Browsing by Author "Scott, L"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
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    Decision support for Foodbank South Africa
    (Operations Research Society of South Africa, 2014) Watson, N M; Stewart, T J; Scott, L
    This paper employs a combined 'soft-hard' OR approach to aid decision making in the area of allocation at a not-for-profit organization, Foodbank South Africa (FBSA), that represents the largest hunger-relief network in South Africa. Two problem-structuring tools, causal mapping and root definitions (RDs) are utilized. Causal mapping is used to identify areas for useful research within FBSA, and gain a greater understanding of the organization in terms of its goals and consequently a good appreciation of the context in which decisions are made. Root definitions are employed to acquire a better understanding of the 'decision-issues' within the allocation system at the Cape Town warehouse. A simulation model is developed to imitate daily allocation decisions, with the end-objective of assisting decision-making by developing a range of allocation policies. A decision support system (DSS) is developed to help FBSA manage their agency database, automate some of the daily allocation decisions and simulate allocation policies.
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    Operational research (ers) in development: Growing a new generation of operational researchers
    (2013) Durbach, I; Scott, L; Nyirenda, J; Silal, S
    This paper explores the theme of training operational research (OR) practitioners in South Africa by critically evaluating a Masters program in Operational Research in Development (ORD), launched in 2005 at the University of Cape Town. This program was specifically focused on applying OR to the problems of the developing world in general and Africa in particular. We describe the program and review the practical work undertaken by students participating in the program. Topics range widely across domains including health (anti-malarial drug resistance); poverty (food banking); governance (NGO management structures and monitoring of local government performance) and sustainable livelihoods (spaza shop operations). We use the review to highlight strengths and weaknesses of the program, as well as challenges faced in the OR education in South Africa at a postgraduate level.