Automatically identifying critical resources of an organization

• US 8,843,936 B2
• Filed: 05/30/2012
• Issued: 09/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyndryl Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kenkre, Sreyash D., Mehta, Sameep, Narayanam, Krishnasuri, Pandit, Vinayaka D.
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, VAN H
• Application Number:
  US13/483,492
• Publication Number:
  US 20130326531A1
• Time in Patent Office: 846 Days
• Field of Search: 700/99
• US Class Current: 718/104
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06313 Resource planning in a project environment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

A method and associated systems for automatically identifying critical resources in an organization. An organization creates a model of the dependencies between pairs of resource instances, wherein that model describes how the organization'"'"'s projects and services are affected when a resource instance becomes unavailable. This model may be represented as a system of directed graphs. This model may be used to automatically identify a resource instance as “critical” when excessive cost is required to resume all projects and services rendered infeasible by the disruption of that resource instance. This model may also be used to automatically identify a resource instance as “critical for a resource type” when disruption of the resource instance forces the capacity of the resource type available to the entire organization to fall below a threshold value.

Claims

1. A method for automatically identifying critical resources of an organization, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of resource instances, wherein a resource instance of said plurality of resource instances is associated with a resource type of a plurality of resource types, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of projects, wherein a project of said plurality of projects comprises a demand for a capacity of a resource type of said plurality of resource types, and wherein a disruption of a first resource instance of said plurality of resource instances results in an unavailability of a unit of a second instance of said plurality of resource instances, said method comprising:

a processor of a computer system receiving one or more dependency relationships, wherein a dependency relationship of said one or more dependency relationships relates an independent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances with a dependent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein a disruption of said independent resource instance results in an unavailability of a unit of said dependent resource instance;

said processor determining a disrupted capacity of a disrupted resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said disrupted capacity is a function of an initial disruption of an initially disrupted resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein said disrupted capacity is a further function of said one or more dependency relationships;

said processor categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as being critical for said disrupted resource type, wherein said categorizing is a function of said disrupted capacity of said disrupted resource type.

2. The method of claim 1, said method further comprising said processor further categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as critical to the organization, wherein said further categorizing is a function of a resumption cost incurred by resuming one or more disrupted projects of said plurality of projects, and wherein said one or more disrupted projects are initially rendered infeasible by said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein a resumption cost comprises at least one of a substitution cost and a time-delay cost, wherein said substitution cost is a function of a cost of substituting a number of substitute units of an available resource instance of said plurality of resource instances for an unavailable unit of an unavailable resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, wherein said unavailable unit is unavailable as a result of said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance, and wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a length of time required to perform said substituting.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said substituting is constrained by a substitutability rule of a plurality of substitutability rules, wherein said substitutability rule specifies a project of said plurality of projects, a project resource type of said plurality of resource types, and a substitute resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said project requires said project resource type, and wherein said substitutability rule further specifies a number of units of said substitute resource type that may be substituted for an unavailable unit of said project resource type.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a distance on a geographic hierarchy graph between a substitute unit of said number of substitute units and said unavailable unit, and wherein said geographic hierarchy graph represents a geographic distribution of said plurality of resource instances.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said one or more dependency relationships are represented as one or more directed graphs, wherein said further function of said one or more dependency relationships comprises traversing a directed path of said one or more directed graphs, and wherein said path comprises a node that represents said initially disrupted resource instance.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said categorizing comprises comparing said disrupted capacity to a threshold value.

8. A computer program product, comprising a computer-readable hardware storage device having a computer-readable program code stored therein, said program code configured to be executed by a processor of a computer system to implement a method for automatically identifying critical resources of an organization, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of resource instances, wherein a resource instance of said plurality of resource instances is associated with a resource type of a plurality of resource types, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of projects, wherein a project of said plurality of projects comprises a demand for a capacity of a resource type of said plurality of resource types, and wherein a disruption of a first resource instance of said plurality of resource instances results in an unavailability of a unit of a second instance of said plurality of resource instances, said method comprising:

a processor of a computer system receiving one or more dependency relationships, wherein a dependency relationship of said one or more dependency relationships relates an independent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances with a dependent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein a disruption of said independent resource instance results in an unavailability of a unit of said dependent resource instance;

said processor determining a disrupted capacity of a disrupted resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said disrupted capacity is a function of an initial disruption of an initially disrupted resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein said disrupted capacity is a further function of said one or more dependency relationships;

said processor categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as being critical for said disrupted resource type, wherein said categorizing is a function of said disrupted capacity of said disrupted resource type.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, said method further comprising said processor further categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as critical to the organization, wherein said further categorizing is a function of a resumption cost incurred by resuming one or more disrupted projects of said plurality of projects, and wherein said one or more disrupted projects are initially rendered infeasible by said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein a resumption cost comprises at least one of a substitution cost and a time-delay cost, wherein said substitution cost is a function of a cost of substituting a number of substitute units of an available resource instance of said plurality of resource instances for an unavailable unit of an unavailable resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, wherein said unavailable unit is unavailable as a result of said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance, and wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a length of time required to perform said substituting.

11. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein said substituting is constrained by a substitutability rule of a plurality of substitutability rules, wherein said substitutability rule specifies a project of said plurality of projects, a project resource type of said plurality of resource types, and a substitute resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said project requires said project resource type, and wherein said substitutability rule further specifies a number of units of said substitute resource type that may be substituted for an unavailable unit of said project resource type.

12. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a distance on a geographic hierarchy graph between a substitute unit of said number of substitute units and said unavailable unit, and wherein said geographic hierarchy graph represents a geographic distribution of said plurality of resource instances.

13. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein said one or more dependency relationships are represented as one or more directed graphs, wherein said further function of said one or more dependency relationships comprises traversing a directed path of said one or more directed graphs, and wherein said path comprises a node that represents said initially disrupted resource instance.

14. A computer system comprising a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and a computer-readable hardware storage device coupled to said processor, said storage device containing program code configured to be run by the processor via the memory to implement a method for automatically identifying critical resources of an organization, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of resource instances, wherein a resource instance of said plurality of resource instances is associated with a resource type of a plurality of resource types, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of projects, wherein a project of said plurality of projects comprises a demand for a capacity of a resource type of said plurality of resource types, and wherein a disruption of a first resource instance of said plurality of resource instances results in an unavailability of a unit of a second instance of said plurality of resource instances, said method comprising:

a processor of a computer system receiving one or more dependency relationships, wherein a dependency relationship of said one or more dependency relationships relates an independent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances with a dependent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein a disruption of said independent resource instance results in an unavailability of a unit of said dependent resource instance;

said processor determining a disrupted capacity of a disrupted resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said disrupted capacity is a function of an initial disruption of an initially disrupted resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein said disrupted capacity is a further function of said one or more dependency relationships;

said processor categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as being critical for said disrupted resource type, wherein said categorizing is a function of said disrupted capacity of said disrupted resource type.

15. The system of claim 14, said method further comprising said processor further categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as critical to the organization, wherein said further categorizing is a function of a resumption cost incurred by resuming one or more disrupted projects of said plurality of projects, and wherein said one or more disrupted projects are initially rendered infeasible by said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein a resumption cost comprises at least one of a substitution cost and a time-delay cost, wherein said substitution cost is a function of a cost of substituting a number of substitute units of an available resource instance of said plurality of resource instances for an unavailable unit of an unavailable resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, wherein said unavailable unit is unavailable as a result of said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance, and wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a length of time required to perform said substituting.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein said substituting is constrained by a substitutability rule of a plurality of substitutability rules, wherein said substitutability rule specifies a project of said plurality of projects, a project resource type of said plurality of resource types, and a substitute resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said project requires said project resource type, and wherein said substitutability rule further specifies a number of units of said substitute resource type that may be substituted for an unavailable unit of said project resource type.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a distance on a geographic hierarchy graph between a substitute unit of said number of substitute units and said unavailable unit, and wherein said geographic hierarchy graph represents a geographic distribution of said plurality of resource instances.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein said one or more dependency relationships are represented as one or more directed graphs, wherein said further function of said one or more dependency relationships comprises traversing a directed path of said one or more directed graphs, and wherein said path comprises a node that represents said initially disrupted resource instance.

20. A process for supporting computer infrastructure, said process comprising providing at least one support service for at least one of creating, integrating, hosting, maintaining, and deploying computer-readable program code in a computer system, wherein the program code in combination with the computer system is configured to implement a method for automatically identifying critical resources of an organization, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of resource instances, wherein a resource instance of said plurality of resource instances is associated with a resource type of a plurality of resource types, wherein said organization comprises a plurality of projects, wherein a project of said plurality of projects comprises a demand for a capacity of a resource type of said plurality of resource types, and wherein a disruption of a first resource instance of said plurality of resource instances results in an unavailability of a unit of a second instance of said plurality of resource instances, said method comprising:

a processor of a computer system receiving one or more dependency relationships, wherein a dependency relationship of said one or more dependency relationships relates an independent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances with a dependent resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein a disruption of said independent resource instance results in an unavailability of a unit of said dependent resource instance;

said processor determining a disrupted capacity of a disrupted resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said disrupted capacity is a function of an initial disruption of an initially disrupted resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, and wherein said disrupted capacity is a further function of said one or more dependency relationships;

said processor categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as being critical for said disrupted resource type, wherein said categorizing is a function of said disrupted capacity of said disrupted resource type.

21. The process of claim 20, said method further comprising said processor further categorizing said initially disrupted resource instance as critical to the organization, wherein said further categorizing is a function of a resumption cost incurred by resuming one or more disrupted projects of said plurality of projects, and wherein said one or more disrupted projects are initially rendered infeasible by said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance.

22. The process of claim 21, wherein a resumption cost comprises at least one of a substitution cost and a time-delay cost, wherein said substitution cost is a function of a cost of substituting a number of substitute units of an available resource instance of said plurality of resource instances for an unavailable unit of an unavailable resource instance of said plurality of resource instances, wherein said unavailable unit is unavailable as a result of said initial disruption of said initially disrupted resource instance, and wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a length of time required to perform said substituting.

23. The process of claim 22, wherein said substituting is constrained by a substitutability rule of a plurality of substitutability rules, wherein said substitutability rule specifies a project of said plurality of projects, a project resource type of said plurality of resource types, and a substitute resource type of said plurality of resource types, wherein said project requires said project resource type, and wherein said substitutability rule further specifies a number of units of said substitute resource type that may be substituted for an unavailable unit of said project resource type.

24. The process of claim 22, wherein said time-delay cost is a function of a distance on a geographic hierarchy graph between a substitute unit of said number of substitute units and said unavailable unit, and wherein said geographic hierarchy graph represents a geographic distribution of said plurality of resource instances.

25. The process of claim 20, wherein said one or more dependency relationships are represented as one or more directed graphs, wherein said further function of said one or more dependency relationships comprises traversing a directed path of said one or more directed graphs, and wherein said path comprises a node that represents said initially disrupted resource instance.