Linking service level expectations to performing entities

• US 8,195,504 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2008
• Issued: 06/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Merrifield, Eric S. Jr., Corneil, Chad K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Meinecke Diaz, Susanna M
• Application Number:
  US12/206,589
• Publication Number:
  US 20100063871A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,366 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7.37
• US Class Current: 705/7.37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06375 Prediction of business process outcome or impact based on a proposed change

Abstract

The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for linking service level expectations to performing entities. Embodiments of the invention facilitate an express, measured relationship between each entity and the performance of a corresponding business capability. Thus, when an entity or layer changes, the impact to the performance can be asserted, and later validated through the specific measures. Schematized links for entities and/or business layers can be used to connect to a service level expectation schema to appropriately define how entities and/or business layers contribute to the performance of a business capability.

Claims

1. In a computer architecture, the computer architecture comprising one or more computer processors and data storage, the computer architecture configured to access a schema-based model for an organization, the schema-based model modeling a plurality of interrelated business capabilities for the organization, each business capability representing a portion of what work the organization does, each business capability associated with a corresponding service level expectation indicating metrics for measuring the performance of the business capability, each business capability associated with a one or more entities that represent how the business capability does its corresponding portion of work, a method for determining what impact a change in an entity'"'"'s performance has on a business capability'"'"'s performance, the method comprising:

an act of accessing from data storage a business capability from the schema-based model for the organization, the business capability modeling a portion of what work the organization does, the business capability including a service level expectation property indicating metrics for measuring the business capabilities performance;

an act of identifying an express schema-based link between the business capability and each of one or more sets of entities, each set of entities including one or more entities that interoperate to perform a representative portion of the work for the business capability, each schema based-link including property values indicative of the contribution of the corresponding set of entities to the service level expectation metrics for the business capability, property values for each schema-based link determined from the performance of the one or more entities included in the corresponding set of entities;

an act of selecting a set of entities, from among the one or more sets of entities, that represent how a portion of the work for the business capability is performed;

for the selected set of entities;

an act of isolating at least one designated entity within the set or entities;

an act of simulating a change in the performance of the at least one designated entity; and

the one or more processors determining property values for the schema-based link for the selected set of entities, the property values determined from the performance the one or more entities based on the simulated change in performance of the at least one designated entity;

the one or more processors calculating the service level expectation metrics for the business capability based on property values from express schema-based links for each of the sets of entities that contribute to performance of the business capability, including the selected set of entities; and

an act of comparing the calculated service level expectation metrics to existing service level expectation metrics to determine the impact that the simulated change in the performance of the at least one designated entity has on the performance of the business capability.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of accessing a business capability from the schema-based model for the organization comprises an act of accessing a business capability that has a schematized service level expectation.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of identifying an express schema-based link between the business capability and each of one or more sets of entities comprises an act of identifying express schema-based links to sets of entities that have entities distributed across different business layers for the organization.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of selecting a set of entities comprises an act of selecting a specified business layer.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of isolating at least one designated entity within the set or entities comprises an act of isolating a plurality of entities.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of simulating a change in the performance of the at least one designated entity comprises an act of simulating a change to a plurality of entities.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of simulating a change in the performance of the at least one designated entity comprises an act of turning off an entire business layer.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein calculating the service level expectation metrics for the business capability based on property values from express schema-based links comprises an act of aggregating contributions from a plurality of schema-based links into a single schema-based link for use in calculating the service level expectation metrics.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of comparing the calculated service level expectation metrics to existing service level expectation metrics to determine the impact that the simulated change in the performance of the at least one designated entity has on the performance of the business capability comprises determining that the at least one designated entity has a relative significant impact on the service level expectation metrics such that further investment in improving the entity is warranted.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of comparing the calculated service level expectation metrics to existing service level expectation metrics to determine the impact that the simulated change in the performance of the at least one designated entity has on the performance of the business capability comprises determining that change to an entity at one of a technology layer, a process layer, and a people can increase the performance of the business capability.

