PRESIDENT'S LETTER

Celebrating Twenty-five Years of the Institute

During 1994-95 we will celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Institute. Indeed, we can take pride in the accomplishments that our organization has made and the successes we have all shared. But, we can and must "continue to improve" if we are to meet the future needs of our membership. However, before outlining the objectives for the 1994-95 Board of Directors, which will focus on ways to improve the Institute, let me express thanks to those who have so ably provided leadership and direction in the recent past.

Among those that I would like to recognize are the members of the Board who recently completed their two-year terms of office, namely: Belva Cooley (Indiana State University), Les Digman (University of Nebraska-Lincoln), Jack Hayya (Pennsylvania State University), Mike Maggard (Northeastern University), and Lee Krajewski (Ohio State University). Also leaving the Board is Terry Rakes (Virginia Tech) and former president, Bill Perkins (Indiana University). We are indebted to this group, who under Bill's strong and directed leadership, were able to achieve some key milestones during the past two years.

Also, Bob Parsons (Northeastern University) will be completing his tenure as member services coordinator in December 1994, having served in the position for six years. We are indebted to Bob for his leadership in implementing a strategy for membership growth for the Institute and for improving member services and programs. A number of key activities were implemented and several studies were made that will be helpful in focusing our efforts in the future. We are fortunate to have Mark Davis (Bentley College), beginning in January 1995, as our new member services coordinator. I am confident Mark will continue with the efforts and initiatives developed during Bob's tenure, and will "continue to improve" the member services activities of the Institute.

I would also like to recognize the strong leadership and accomplishments of my immediate predecessors as president: Bill Perkins (Indiana University) and Larry Ritzman (Boston College). Both of these individuals set high goals for the Institute that required significant commitments from the Board as well as themselves. Bill's leadership and continual guidance will be missed during the year, but the Board will benefit from Larry's presence for another year in his capacity as past president.

Next, I would like to congratulate the newest members of the Board: Al Avery (Towson State University), Jim Hershauer (Arizona State University), David Olson (Texas A&M University), Gary Ragatz (Michigan State University), Marion Sobol (Southern Methodist University), and President-Elect John Anderson (University of Minnesota). I look forward to working with these new Board members, as well as those individuals who will continue to serve on the Board for 1994-95: Jim Fitzsimmons (University of Texas-Austin), Lori Franz (University of Missouri-Columbia), Ravi Nath (Memphis State University), Jim Pope (Shippensburg University), John Rogers (California Polytechnic State University), and Jim Evans (University of Cincinnati).

Finally, I would like to recognize the support and activities of our Home Office staff under the leadership and guidance of our executive director, Carol Latta. As all my predecessors would agree, the task of president is both manageable and enjoyable because of the warmth and assistance provided by the Home Office.

In beginning this letter I stated that we can be proud of the accomplishments the Institute has made in the past, and indeed we can. The accomplishments of directors and leaders, as well as boards, over the past twenty-four years provide us with a challenging standard of excellence. But, we must look to the future and continually seek ways to improve.

The procedural process employed by the Institute, as defined in the Policies and Procedures manual, is that each year the president formulate a set of charges for each committee and develop a set of objectives for recommendation to the Board. In the process of working through this task for 1994-95 I not only sought to identify committee charges and Board objectives, but also to identify a general thrust or focus for 1994-95. To this end, and with the goal of focusing on "continuous improvement," I have challenged each committee and the Board for 1994-95 with "Achieving Continuous Improvement within Decision Sciences." To highlight this thrust I have posed three questions:

1. Who are our customers?
2. What are the products/services that distinguish us from other organizations?
3. What systems/computer technology is needed to deliver/provide products and service to our customers?

The typical response to question 1, might be "Our customers are potential faculty members and graduate students in all functional areas of business." But, while this might be a viable starting point for the Member Services Committee, it employs a myopic definition of "customer." Anyone who has served as a committee chair, program chair, as well as in any elected office in the Institute, will quickly indicate that if limited or no information is provided from a previous chairperson or office holder, then the task for the year is most difficult. The customer in this case would be the incumbent committee chair, program chair, or elected officer. As a response to this specific example of "our customers," the Board (at its April meeting) approved a recommendation that "organizational memory" be established throughout the Institute in the form of timetables, letters, correspondence, organizational structures, and other documentation, to be forwarded to each respective incumbent chairperson or officer.

