A task analysis and design framework for management systems and decision support systems

This contribution describes a framework with organizational and operating concepts for the management, i.e. supervision and control of complex dynamic systems (processes), like networks, factories, power plants or transport systems. This kind of system operation has also been called supervisory control [10], [15]. These applications are characterized by a complex allocation of tasks between several users (operators) and machine agents (system functions). For systems to be designed, the concepts of the framework have to be transformed into applicationspecific terms according to the new management application. This step will create an application-o riented framework to design new management systems in a way that they are able fulfil the operational and human requirements to meet the business goals. For existing systems to be analysed, the entities have to be transformed into the typical application terms in respect to these management applications. This will provide an application-o riented framework for an analysis to evaluate the system, identify problems, improve and optimize the system. This framework has been developed mainly in the area of telecommunica tion network management and has been used to design telecommunication management systems for digital broadband networks. The concepts are expected to applicable in other application areas as well.