The Journal of Decision Systems is pleased and honored to publish in this special issue an invited article co-authored by Professor Paul Gray who is one of the founding fathers of the decision support systems area. We had learned indirectly that his 80th birthday on December 8, 2010 would coincide with the publication of this issue, and would like to extend our celebratory congratulations to him as well as to convey our appreciation of his lifelong scholarly contributions. We also want to wish him many more productive and healthy years.

 

Professor Gray was the author of one of the first papers on group decision support systems and the creator of one of the first decision rooms when he was at Southern Methodist University. He has continued to make important contributions to understanding decision support systems and decision making over the last four decades.
Paul Gray is Professor Emeritus and Founding Chair of Information Science at Claremont Graduate University. He specializes in information systems, particularly decision support systems, knowledge management, data warehousing and electronic commerce. Before coming to Claremont in 1983, he was a professor at Stanford University, the Georgia Institute of Technology, the University of Southern California, and Southern Methodist University. He was a professor for over 30 years and served as department chair for 15 years. Prior to his academic career, he worked for 16 years in research and development organizations including nine years at SRI International. His PhD is in Operations Research from Stanford University. He retired in May 2001, but continues to teach, do research, consult, and to curate the Paul Gray PC Museum at Claremont Graduate University.

Professor Gray was awarded the LEO Award of the Association for Information Systems for lifetime achievement. He has been inducted as a Fellow of the Association of Information Systems, and a Fellow of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences – and in both cases was in the first group of Fellows named. He is a winner of the Kimball Medal of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences, Educator of the Year by EDSIG, and the NATO Systems Science Prize. Professor Gray has also served as President of The Institute of Management Sciences.

Journal of Decision Systems - Volume 19 – No. 4/2010

UNDERSTANDING MANAGERIAL DECISION MAKING

Foreword
SVEN CARLSSON, FREDERIC ADAM

Tribute to Paul Gray. An 80th Birthday Salute

Decision Modes as Cultural Mirror. Implications for Decision Support
Systems
PAUL GRAY, OMAR A. EL SAWY

The Role of ECM and its Contribution in Decision-Making Processes
ALESSANDRO ZARDINI, LAPO MOLA, JAN VOM BROCKE, CECILIA ROSSIGNOLI

Exploiting Qualitative Information for Decision Support in Scenario Analysis
DANILO GAMBELLI, DANIELA VAIRO, RAFFAELE ZANOLI

Rational and Intuitive Patterns in Different Management Cultures
ZITA ZOLTAY PAPRIKA

DSS Requirements to Support the Regulated Decision Making Process of Public Procurement
CSABA CSÁKI, FRÉDÉRIC ADAM

Senior Executive Information Behaviors and Decision Support
DAVID ARNOTT