At the April meeting the Board also formally approved the creation of the Asia-Pacific Region of the Decision Sciences Institute. From the standpoint of the Member Services Committee, the answer to the question of "Who are our customers?" is now much broader. We have regional members in the United States, many of whom are affiliated with small "teaching" universities. Similarly, we have some members from larger research-based universities that have a strong interest in research as well as an emphasis on teaching. And now we have at least one international region (and potentially several others) that will have needs that focus in the research/teaching issue as it relates to their culture/ country. It is thus important that during the year we begin to identify our customers and to seek ways to change to meet and attract those customers.

One of the charges given to the committee for Excellence in the Decision Sciences for 1994-95 addresses the question of "What are the products/services that distinguish us from other organizations?" The specific charge is:

Identify the likely changes in business education and research during the next decade such as called for by Lyman Porter and Lawrence McKibbon, Ernest Boyer, the new AACSB accreditation standards, and the 1990 report by the GMAC Commission on Admission to Graduate Management Education . . . .

Recommend what the Institute should do to take advantage of these findings, taking into account the distinctive competencies of DSI, such as a multidisciplinary character, an interest in good teaching, strong regional groups, good representation from small as well as large schools, emerging trend towards international regions, and a concern for excellence in research.

Question 3 that I have posed, i.e., "What system/computer technology is needed to deliver/provide products and services to our customers?," can be illustrated with an example from recent Board action. At the January 1994 Board meeting the recommendation was approved to develop a new Home Office system, designed in an integrative fashion, with current hardware and operating system platforms, structured in a modular arrangement so that additional systems could be added in the future. Since the world is quickly moving into the "information age" we must be prepared to respond likewise. With the modular structure of the new Home Office system we have taken the initial steps to improve the information systems of the Institute. But this is only the first step to "continue to improve." All committees and support groups in the Institute (based on Board action in April) are being charged to perform an information needs/requirements assessment for 1994-95. These data will be forwarded to the coordinator of computer services and to an appropriate committee in 1995 to further address the information system thrust for the future. Clive Sanford, currently coordinator of computer services, has been asked to provide all committee chairs and the Board with the design details and structure of the Home Office system.

The above examples illustrate ways that I envision the Institute moving during 1994-95. We cannot achieve perfection but hopefully the above framework will give us a thrust that can carry us forward. The objectives the Board has agreed upon that fall within this thrust are as follows.

International Activities

1. Complete the appointment of a Global Development Coordinator, who will "champion" the international dimensions of the Institute, provide guidance for the development of a ten-year plan, and oversee its implementation.
2. Finalize the formation of the Asian region of the Institute.
3. Continue to provide support to the European Region organizers.
4. Provide support for the formation of a Latin American region, as well as other potential international regions.
5. Develop a plan/strategy for internationalizing the Institute, provide a time horizon for the plan, and prioritize the steps/action-items for implementation.

Member Services

1. Under the leadership of the member services coordinator, consider innovative ways of increasing the membership of the Institute, and enhancing services to existing members of the Institute.
2. Monitor the continuing activities of developing a common data structure for institute and regional membership lists.
3. Continue to encourage active/continuing membership to individuals attending the Doctoral Student Consortium and New Faculty Development Consortium.
4. Finalize the detailed plan of actions for the Campus Representative Program, including a clear definition of the program, so that the general membership is aware of its objectives, and structure. Identify ways to make the plan of actions known to the membership.
5. Monitor the effectiveness of the services pamphlet used in the 1994 meeting for enhancing member services and for increasing membership in the Institute.
6. Develop a complete up-to-date Campus Representatives list. Provide the list to the Home Office, the Board, and to the Vice President for Member Services of the regions. The list should reflect representatives in all regions.

Programs and Meetings

1. Evaluate the results/impact of the new core tracks in: (1) Quality and Productivity and (2) International Issues, to be included in the 1994 meeting of the Institute.
2. Explore and recommend new tracks/topics that the 1995 Program Chair should consider including in the 1995 program. What are some of the "new/developing areas" that should be considered for incorporation into our meetings?
3. Evaluate the recommendation from the 1993-94 Programs and Meetings Committee to bring back the Management of Technology and Innovation Track on an experimental basis.
4. Implement the recommendation, and report the results, of publicizing our meetings/tracks in the newsletter of other organizations, and reciprocate.
5. Evaluate the feasibility of establishing an Interorganizational Representative Group, which would consist of members of the Institute who are also members of other organizations such as the Academy of Management, ICIS, POMS, American Marketing Association, Accounting Association, TIMS/ORSA, and others. The goals/objectives of the group would be: (1) to serve as a liaison between the respective organization and the Institute, (2) to identify areas/topics that are not included in other meetings that would enhance our meetings, (3) to foster closer working relationship with other organizations.

