This article describes a methodology by which Decision Support Systems can be better understood by the Industrial Engineer. For years the IE has been at the forefront of technological change in the industrial arena, leading management and decision makers of all kinds in the use of appropriate tools as aids in the decision making process. One such tool has been Information Systems. IE's, as with the use of other tools, have been at the forefront in their planning and use, albeit not in their development. While the information systems industry has evolved from a transaction processing orientation to full-scale computer-based information systems orientation there seems to be a reticence on the IE's part in bringing the full power of the computer into the realm of the decision maker. Although attempts have been made over the years to define a decision support system for the decision maker, the implementation of that technology has been slow and extremely limited in scope. The authors of this paper propose that the slowness to develop adequate decision systems is more of a symptom of poor understanding of the decision process rather than a lack of technological skill. This paper reviews, in a general sense, the decision process, the evolution of information systems as currently understood by Industrial Engineers, and the current efforts in the area of Decision Support Systems. An attempt is then made to chart a course for the future: a course for IE's to follow and a course in which Decision Support Systems can be expected to follow.