Gerald Feldman

Name: Gerald G. Feldman

Research Title: Evaluation of the impact of demand driven enterprise systems change through an optimal decision support approach

Name of Director of Studies: Professor Hanifa Shah

Key Contact Details - Email: Gerald.Feldman@bcu.ac.uk

About the Project: The main aim of this research is to evaluate mechanisms that can optimise and streamline the decision making process involved when opting to upgrade Enterprise Systems. The body of work involves understanding the decision making process and identifying the different factors and approaches that were considered during the process.

The outcome of his research will:

• identify the reasons that influence the decision to upgrade
• establish a generalised view of the upgrade decision making process
• propose an upgrade decision making support tool to optimise the decision making process
  

Research Activities: The research will employ questionnaires and interviews as methods to ascertain the reasons and challenges that influence the upgrade decision. The research design is utilising three stages outlined in brief below:

• Preliminary survey: an online qualitative questionnaire was used to identify the factors that influence the decision to upgrade and the decision making process
• Experimental investigation phase: In this phase, the analysis of decision making methodologies that can optimise the decision making process and identify key functionality to be supported during the upgrade decision making process
• Review and validate: The proposed methodology will be assessed based on the theoretical assumptions, in order to draw conclusions on the usefulness and effectiveness of the decision support approach

Achievements: Feldman, G., Shah, H., Chapman, C. and Amini, A. (in press) Enterprise Resource Planning Systems: Streamlining Upgrade Decisions. In the proceedings of 15th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems. Angers, France July 4 - 7, 2013