System and method for using demographic organization and segmentation to manage large scale projects

• US 8,055,691 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2007
• Issued: 11/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Delgaudio, Carol, Martin, James A. Jr., Hicks, Scott D., Rauch, Diane C.
• Primary Examiner(s): WILSON, KIMBERLY LOVEL
• Application Number:
  US11/847,027
• Publication Number:
  US 20070294275A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,532 Days
• Field of Search: 707/769, 707/829, 707/999.001
• US Class Current: 707/829
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A method and system is provided to demographically represent and implement one or more projects associated with an entity such as a corporation in a database so that the views into the database reflect a defined hierarchy of the demographics of the project or entity. The views may be created to reflect various aspects such as technological components, physical attributes of the entity, processes, or other attributes. The processes reflected by the views may also provide action based data elements for supporting the activities necessary to accomplish the processes over time. The project and associate views may also be organized by language or geographic requirements. In use, the invention may provide for management and control for large scale projects such as a migration from one organizational state to another.

Claims

1. A method to segment an organization migration project, comprising:

arranging organization migration project data views demographically to reflect one or more characteristics of an entity organization;

instantiating the organization migration project data views by implementing forms that include database design elements that contain database fields, which are used to create database documents or records based on a list of the organization migration project data views for each level of a hierarchy; and

accessing the organization migration project data views to add, modify or view demographically arranged organization migration project data reflective of one or more characteristics of the entity organization to manage the organization migration project by managing the demographically arranged organization migration project data to effect a change in the one more characteristics of the entity organization,

wherein the organization migration project is a physical migration of existing offices and personnel of the entity organization.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the organization migration project data views are arranged to reflect at least any one of the entity'"'"'s organization'"'"'s organizational structure, physical components, technical components, timetable, geography, one or more processes, and language.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the organization migration project data views are arranged to include the one or more processes and include actions associated with the one or more processes.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising defining the hierarchy of the organization migration project data views and defining the list of the organization migration project data views.

5. The method of claim 4, for each organization migration project data view defined in the list, defining and implementing a view selection criterion, columns, sort orders, and view actions for any processes supported by the each organization migration project data view.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising creating one or more database instances of the organization migration project data views.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more database instances are two or more database instances identical in design but differing in configuration information and actual data residing therein based on the characteristics.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the two or more database instances are geographically independent.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the creating step includes implementing forms, views, actions and agents.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the entity organization is a corporation or an organization.

11. A method for segmenting an enterprise activity, comprising:

defining a scope of an organization migration project for an entity;

defining a scope of at least one project instance determined to be within the scope of the organization migration project such that data relevant to implementation of the at least one project instance can be aggregated into one or more database instances;

defining at least one process associated with the organization migration project;

defining an organization migration project view hierarchy and an organization migration project list of views reflective of the scope of the at least one project instance and the at least one process;

instantiating the organization migration project view hierarchy and the organization migration project list of views demographically by implementing forms that include database design elements that contain database fields, which are used to create database documents or records based on the at least one defined process and the organization migration project list of views for each level of the hierarchy; and

creating the one or more database instances implementing the organization migration project view hierarchy to manage the data associated with implementation of the at least one project instance and organization migration project data associated with implementation of the at least one process associated with the organization migration project,

wherein the organization migration project is a physical migration of existing offices and personnel of the entity organization.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising defining criteria for segmenting organization migration project data associated with the organization migration project.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the criteria for segmenting is by at least any one of language, geography, organization, phase of the organization migration project, and project timetable.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising defining and implementing actions associated with the at least one process.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising defining devices and device related information managed by the organization migration project.

16. The method of claim 11, comprising defining locations to be supported by the organization migration project and reflecting the locations in the organization migration project view hierarchy.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the at least one process includes at least any one of a project management process, an administrative process, a migration process, a labor recording process, an import/export process, a reporting process and a billing process.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising defining and implementing for each view in the list of views:

a view selection criteria;

view columns and sort orders; and

view actions based on the at least one process.

19. A method for demographic organization and segregation of information, the method comprising:

creating at least one database instance;

defining a scope of an organization migration project of an entity by assessing a plurality of factors to determine at least one project instance;

defining a scope of the at least one project instance such that data pertaining to the project is aggregated;

defining at least one project process;

defining at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project instance in order to organize the aggregated data, and at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project process in order to organize the at least one project process;

implementing a database design on the at least one database instance that encompasses the scope of the project by instantiating the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project instance and the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project process; and

accessing the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project instance and the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project process to add, delete, modify and update the data, the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project instance, and the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project process,

wherein the organization migration project is a physical migration of existing offices and personnel of the entity organization.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the at least one database instance is a plurality of database instances and the plurality of database instances are similar in design and physically separated.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising defining the plurality of database instances comprising:

defining the database instances based on at least one of;

language, geography, organization and timetable; and

defining a criteria for segmenting the database instances based on the at least one of;

language, geography, organization and timetable.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising defining aspects being managed by the project comprising:

defining the aspects based on at least one of;

clients, devices, company locations and sub-projects that are to be managed by the project;

determining whether the project requires language support; and

defining the data that characterize the at least one of;

clients, devices, company locations and sub-projects.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein defining the at least one process of the project comprises defining at least one of:

planning processes, project management processes, administrative processes, import/export processes, migration processes, labor recording processes and billing processes.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein defining the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project instance and the at least one view hierarchy for the at least one project process comprises:

defining a highest level view hierarchy and defining at least one sub-hierarchy within the highest level view hierarchy for the at least one project instance; and

defining a highest level view hierarchy and defining at least one sub-hierarchy within the highest level view hierarchy for the at least one project process.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising defining views of the project comprising:

selecting the highest level view hierarchy for the at least one project instance and defining a view based on at least one of;

selection criteria, view columns, sort order and action buttons;

selecting the at least one sub-hierarchy for the at least one project instance and defining a view based on at least one of;

selection criteria, view columns, sort order and action buttons;

selecting the highest level view hierarchy for the at least one project process and defining a view based on at least one of;

selection criteria, view columns, sort order and action buttons; and

selecting the at least one sub-hierarchy for the at least one project process and defining a view based on at least one of;

selection criteria, view columns, sort order and action buttons.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein implementing the database design comprises implementing:

forms that include database design elements that contain database fields filled with the data, which are used to create database documents or records;

views for the highest level view hierarchy and the at least one sub-hierarchy for the at least one project instance and for the highest level view hierarchy and the at least one sub-hierarchy for the at least one project process;

data processing software programs; and

language templates.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising implementing the at least one project instance comprising:

identifying the at least one project instance; and

creating the identified at least one project instance based on an appropriate language template.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the plurality of factors assessed for defining the scope of the organization migration project of the entity include candidate organizations of the entity to be migrated, equipment involved in the migration, time-frame of the migration, and locations involved in the migration.