The role of artificial intelligence for management decision: a structured literature review

Abstract

Purpose

The topic of artificial intelligence (AI) has been expanding rapidly in recent years, gaining the attention of academics and practitioners. This study provides a structured literature review (SLR) on AI and management decisions (MDs) by analysing the scientific output and defining new research topics.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a rigorous methodological approach to summarise the state of the art of the past literature. The authors used Scopus as the database for data collection and utilised the Bibliometrix R package. In total, 204 peer-reviewed English articles were collected and analysed.

Findings

The results showed that literature in this field is emerging. Studies are focused on using AI as forecasting and classification for management decision-making, AI as a tool to improve knowledge management in organisations and extract information. The cluster analysis revealed the presence of five thematic clusters of studies on the topic.

Originality/value

The study’s originality lies in providing a new perspective on AI for MDs. In particular, the analysis reveals a new classification of research streams and provides fruitful research questions to continue research on the topic.

Citation

Oppioli, M., Sousa, M.J., Sousa, M. and de Nuccio, E. (2023), "The role of artificial intelligence for management decision: a structured literature review", Management Decision, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-08-2023-1331