11. A computer program product for use in a computer architecture, the computer architecture configured to access a schema-based model for an organization, the schema-based model modeling a plurality of interrelated business capabilities for the organization, each business capability representing a portion of what work the organization does, each business capability associated with a corresponding service level expectation indicating metrics for measuring the performance of the business capability, each business capability associated with a one or more entities that represent how the business capability does its corresponding portion of work, the computer program product for implementing a method for determining what impact a change in an entity'"'"'s performance has on a business capability'"'"'s performance, the computer program product comprising one or more computer storage media having stored thereon computer executable instructions that, when executed at processor, cause the computer system to perform the method including the following:

access a business capability from the schema-based model for the organization, the business capability modeling a portion of what work the organization does, the business capability including a service level expectation property indicating metrics for measuring the business capabilities performance;

identify an express schema-based link between the business capability and each of one or more sets of entities, each set of entities including one or more entities that interoperate to perform a representative portion of the work for the business capability, each schema based-link including property values indicative of the contribution of the corresponding set of entities to the service level expectation metrics for the business capability, property values for each schema-based link determined from the performance of the one or more entities included in the corresponding set of entities;

select a set of entities, from among the one or more sets of entities, that represent how a portion of the work for the business capability is performed;

for the selected set of entities;

isolate at least one designated entity within the set or entities;

simulate a change in the performance of the at least one designated entity; and

determine property values for the schema-based link for the selected set of entities, the property values determined from the performance the one or more entities based on the simulated change in performance of the at least one designated entity;

calculate the service level expectation metrics for the business capability based on property values from express schema-based links for each of the sets of entities that contribute to performance of the business capability, including the selected set of entities; and

compare the calculated service level expectation metrics to existing service level expectation metrics to determine the impact that the simulated change in the performance of the at least one designated entity has on the performance of the business capability.

12. The computer program product recited in claim 11, wherein computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to access a business capability from the schema-based model for the organization comprise computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to access a business capability that has a schematized service level expectation.

13. The computer program product recited in claim 11, wherein computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to identify an express schema-based link between the business capability and each of one or more sets of entities comprise computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to identify express schema-based links to sets of entities that have entities distributed across different business layers for the organization.

14. The computer program product recited in claim 11, wherein computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to selects a set of entities comprise computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to select a specified business layer.

15. The computer program product recited in claim 11, wherein computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to isolating at least one designated entity within the set or entities comprise computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to isolating a plurality of entities.

16. The computer program product recited in claim 11, wherein computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to simulate a change in the performance of the at least one designated entity comprise computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to simulate a change to a plurality of entities.

17. The computer program product recited in claim 11, wherein computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to simulate a change in the performance of the at least one designated entity comprise computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to turning off an entire business layer.

18. The computer program product recited in claim 11, wherein computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to calculate the service level expectation metrics for the business capability based on property values from express schema-based links comprise computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to aggregate contributions from a plurality of schema-based links into a single schema-based link for use in calculating the service level expectation metrics.

19. In a computer architecture, the computer architecture comprising one or more computer processors and data storage, the computer architecture configured to access a schema-based model for an organization, the schema-based model modeling a plurality of interrelated business capabilities for the organization, each business capability representing a portion of what work the organization does, each business capability associated with a corresponding service level expectation indicating metrics for measuring the performance of the business capability, each business capability associated with a one or more entities in one or more distinct business layers that represent how the business capability does its corresponding portion of work, a method for determining what impact a change in an entity'"'"'s performance has on a business capability'"'"'s performance, the method comprising:

an act of accessing from data storage a business capability from the schema-based model for the organization, the business capability modeling a portion of what work the organization does, the business capability including a service level expectation property indicating metrics for measuring the business capabilities performance;

an act of identifying an express schema-based link between the business capability and entities at each of the one or more distinct business layers, each business layer including one or more entities that interoperate to perform a representative portion of the work for the business capability, each schema based-link including property values indicative of the contribution of the a corresponding distinct business layer to the service level expectation metrics for the business capability, property values for each schema-based link determined from the performance of the entities included the distinct business layer;

an act of selecting a business layer from among the distinct business layers;

for the selected business layer;

an act of isolating at least one designated entity within the business layer;

an act of simulating a change in the performance of the at least one designated entity; and

the one or more processors determining property values for the schema-based link for the business layer, the property values determined from the performance the one or more entities based on the simulated change in performance of the selected business layer;

the one or more processors calculating the service level expectation metrics for the business capability based on property values from express schema-based links for each of the designated business layers; and

an act of comparing the calculated service level expectation metrics to existing service level expectation metrics to determine the impact that the simulated change in the performance of the selected business layer has on the performance of the business capability.

20. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the distinct business layers are a technology layer, a process layer, and a people layer.