Decision Support Systems for Financial Planning and Control in a UK Polytechnic. AIR 1990 Annual Forum Paper.

The creation of "Higher Education Corporations" in the United Kingdom is discussed within the context of what one Polytechnic has done in creating a Decision Support System to address the problems found in resource management, cost control, and competitive bidding. A summarization is included of the actions taken by the Polytechnic in its progress towards resource conscious course design and delivery. A particular focus is the need to estimate, monitor, and control marginal costs in the face of the requirement to bid competitively for part of the target enrollment. Resource allocation and cost control methodology are examined along with the development and application of management models in making assessments and other measurements for decision making, including decisions involved in competitive tendering. Contains four references. (GLR)