The use of knowledge based decision support systems in reengineering selected processes in the U.S. Marine Corps

Abstract

In light of the continued investment in information technology by businesses in hopes of achieving a measurable benefit in terms of process efficiency and effectiveness, business process reengineering (BPR) is becoming increasingly important. BPR suggests that by radically redesigning underlying business processes, companies can achieve breakthrough improvements in productivity. BPR, however, is a knowledge intensive endeavor. A decision support tool called KOPeR-lite was developed with the intent of encoding the knowledge held by BPR experts and documented in BPR literature. This tool promises to assist BPR novices who are tasked with reengineering inefficient or ineffective processes. The purpose of this thesis is to determine the viability of using KOPeR-lite when BPR novices undertake process reengineering projects. It also proposes reengineering solutions for the permanent change of station orders process for USMC officers, which will be presented to the leadership in the Headquarter, U.S. Marine Corps (HQMC) Manpower and Reserve Affairs (MandRA) branch. If adopted, one of the proposed solutions promises to dramatically improve process performance.