In recent years there has been an emerging interest in the process by which operational research is carried out in organisations. This has been driven by the rapid developments which have taken place in the discipline throughout the 1980s. During this time Operational Research (OR) has undergone a period of significant reappraisal and as a result a deeper understanding of OR and its use in an organisational setting has been gained. This book provides a broad historical context within which these recent developments can be evaluated and future change can be anticipated. Paul Keys brings together a collection of 19 readings drawn from the 1940s to the 1990s. Arranged in four chronologically ordered sections with introductory essays providing a thematic structure, this material acts as signpost to the major steps in the developments and understanding of OR as it is practiced. The book provides an opportunity for students who are not quantitatively oriented to appreciate the and strengths of the OR approach and will provide undergraduates and graduates with complementary reading to the standard techniques-based OR texts.