The manager's assistant. An application of knowledge management

Abstract

The lIIanager's Assistant project at SDC is a decision aid for administrators of large development projects. It mpports qUilries concerning funding and personnel i.sues. These qUilries are resolved either via direct database search or with the aid of a deductive mechanism, called DADM [KellS1], which mediates database access.The Manager's Assistant is an application of SOC's on-going research in knowledge m~ement [Kell62]. The KnOWledge Manager system (KM-l} combines the reasoni.D& engine, DADM, and a searching engine, both realized in specialized environments.DADM is implemented on a Xerox 1100 Lisp Machine and the Marching engine consists of a Britton-Lee IDM-500 Database Machine.Through this effort we hope not only to further our understanding of some important issues in the design and implementation of knowledge bases, but also to build a practical and useful tool. This paper describes the knoWledge base for the Manager's Assistant, its operating environment and its current modes of interaction. IntraductionIn order to perform their duties, managers require information concerning the status of their organizations including personnel and funding issues. This information ,enerally resides in a corporate Information System (IOmetimes called a Manaeement Information System, or IDS) and is periodically disseminated via reports of predetermined format. Ideally, however, it should be amIable to managers on demand and tailored to their iDdividual needs.At SDC one of the goals of the line manager is to optimize available resources in order to meet the contractual obligations of different organizational levels. )lanagers' at these levels are concerned with balancing mch contlicting demands as keeping projects adequately 8tafted tlO that deadlines are met, keeping the costs and rates of spending at levels appropriate to the funding ror those projects, generating new assignments to replace completed tasks, and making the best use of employees' *ills while keeping them happy.The maJ18ier's intelligence in resolving the various confticting demands in an optimal fashion can sometimes lend itself to codiflcation in heuristics (rules of thumb) which yield a conceptual structure supported by and also atending the information residing in an on-line version do the MIS database. Furthermore, the concepts used in the maI18ier's decision making provide a basis for qu.eriel to be put to the IllS database once their 1o&ical .tructuN iI "ooeswd by DADK's reasoniD& enctne.DADII 11 II. s)'ltem wblch applies general rules about an application domain in order to derive implicit information from a large collection of explicit data (the data base). Its rules are written in a standardized form of first order predicate calculus called Primitive Conditionals. Furthermore, it distinguishes between general knowled&e (the rules) and speciflc facts (the data base) and maintains different access mechanisms for each. In particular it can be connected to existing relational data base management systems for accessing the facts. It is, therefore, suita...