U.S. patent application number 12/359985 was filed with the patent office on 2009-05-21 for idea management.
This patent application is currently assigned to BRAINBANK, INC.. Invention is credited to Andre Paul Cyrille Laurin, Karell Serge Jean Ste-Marie.
Application Number | 20090132350 12/359985 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46278670 |
Filed Date | 2009-05-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090132350 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Laurin; Andre Paul Cyrille ;
et al. |
May 21, 2009 |
Idea Management
Abstract
A system, method and computer program product for idea
management and development of a structured idea. The methodology
includes obtaining a structured response over a computer network
from an employee of a business. In certain embodiments of the
invention the system and method may be employed without the use of
a computer network. The structured response is developed through a
series of templates in which the employee enters information into a
template. From the responses in the first template a second
template is selected. The second template may request information
regarding the financial consequences of implementing the idea. Once
the structured idea is developed through the series of templates a
routing decision is made by the server. The server determines one
or more members of the business management to whom the idea is
routed based in part on information entered by the employee in the
templates.
Inventors: |
Laurin; Andre Paul Cyrille;
(Pointe-Claire, CA) ; Ste-Marie; Karell Serge Jean;
(LaSalle, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BROMBERG & SUNSTEIN LLP
125 SUMMER STREET
BOSTON
MA
02110-1618
US
|
Assignee: |
BRAINBANK, INC.
Dorval
CA
|
Family ID: |
46278670 |
Appl. No.: |
12/359985 |
Filed: |
January 26, 2009 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10044779 |
Jan 10, 2002 |
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12359985 |
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09375401 |
Aug 17, 1999 |
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10044779 |
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60144877 |
Jul 20, 1999 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/7.12 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 10/0631 20130101;
G06Q 10/0637 20130101; G06Q 10/063114 20130101; G06Q 10/103
20130101; G06Q 10/06375 20130101; G06Q 10/06395 20130101; G06Q
10/063 20130101; G06Q 10/10 20130101; G06Q 10/06311 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/10 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 10/00 20060101
G06Q010/00 |
Claims
1. A computer implemented method for providing, through a computer
network to business management, a user's suggestion for business
improvement, the method comprising: causing presentation to a user,
seeking to submit a suggestion for business improvement, a series
of two or more templates for entering a structured response on a
user processing device; receiving at a processor, over a computer
network from the user, the structured response entered into the two
or more templates, wherein the structured response includes a
characterization of the type of suggestion entered into one or more
templates by the user; in the processor, logically selecting at
least one of the templates presented to the user according to the
type of suggestion characterized by the user; and in the processor,
determining routing of data from the structured response to
business management over the network.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the routing of data from
the structured response to business management is determined based
upon content of the response.
3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the processor logically
selects a plurality of templates subsequent to a first template
based upon data entered by the user in one or more templates.
4. A method according to claim 1, wherein at least one template
provides for entry of cost savings information.
5. A method according to claim 1, wherein at least one template
provides for access to a database containing cost information.
6. A method according to claim 1 wherein a financial template is
provided.
7. A method according to claim 6, further comprising: calculating a
financial benefit based upon submissions in the financial
template.
8. A method according to claim 6, further comprising: calculating a
financial benefit based upon submissions in the financial template
and financial data from a business database.
9. A method according to claim 6, further comprising: obtaining
financial data requested from a business database.
10. A method according to claim 6, wherein, if no financial data is
available in a business database associated with the network and if
the user enters financial data in a template, the method further
comprises: adding the financial data to the business database for a
subsequent user suggestion.
11. A method according to claim 1, wherein determining routing of
data to business management is dependent at least in part on one or
more of a user selected business group, a user selected deadline,
one or more user selected potential implementers, a department
affected by the user suggestion, whether the suggestion has a
financial benefit, whether the user indicates that the suggestion
is a team suggestion, the suggestion characterized by the user,
workload of the business management, and information about the user
submitting the suggestion.
12. A method according to claim 1, further comprising: receiving
over a network a structured reply to the structured response from
one or more members of business management.
13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the structured reply is
based upon a response by business management into one or more
templates.
14. A method according to claim 12, wherein the processor routes a
new template to the user requesting more information about the
employee suggestion in response to the structured reply.
15. A method according to claim 1, wherein a template is provided
to the user for entering information regarding implementation of
the user suggestion.
16. A method according to claim 1, further comprising: after
receiving information from business management indicating
acceptance of the user suggestion, sending via the computer network
information about the user suggestion to possible implementers.
17. A computer program product comprising a computer readable
storage medium having computer readable code thereon for providing
to business management a user's suggestion for business
improvement, the computer readable code comprising: computer code
for presenting to a user, seeking to submit a suggestion for
business improvement, a series of two or more templates for
entering a structured response on a processing device; computer
code for obtaining, over a computer network from the user, the
structured response entered into the two or more templates from the
user, wherein the structured response includes a characterization
of the type of suggestion entered into one or more templates by the
user; computer code for logically selecting at least one of the
templates presented to the user according to the type of suggestion
characterized by the user; and computer code for determining
routing of data from the structured response to business management
over the network.
18. A computer program product according to claim 17, wherein the
routing of data from the structured response to business management
is determined based the content of the response.
19. A computer program product according to claim 17, wherein the
computer code logically selects a plurality of templates subsequent
to a first template based upon data entered by the user in one or
more templates.
