Work management system, work management apparatus, and work mangement method

• US 20010042001A1
• Filed: 03/29/2001
• Published: 11/15/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Nakanishi, Manabu, Uratani, Yoshio, Goto, Hideo, Masuya, Takashi
• Granted Patent: US 7,343,316 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/9
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063116 Schedule adjustment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1097 Task assignment

Abstract

A work management system has a work management apparatus and a plurality of user terminals connected by a network. The work management apparatus stores employee information on employees and work management information for setting work contents of the employees, generates working schedule information indicating working schedules of the employees based on the employee information and the work management information, and sends the generated employee and management information to the user terminals through the network. The user terminals receives and displays the working schedule information.

Claims

1. A work management system having a work management apparatus for transmitting and receiving information, over a network, between a plurality of user terminals, said work management apparatus comprising:

a file memory configured to store an employee information file retaining employee information on employees, and a work management file retaining management information for setting work contents of the employees; and

a controller configured to generate working schedule information indicating working schedules of the employees based on said employee information and management information, and to send said generated working schedule information to said user terminals over said network.

2. The work management system according to

claim 1

, wherein said plurality of user terminals transmit cancellation information for canceling said working schedules specified by said working schedule information sent from said work management apparatus;

and

upon reception of said cancellation information from said plurality of user terminals, said controller generates recruitment information for recruiting a substitute employee who can work in a time slot for which cancellation has been made, and sends said recruiting information to said user terminals over said network.

3. The work management system according to

claim 2

, wherein upon reception of said cancellation information, said controller generates hiring information for hiring an additional employee and sends said hiring information to said user terminals over said network.

4. The work management system according to

claim 3

, wherein said controller generates format information for defining a format of a curriculum vitae, sends said format information together with said hiring information to said user terminals, extracts at least a portion of said employee information from information on the curriculum vitae sent from said user terminals, and retains said extracted employee information in said employee information file.

5. The work management system according to

claim 1

, wherein said plurality of user terminals transmit accepting information for accepting working time schedules specified by said working schedule information sent from said work management apparatus;

and

upon reception of said approving information from said plurality of user terminals, said controller generates working shift information indicating a work shift table in which employee information is set in an accepted time slot, and retains said working shift information in a shift information file to be stored in said file memory.

6. The work management system according to

claim 5

, wherein said controller sends said shift information to said user terminals over said network.

7. The work management system according to

claim 1

, wherein said work management apparatus further comprises:

a display unit configured to display a screen for accepting input information for said employee information and said management information; and

an instruction input unit which inputs an instruction; and

wherein said controller controls said display unit to display the screen in response to said instruction input from said instruction input unit, accepts information input through said screen, and stores the employee information in said employee information file and said management information in said work management file, based an the information input from the screen.

8. The work management system according to

claim 1

, further comprising a mail server connected to said network;

and

wherein said work management apparatus and said plurality of user terminals send electronic mails to said mail server, and receive electronic mails from said mail server to thereby exchange information over said network.

9. The work management system according to

claim 1

, further comprising a Web server connected to said network;

and

wherein said controller sends said work schedule information to said Web server in such a way as to be referable to on a Web.

10. A work management apparatus for generating a work shift table indicating working time schedules of employees, comprising:

a communication unit configured to exchange information with user terminals over a network;

a file memory configured to store an employee information file retaining information on employees, and a work management file retaining information for setting work contents of said employees; and

a controller configured to generate a work shift table indicating working time schedules of said employees and sending information over said network for notifying said user terminals of that shift table from said communication unit.

11. The work management apparatus according to

claim 10

, wherein said work management apparatus further comprises:

a display unit configured to display an input screen accepting input of information for generating said employee information to be retained in said employee information file and said management information to be retained in said work management file; and

an instruction input unit configured to input a predetermined instruction; and

wherein said controller controls said display unit to display said input screen in response to said instruction input from said instruction input unit, generates said employee and management information in accordance with information input through said input screen, and stores generated employee information and generated management information in said employee file and work management file, respectively.

12. The work management apparatus according to

claim 10

, wherein upon reception of cancellation information for canceling said work schedules from said user terminals, said controller generates recruiting information for recruiting a substitute who can work in a time slot for which cancellation has been made, and sends the recruiting information to said user terminals from said communication unit.

13. The work management apparatus according to

claim 10

, wherein upon reception of cancellation information indicating cancellation of said working schedules from said user terminal, said controller generates hiring information for hiring an additional employee and sends the hiring information to said user terminals from said communication unit.

