Evaluating a Performance Support Environment for Knowledge Workers.
Abstract
Many Army personnel can be classified as knowledge workers-people who produce not tangible products, but some form of processed or enhanced information, often using processes that allow a high degree of individual discretion in task performance. Knowledge work is the area that offers the greatest opportunity to increase productivity within the U.S. workforce. Ongoing research at the U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories (USACERL) is developing the Knowledge Worker System (KWS), an integrated performance support environment (PSE) designed to improve the performance of Army knowledge workers. KWS promises to offer significant benefits. However, before installing any new system, a prospective user must evaluate whether the benefits of installation outweigh the costs, in terms of both time and resources. This study undertook to identify appropriate methods to evaluate the feasibility of implementing or continuing to use a PSE for knowledge workers, and concluded that a toolkit of five evaluation techniques, each applicable to a specific workgroup selling, may best assess the feasibility and usefulness of a PSE: (1) Work Profile Analysis (2) Direct to Indirect Ratio (3) Time Saved Times Salary (TSTS) (4) Activity Based Costing (ABC) (5) Quality Assessment.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 1995
- Accession Number
- ADA301077
Entities
People
- Beverly E. Thomas
- John P. Baron
- Wayne J. Schmidt
Organizations
- Construction Engineering Research Laboratory