Minimum spanning table and optimal expansion of competence set

Each directed graph with asymmetric costs defined over its arcs can be represented by a matrix or table, called an expansion table. We explore first the basic properties of cycles and spanning tables of expansion tables, which correspond to the cycles and spanning trees of the directed graph. Then, we derive an algorithm to find a minimum spanning table which corresponds to a minimum spanning tree in the directed graph. Finally, we discuss how to use the algorithm to find the optimal competence set expansion and also discuss related problems.