Publications

1. Continue to promote and strengthen DECISION SCIENCES' stature as a major journal in the broadly- defined field of decision sciences.
2. Continue to encourage the publication of special issues of DECISION SCIENCES in areas other than the main-line areas of operations management, quantitative methods, and MIS/DSS.
3. Develop a more informative form to be used with the paper review process for the annual meeting that provides more information to authors of rejected papers.
4. Continue to monitor the quality standards of all of the Institute's publications and determine if existing or potential problems exist.
5. Review and make recommendations regarding information technology (both hardware and software) needed to support publications.

Alpha Iota Delta

1. Interact with the president of Alpha Iota Delta to finalize goals and action plans for establishing more chapters of Alpha Iota Delta.
   - Set short term (one-year, two-year, three-year) goals for the number of new chapters.
   - Elect regional vice presidents to attend DSI regional meetings and to work with chapters in the respective region.
   - Finalize guidelines brochures for regional vice presidents and new chapters.
2. Make specific goal and action plans on how to use campus representatives to promote the growth of Alpha Iota Delta.
3. Continue to build the database for Alpha Iota Delta. Continue to coordinate with the Home Office and with the Coordinator of Computer Services for compatibility.
4. Set action plans for improving the quality of the DECISION FORUM, the national newsletter of Alpha Iota Delta. Formulate plans for seeking funding sources, from outside the organization and from outside the Institute, to support publishing the newsletter.

Regional Activities

1. Follow up on implementing the creation of "institutional memory" in each region, including a position on the Board of Directors of the respective region, and submitting to the Home Office, end-of-year reports on each region's activities and financial status.
2. Form a subcommittee of current and immediate past presidents from all regions to develop recommendations for fostering better communication between the regions, particularly as it relates to: (1) regional meeting activities, (2) "things that work"þ"things that don't work," (3) detailed planning materials for the annual meeting/ program, (4) ideas/techniques used to increase the membership, and (5) other items of general interest.
3. Explore and identify specific ways to strengthen the communication and ties between the Institute and regional organizations.

Development

1. Identify trends in business education and research, and in the supply/ demand for new faculty members. Identify factors the Institute should address to take advantage of these trends.
2. Investigate the desirability of joint endeavors with other organizations, collecting pros and cons. Give specific consideration to the possibility of joining an umbrella organization, or having annual meetings at the same time and place.
3. Consider innovative new programs that might be instituted to further enhance excellence in the decision sciences.

Doctoral Student Activities

1. Explore, in conjunction with the Placement Service Coordinator, the possibility of creating a "Clearing House of Academic Positions," within the U.S. and internationally. This would identify positions as they become open and as they are filled throughout the year. Make recommendations on the feasibility as well as the cost and benefits.
2. Monitor and report on the success of the 1994 Doctoral Student Consortium and the 1994 Doctoral Dissertation Competition. Make recommendation for improvements.
3. Explore ways and recommend steps required to disseminate program content from the Doctoral Student Consortium to the regions. The objective would be to provide program content to doctoral students in the region who were unable or were not selected to attend the Doctoral Student Consortium.
4. Explore the potential benefit and costs of developing a five-year rolling database of dissertation titles in the decision sciences, from doctoral-degree-granting institutions. The database would be listed by functional area and would serve to provide a basis for "common research interest" to doctoral students.

Fellows

1. Continue to work in a supportive role with the 1995 Program Chair to involve Fellows in designing "hot topics" sessions, organizing invited sessions with leading experts, and preparing emerging research workshops. The goal is to develop a tradition at annual meetings that: (1) each track will have at least one high visibility session (involving "top name researchers") and (2) that Fellows of the Institute will become more fully involved in the sessions, either as organizers or participants.
2. Continue to seek ways to institutionalize a close working relationship between the fellows committee chair and the program chair. The intent is to support the program chair, without diminishing the full responsibility that the program chair has for the success of the annual meetings.
3. Develop a "Fellows database" which would contain short biographical sketches of the þresearch interest/areas of expertiseþ and any other pertinent information which could be used to support charges #1 and #2.

This summarizes the major objectives of the Board of Directors for 1994-95. While the above statements and points do not provide all the specific charges that the committees will be examining and all the issues the Board will address, hopefully this provides you, the membership, with a perspective on where and how we can improve during the year.

Thank you for allowing me to serve as your president during 1994-95. When my term as president is completed next April, I hope that I can report as many accomplishments as Larry Ritzman.

I also hope that you have begun to make plans to join me in Hawaii in November to celebrate our twenty-fifth anniversary. Mike Showalter, program chair for the meeting, has put together an excellent agenda of workshops, paper sessions, and activities.

If you have questions or ideas regarding any of the above noted Board objectives or any other matters related to the Institute, you may contact me by phone or mail or at any of the Institute's meetings.