SUPPLY CHAIN PERAMETER OPTIMIZATION AND ANOMALY IDENTIFICATION IN PRODUCT OFFERINGS

• US 20100274601A1
• Filed: 04/24/2009
• Published: 10/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Taylor, William Robert, Bagwell, Derek P., Knipfer, Ivory Wellman, Vasudevan, Cheranellore
• Application Number:
  US12/429,726
• Publication Number:
  US 20100274601A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions

Abstract

An illustrative embodiment of a computer-implemented method for maintaining a product offering suite, identifies a subset of proposals from a proposal database maintained on a data processing system, using selected criteria stored on the data processing system, analyzes the subset of proposals using conformance criteria also stored on the data processing system to form an analyzed subset of proposals, and identifies a set of alert instances from the analyzed subset of proposals. The computer-implemented method further updates the product offering suite on the data processing system using information using the set of alert instances.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for maintaining a product offering suite;

the computer-implemented method comprising;

identifying a subset of proposals from a proposal database maintained on a data processing system using selected criteria stored on the data processing system;

analyzing the subset of proposals using conformance criteria stored on the data processing system to form an analyzed subset of proposals;

identifying a set of alert instances from the analyzed subset of proposals; and

updating the product offering suite on the data processing system using information using the set of alert instances.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the identifying a subset of proposals further comprises:

receiving a new product proposal from an order configurator; and

adding the new product proposal to maintain the proposal database.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the identifying a subset of proposals further comprises:

selecting a set of desired filter models from a set of filter models; and

,

applying the set of desired filter models to the proposal database.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the identifying a subset of proposals further comprises:

determining whether the subset of proposals is a desired subset;

responsive to a determination that the subset of proposals is not the desired subset, determining whether other filter models exist;

responsive to a determination that other filter models exist, selecting a set of filter models from the other filter models to form a selection of filter models; and

applying the selection of filter models to the proposal database.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the analyzing the subset of proposals further comprises:

selecting a set of desired compliance models from a set of compliance models; and

applying the set of desired compliance models to the subset of proposals to form the analyzed subset of proposals.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the identifying a set of alert instances further comprises:

determining whether a subset of proposals with desired compliance has been identified;

responsive to a determination that the subset of proposals with desired compliance has not been identified, determining whether other compliance models exist;

responsive to a determination that other compliance models exist, selecting a set of compliance models from the other compliance models to form a selection of other compliance models; and

applying the selection of other compliance models to the subset of proposals.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the identifying a set of alert instances further comprises:

responsive to determining compliance alerts have not been identified, creating a set of reports;

responsive to determining compliance alerts have been identified, generating a set of user updates for a predetermined set of events of interest from the set of alert instances; and

sending the set of user updates to selected users.

8. An apparatus for maintaining a product offering suite;

the apparatus comprising;

a communication fabric;

a storage device connected to the communication fabric, wherein the storage device stores computer-executable program code;

a communications unit connected to the communication fabric;

a display connected to the communication fabric;

a processor unit connected to the communication fabric, wherein the processor unit executes the computer-executable program code to direct the apparatus to;

identify a subset of proposals from a proposal database using selected criteria;

analyze the subset of proposals using conformance criteria to form an analyzed subset of proposals;

identify a set of alert instances from the analyzed subset of proposals; and

update the product offering suite using information using the set of alert instances.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein in executing the program code to identify a subset of proposals, the processor unit executes the computer-executable program code to:

obtain a new product proposal from an order configurator; and

add the new product proposal to maintain the proposal database.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein in executing the program code to identify a subset of proposals, the processor unit executes the computer-executable program code to:

select a set of desired filter models from a set of filter models; and

apply the set of desired filter models to the proposal database.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein in executing the program code to identify a subset of proposals, the processor unit executes the computer-executable program code to:

determine whether the subset of proposals is a desired subset;

responsive to a determination that the subset of proposals is not the desired subset, determine whether other filter models exist;

responsive to a determination that other filter models exist, select a set of filter models from the other filter models to form a selection of filter models; and

apply the selection of filter models to the proposal database.

12. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein in executing the program code to analyze the subset of proposals, the processor unit executes the computer-executable program code to:

select a set of desired compliance models from a set of compliance models; and

apply the set of desired compliance models to the subset of proposals to form the analyzed subset of proposals.

13. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein in executing the program code to identify a set of alert instances, the processor unit executes the computer-executable program code to:

determine whether a subset of proposals with desired compliance has been identified;

responsive to a determination that the subset of proposals with desired compliance has not been identified, determine whether other compliance models exist;

responsive to a determination that other compliance models exist, select a set of compliance models from the other compliance models to form a selection of other compliance models; and

apply the selection of other compliance models to the subset of proposals.

14. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein in executing the program code to identify a set of alert instances, the processor unit executes the computer-executable program code to:

responsive to determining compliance alerts have not been identified, create a set of reports;

responsive to determining compliance alerts have been identified, generate a set of user updates for a predetermined set of events of interest from the set of alert instances; and

send the set of user updates to selected users.

15. A computer program product for maintaining a product offering suite;

the computer program product comprising;

a computer-recordable storage media;

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for identifying a subset of proposals from a proposal database using selected criteria;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for analyzing the subset of proposals using conformance criteria to form an analyzed subset of proposals;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for identifying a set of alert instances from the analyzed subset of proposals; and

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for updating the product offering suite using information using the set of alert instances.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for identifying a subset of proposals further comprises:

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for obtaining a new product proposal from an order configurator; and

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for adding the new product proposal to maintain the proposal database.

17. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for identifying a subset of proposals further comprises:

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for selecting a set of desired filter models from a set of filter models; and

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for applying the set of desired filter models to the proposal database.

18. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for identifying a subset of proposals further comprises:

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for determining whether the subset of proposals is a desired subset;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, responsive to a determination that the subset of proposals is not the desired subset, for determining whether other filter models exist;

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, responsive to a determination that other filter models exist, for selecting a set of filter models from the other filter models to form a selection of filter models; and

computer-executable program code, stored on the computer-recordable storage media, for applying the selection of filter models to the proposal database.

19. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for analyzing the subset of proposals further comprises:

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for selecting a set of desired compliance models from a set of compliance models; and

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for applying the set of desired compliance models to the subset of proposals to form the analyzed subset of proposals.

20. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for identifying a set of alert instances further comprises:

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for determining whether a subset of proposals with desired compliance has been identified;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, responsive to a determination that the subset of proposals with desired compliance has not been identified, for determining whether other compliance models exist;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, responsive to a determination that other compliance models exist, for selecting a set of compliance models from the other compliance models to form a selection of other compliance models;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for applying the selection of other compliance models to the subset of proposals;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, responsive to determining compliance alerts have not been identified, for creating a set of reports;

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, responsive to determining compliance alerts have been identified, for generating a set of user updates for a predetermined set of events of interest from the set of alert instances; and

computer-executable program code, stored on computer-recordable storage media, for sending the set of user updates to selected users.

21. A service for maintaining a product offering suite, the service comprising:

identifying a subset of proposals from a proposal database maintained on a data processing system using selected criteria;

analyzing the subset of proposals using selected conformance criteria to form an analyzed subset of proposals;

identifying a set of alert instances from the analyzed subset of proposals; and

updating the product offering suite on the data processing system using information using the set of alert instances, for a user.