For the W5A3 Dropbox assignment, you are doing a feasibility report that will ultimately lead to the purchase of a Decision Support System (DSS). The template file is more about the structure and grading of this assignment rather that a template. You will be creating an APA formatted report as your work product for this assignment rather than using a template. The new Template file provides the following:

1.     Provides background from the text on Decision Stages, DSS Architecture, and a DSS Example

2.     Provides the basic requirements that your report must address, which in turn suggests a structure for your report (headings, subheadings, etc.)

Assignment Clarification

Remember that the focus of this assignment is to:

1. Identify the key DSS characteristics that will meet the needs of the decisions making that must be performed by the Procurement VP.

2. You are NOT trying to solve the 3 power plant and 80 supplier proposals problem. The DSS will do that for you. You are trying to detail how a DSS would behave, be constructed, and be architected for use by the Procurement VP to help solve this multivariable problem.

3. You should assume the role of the chief information officer for the presented scenario. As the chief information officer, it is your responsibility to provide a decision support system (DSS) to assist the companys procurement officer in finding the best way to supply the companys three power plants with a sufficient quantity of coal to operate for the next twelve months. You realize that a single supplier cannot provide the quantity of coal needed. Hence the DSS will have to review the proposals of eighty suppliers to establish the correct logistics to insure the plants will have an ample supply of coal to operate for this period.

Requirements for your DSS Report:

1. To understand how a DSS would help our company, we need to first understand the decision that the company& DSS will first need to make. Discuss this decision process using the Four Stages in Decision Making and show how a DSS can address each stage (5 points)

2. Regarding the DSS Architecture, discuss each of the architecture components in the context of this specific situation (7 points)

3. Discuss the DSS Architecture Model that will be used for this system: Data-Driven DSS or Model-Driven DSS (see the RESOURCES section below) (7 points)

4. Identify the Inputs and Outputs (Results) in detail for this DDS (6 points)

5. Discuss how Sensitivity Analysis would be used in this situation. Provide at least 3 scenario examples (5 points)

6. Select3 Quality Dimensions from Table 10-2 in Laudon. Discuss what you would do (processes, procedures, measurements, benchmarking, governance, etc.) to ensure that your DSS addressed each of these 3 Quality Dimensions. (5 points)

7. Provide an APA formatted report (5 points)