boards of Directors and the organisation make by examining the environmental factors associated with the Board, the characteristics of the Board such as age, education, experience, composition, the Boards’ strategic choices in areas such as innovation, strategic decisions and to examine the influence the Boards have on performance. Despite the significant research interest in this topic, knowledge is still incomplete. This thesis makes a significant contribution to the strategic management literature by developing an integrative framework which examines strategic decisions from both content and process perspectives. The model developed, identifies the influence on strategic decisions, the environment, the characteristics of the Boards of Directors and its involvement has as influence on strategic decisions. The empirical study is carried out in a new cultural context; Greece and more specifically to listed firms on the Athens Stock Exchange. A theoretical model has been created and following a deductive approach, primary data through questionnaires was collected from 105 Greek listed organisations. Data was analysed according to their descriptive properties and underlying correlation structure. Several principal components were derived from these analyses which were used in hypothesis testing. Subsequently, a multiple regression and GLM analyses were conducted in order to examine the interrelationships between the factors associated with Boards’ strategic decisions. The research findings are discussed and considered in light of current knowledge in the area. A number of conclusions are made from the findings. Furthermore, implications for academics and business practitioners are drawn that indicate the relevance and applicability of this research to corporate governance practices. Limitations of the research and possible future research are set out. The thesis is organised into seven chapters which are entitled in the following order: literature review of Boards of Directors and development of theoretical framework; empirical approach and conceptualisation of the factors associated with boards’ strategic decisions; descriptive research findings; principal component analysis and construction of scale indices; multiple regression and GLM analyses; and, conclusions and implications of the study.