14. The work management apparatus according to

claim 13

, wherein said controller generates format information for defining a format of a curriculum vitae, sends said format information together with said hiring information to said user terminals, extracts at least a portion of said employee information of employee from information on said curriculum vitae sent from said user terminals, and retains said extracted employee information in said employee information file.

15. The work management apparatus according to

claim 10

, wherein upon reception of information for accepting working time schedules from said user terminals, said controller generates work shift information indicating a work shift table where employee information is set in an approved time slot, and retains said work shift information in a shift information file.

16. The work management apparatus according to

claim 15

, wherein said controller sends said work shift information retained in said shift information file to said user terminals from said communication unit.

17. A work management method comprising:

storing employee information on employees and work management information for setting work contents of said employees;

generating working schedule information indicating working time schedules of said employees based on said employee information and said management information, and

transmitting said generated working schedule information over a network.

18. The work management method according to

claim 17

, further comprising:

transmitting cancellation information indicating cancellation of said working time schedules specified by said working schedule information; and

upon reception of said cancellation information, generating recruiting information for additionally recruiting an employee who can work in a time slot for which cancellation has been made and sending the recruiting information over said network.

19. The work management method according to

claim 18

, wherein said recruiting information includes information for hiring an additional employee.

20. The work management method according to

claim 19

, further comprising:

generating format information for defining a format of a curriculum vitae and sending said format information together with sending of said hiring information,

extracting at least a portion of said employee information on said curriculum vitae from information sent from user over network, and retaining extracted information.

21. The work management method according to

claim 17

, further comprising:

transmitting approving information, approving working time schedules specified by said working schedule information, from the user terminals; and

upon reception of said approving information from said plurality of user terminals, generating shift information indicating a shift table in which employees are set in an approved time slot, and retaining that information in said shift information file.

22. The work management method according to

claim 21

, further comprising sending said shift information over said network.

23. The work management method according to

claim 17

, further comprising:

displaying a setting screen for generating said employee information and said management information;

inputting information in said setting screen; and

generating said employee information and management information based on information input in said setting screen.

24. The work management method according to

claim 17

, wherein said working schedule information is transmitted based on Hyper Text Transfer Protocol.

25. The work management method according to

claim 17

, wherein said information is transmitted by electronic mails.

26. A work management system having a work management means for transmitting and receiving information, over a network, between a plurality of user terminal means, said work management means comprising:

file memory means for storing an employee information file and a work management file; and

control means for generating working schedule information indicating working schedules of the employees based on said employee information and management information, and for sending said generated working schedule information to said user terminal means over said network.

27. The work management system according to

claim 26

, wherein said work management means further comprises:

display means for displaying a screen for accepting input information for said employee information and said management information; and

instruction input means for inputting an instruction; and

wherein said control means controls said display means to display the screen in response to said instruction input from said instruction input means, accepts information input through said screen, and stores the employee information in said employee information file and said management information in said work management file, based an the information input from the screen.

28. The work management system according to

claim 26

, further comprising mail server means connected to said network;

and

wherein said work management means and said plurality of user terminal means send electronic mails to said mail server means, and receive electronic mails from said mail server means to thereby exchange information over said network.

29. The work management system according to

claim 26

, further comprising Web server means connected to said network;

and

wherein said control means sends said work schedule information to said Web server means in such a way as to be referable to on a Web.

30. A work management apparatus for generating a work shift table indicating working time schedules of employees, comprising:

communication means for exchanging information with user terminal means over a network;

file memory means for storing an employee information file and a work management file of said employees; and

control means for generating a work shift table indicating working time schedules of said employees and sending information over said network for notifying said user terminal means of that shift table from said communication means.

31. The work management apparatus according to

claim 30

, wherein said work management apparatus further comprises:

display means for displaying an input screen accepting input of information for generating said employee information to be retained in said employee information file and said management information to be retained in said work management file; and

instruction input means for inputting a predetermined instruction; and

wherein said control means controls said display means to display said input screen in response to said instruction input from said instruction input means, generates said employee and management information in accordance with information input through said input screen, and stores generated employee information and generated management information in said employee file and work management file, respectively.

32. A program for allowing a computer to function as:

file storage means for storing an employee information file retaining employee information on employees, and a work management file retaining management information for setting work contents of employees; and

control means for generating a shift table indicating working time schedules of said employees and sending information for notifying said user terminals of said shift table.