Multiple stakeholders for a single business process

• US 9,244,599 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2013
• Issued: 01/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Bhandarkar, Mangesh P., Dewey, Michael K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Titcomb, William
• Application Number:
  US13/802,396
• Publication Number:
  US 20130198645A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,049 Days
• Field of Search: 715/741
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, implementing and using techniques for providing a customized representation of a business process involving one or more organizational entities that are accessible through a network. A user interface that can display a customized representation of a business process is provided. User information, including user privileges associated with the business process, is stored in a central repository that is accessible through the network. A request to view the business process is received from a first user through the user interface. The user privileges for the first user are retrieved from the central repository. A customized representation of the business process is displayed with the user interface. The customized representation is in compliance with the retrieved user privileges for the first user.

Claims

1. A computer program product, comprising a non-transitory computer usable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein, the computer readable program code adapted to be executed by a computer to implement a method comprising:

providing, by a system, a workflow design tool user interface operable to allow one or more users to perform operations associated with creating a workflow;

storing, by the system, user information for the one or more users indicating user privileges for performing the operations associated with creating the workflow;

controlling, by the system, which of the operations associated with creating the workflow are accessible to the one or more users, based on the user privileges, including;

when the user privileges stored for a user of the one or more users indicates that the user is not allowed to perform one or more of the operations associated with creating the workflow, then prohibiting the user from initiating the one or more of the operations within the system, and

when the user privileges stored for the user of the one or more users indicates that the user is allowed to perform one or more of the operations associated with creating the workflow, then allowing the user to initiate the one or more of the operations within the system.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from a first one of the users through the workflow design tool user interface to modify the workflow;

performing the modification of the workflow when the requested modification complies with the user privileges stored for the first user; and

denying the modification of the workflow when the requested modification does not comply with the user privileges stored for the first user.

3. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving a request from a second one of the users through the workflow design tool user interface to modify the workflow, the second user collaborating with the first user with respect to creating the workflow;

retrieving the user privileges for the second user, the user privileges for the second user being different from the user privileges for the first user; and

performing the modification of the workflow requested by the second user when the modification requested by the second user complies with the user privileges stored for the second user; and

denying the modification of the workflow requested by the second user when the modification requested by the second user does not comply with the user privileges stored for the second user.

4. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the first user is associated with a role and the role has an associated set of user privileges.

5. The computer program product of claim 4, wherein the role represents one of:

an individual user, and an organizational entity including two or more individual users.

6. The computer program product of claim 4, wherein the role is one of:

a business analyst role, a developer role, an information technology professional role, a quality assurance tester role, a security or business auditor role, and a performance analyst role.

7. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the user privileges include privileges to do one or more of:

creating a new workflow, viewing an existing workflow, modifying an existing workflow, importing elements of one workflow into another workflow, and copying elements from one workflow into another workflow.

8. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the workflow is defined in an extended markup language.

9. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein storing user information includes:

storing the user privileges for each of the users in a privilege storage area of the system, the privilege storage area being associated with a user account for the user.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the user'"'"'s privilege storage area includes one or more sets of user privileges, each set of user privileges corresponding to a particular workflow.

11. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the workflow includes a description of what types of user privileges are needed in order to view the workflow.

12. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the network is an interoperability network including functionality for routing messages through the interoperability network, and functionality for mediating differences in communication protocol formats between users, services, and computer applications involved in the business process.

13. A method, comprising:

providing, by a system, a workflow design tool user interface operable to allow one or more users to perform operations associated with creating a workflow;

storing, by the system, user information for the one or more users indicating user privileges for performing the operations associated with creating the workflow;

controlling, by the system, which of the operations associated with creating the workflow are accessible to the one or more users, based on the user privileges, including;

when the user privileges stored for a user of the one or more users indicates that the user is not allowed to perform one or more of the operations associated with creating the workflow, then prohibiting the user from initiating the one or more of the operations within the system, and

when the user privileges stored for the user of the one or more users indicates that the user is allowed to perform one or more of the operations associated with creating the workflow, then allowing the user to initiate the one or more of the operations within the system.

14. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor of a system; and

one or more stored sequences of instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to carry out the steps of;

providing, by the system, a workflow design tool user interface operable to allow one or more users to perform operations associated with creating a workflow;

storing, by the system, user information for the one or more users indicating user privileges for performing the operations associated with creating the workflow;

controlling, by the system, which of the operations associated with creating the workflow are accessible to the one or more users, based on the user privileges, including;

when the user privileges stored for a user of the one or more users indicates that the user is not allowed to perform one or more of the operations associated with creating the workflow, then prohibiting the user from initiating the one or more of the operations within the system, and

when the user privileges stored for the user of the one or more users indicates that the user is allowed to perform one or more of the operations associated with creating the workflow, then allowing the user to initiate the one or more of the operations within the system.