Performance-Support Systems

During the past decade, performance-support systems have evolved from little more than passive online help systems, intended for use by individuals struggling to use computer software, to powerful knowledge management systems that link and integrate knowledge for effective performance across entire organizations. This chapter provides a description of the development and present status of performance-support systems in the form of online help systems, electronic performance-support systems (EPSS), and knowledge management (KM) systems. The chapter concludes with predictions about the future of performance-support in the first decade of the 21st Century as well as recommendations for a research and development agenda aimed at enhancing performance-support systems.