System and method for project contract management

• US 8,108,232 B1
• Filed: 05/26/2005
• Issued: 01/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Fernandez, Pramod B., Issa, Philip, Ma, Lih-Jong, Brandes, Tracy T., Lee, Valerie Y.
• Primary Examiner(s): Choi, Peter
• Application Number:
  US11/138,132
• Time in Patent Office: 2,441 Days
• Field of Search: 705/9, 705/7.11
• US Class Current: 705/7.11
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management

Abstract

A computer-implemented system for managing contracts for projects is provided. The system consists of a data store and an analysis component. The data store can maintain information related to a project including an original contract defining at least some aspects of the project. The data store can also maintain information for a plurality of interim contracts that include a change to the original contract. The information for the plurality of interim contracts can include resource information, date information, financial information, and variance information. The variance information is related to the change between one of the interim contracts and the original contract. The analysis component identifies the variance between the original contract and one or more of the interim contracts.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented system comprising at least one processor for managing contracts for projects, comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable medium that comprises a data store, the data store maintains information related to a project including an original contract defining at least some targets for the project, the data store further maintains information for a plurality of interim contracts that include a change to the original contract, the information for the plurality of interim contracts including a target resource information, a target date information, a target financial information, and a variance information, wherein the interim contracts are created when changes to parameters of the project occur as the project progresses; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium that comprises an analysis component executable by the at least one processor that identifies a difference between at least one of the plurality of interim contracts and the original contract and further calculates the variance information as an amount of change for the at least one of the plurality of interim contracts based on the difference identified between the original contract and the at least one of the plurality of interim contracts, wherein the difference is identified between at least one of the resource information, the date information, and the financial information for the at least one of the plurality of interim contracts and the information related to the original contract;

wherein the analysis component is further configured to calculate a parameter variance based on a change in a parameter of the project;

wherein the data store further maintains a variance reason for the identified difference in a variance code related to the variance information;

wherein the variance code is selected from a group of variance codes consisting of at least one of a schedule change, a scope change, a financial change, a split project change, and a deploy-launch change;

wherein when the calculated parameter variance exceeds a pre-determined threshold a new contract is created or a decision is made whether to create a new contract;

wherein the calculated parameter variance is shown as a difference or a percentage change; and

wherein a calculated parameter variance having a first type of variance code is shown as a difference and a calculated parameter variance having a second different type of variance code is shown as a percentage change.

2. The computer-implemented system of claim 1, wherein the target resource information is further defined as human resources associated with the project.

3. The computer-implemented system of claim 1, wherein the target date information includes at least a completion date of the project.

4. The computer-implemented system of claim 1, wherein the target financial information includes a cost for at least a portion of the project.

5. The computer-implemented system of claim 1, wherein the parameter variance is further defined as the difference between the at least one of the interim contracts and one of the original contract and a preceding interim contract.

6. The computer-implemented system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of interim contracts includes a first, second, and third interim contracts, and wherein the first interim contract includes changes to the original contract, the second interim contract includes changes to the first interim contract, and wherein the third interim contract includes changes to the second interim contract.

7. The computer-implemented system of claim 1, wherein a reason for the change included in the parameter variance includes at least one of a scope change, a schedule change, and a financial change.

8. The computer-implemented system of claim 1, further comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium that comprises a contract portal executable by at least one processor that creates a report when the project is not meeting at least one of the targets.

9. A computer-implemented method for managing contracts for projects, comprising:

maintaining information on a computer-readable storage medium related to an original contract describing a project and defining at least some targets for the project;

maintaining information on a computer-readable storage medium related to a first interim contract and a second interim contract, the first interim contract including information related to a first change in the project from the original contract, the second interim contract including information related to a second change in the project from the first interim contract, the first and second interim contracts each including a target resource information, a target date information, a target financial information, and a variance information, the variance information related to the first or second change to the project, wherein the first interim contract is created when the first change in the project occurs as the project progresses, and wherein the second interim contract is created when the second change in the project occurs as the project progresses;

identifying, by an analysis component stored on a computer-readable storage medium and executed by a processor, a difference in at least one of the target resource information, the target date information, and the target financial information between two of the original contract, the first interim contract, and the second interim contract;

analyzing, by the analysis component, the identified difference and calculating, by the analysis component, the variance information as an amount of change between two of the original contract and the first and second interim contracts;

calculating, by the analysis component, a parameter variance based on a change in a parameter of the project;

determining a reason for the variance and mapping the reason to a variance code, wherein the variance code is selected from a group of variance codes consisting of at least one of a schedule change, a scope change, a financial change, a split project change, and a deploy-launch change; and

creating a new contract or deciding whether to create a new contract when the calculated parameter variance exceeds a pre-determined threshold, wherein the calculated parameter variance is shown as a difference or a percentage change, and wherein a calculated parameter variance having a first type of variance code is shown as a difference and a calculated parameter variance having a second different type of variance code is shown as a percentage change.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the parameter variance comprises a financial variance.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the parameter variance comprises a resource variance.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the parameter variance comprises a date variance.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, further comprising searching variance codes to manage contracts to determine reasons for parameter variances.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, further comprising creating a report when the project is not meeting at least one of the targets.