20. A computer program product according to claim 17, wherein at
least one template provides for entry of cost savings
information.
21. A computer program product according to claim 17, wherein at
least one template provides for access to a database containing
cost information.
22. A computer program product according to claim 17, wherein a
financial template is provided.
23. A computer program product according to claim 22, further
comprising: code for calculating a financial benefit based upon
submissions in the financial template.
24. A computer program product according to claim 22, further
comprising: code for calculating a financial benefit based upon
submissions in the financial template and financial data from a
business database.
25. A computer program product according to claim 22, further
comprising: code for obtaining financial data requested from a
business database.
26. A computer program product according to claim 22, wherein, if
no financial data is available in a business database associated
with the network and if the user enters financial data in a
template, the computer program product further comprises: code for
adding the financial data to the business database for a subsequent
user suggestion.
27. A computer program product according to claim 17, wherein
determining routing of data to business management is dependent at
least in part on one or more of a user selected business group, a
user selected deadline, one or more user selected potential
implementers, a department affected by the user suggestion, whether
the suggestion has a financial benefit, whether the user indicates
that the suggestion is a team suggestion, the suggestion
characterized by the user, workload of the business management, and
information about the user submitting the suggestion.
28. A computer program product according to claim 17, further
comprising: code for receiving over a network a structured reply to
the structured response from one or more members of business
management.
29. A computer program product according to claim 28, wherein the
structured reply is based upon a response by business management
into one or more templates.
30. A computer program product according to claim 28, wherein the
processor routes a new template to the user requesting more
information about the employee suggestion in response to the
structured reply.
31. A computer program product according to claim 17, wherein a
template is provided to the user for entering information regarding
implementation of the user suggestion.
32. A computer program product according to claim 17, further
comprising: code for receiving information from business management
indicating acceptance of the user suggestion; and code for sending
via the computer network information about the user suggestion to
possible implementers.
33. A system for providing a user's suggestion for business
improvement to business management, the system comprising: a first
processing device for presenting to a user, seeking to submit a
suggestion for business improvement, a series of two or more
templates for entering a structured response; and a processor for
receiving, over a computer network from the processing device, the
structured response entered into the two or more templates, wherein
the structured response includes a characterization of the type of
suggestion entered into one or more templates by the user, the
processor logically selects at least one of the templates presented
to the user according to the type of suggestion characterized by
the user, and the processor determines routing of data from the
structured response to business management over the network.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 10/044,779 filed on Jan. 10, 2002 entitled
"Idea Management," issued as U.S. Pat. No. ______, which in turn is
a continuation-in-part application of abandoned U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 09/375,401 filed on Aug. 17, 1999 entitled
"Employee Proposal Management System and Method" which claims
priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.
60/144,877 filed on Jul. 20, 1999.
TECHNICAL FIELD AND BACKGROUND ART
[0002] The present invention relates to idea submission methods and
computer systems for idea submission and development.
[0003] It is known in the prior art to provide an idea box for
manual submission of an employee's idea. Further, it is known in
the art to employ computers which are coupled together to submit
comments or ideas to business management and for business
management to respond to such comments and ideas. Such systems
simply employ e-mail and the comments and ideas are submitted to a
business manager for review.
[0004] These prior art systems fall short of providing a cohesive
system for formulating, reviewing, and implementing an idea.
Further, such prior art systems fail to provide a systematic
methodology for routing ideas through the network to appropriate
reviewers and implementers based upon content and workflow
criteria. In the prior art, ideas are either submitted to a central
computer repository where users of the system may look at submitted
ideas or the prior art systems rely on manual human intervention
and decision making in determining where the idea should be
routed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In a first embodiment of the invention there is provided a
system, method and computer program product for idea management and
development of a structured idea. The methodology includes
obtaining a structured response over a computer network from an
employee of a business. In certain embodiments of the invention the
system and method may be employed without the use of a computer
network. The structured response is developed through a series of
templates in which the employee enters information into a template.
From the responses in the first template a second template is
selected. For example, the first template may inquire as to the
idea type which is selected from a selection of idea types, Based
upon the idea type selected, a second template is provided by a
server to a processing device of the employee. The second template
may request information regarding the financial consequences of
implementing the idea. Once the structured idea is developed
through the series of templates a routing decision is made by the
server. The server determines one or more members of the business
management to route the idea to. In such an embodiment, an idea log
which contains all submitted information in the templates is sent
via the computer network to the one or more members of the business
management. In other embodiments, the routing decision causes the
server to send a message to the business management that they have
been selected to evaluate the submitted structured idea of the
employee. The routing decision is made in part based upon
information that is presented in the templates by the employee.
[0006] In one embodiment the selection of templates by the server
may be based upon the selected type of idea/proposal. Examples of
idea types include but are not limited to: cost saving, revenue
generation, quality improvement, safety improvement and policy
change. In completing the templates, the employee is provided with
various resources including access to a cost database. The cost
database may be accessed through the financial template in order to
assist in determining costs that will contribute to the
implementation of the idea. By entering all of the costs and
possible benefits, the server automatically calculates the
financial impact of implementing the idea. Other entries that may
trigger selection of a template by the server include, the selected
department of the business that the idea will affect, the type of
proposal selected, whether the proposal is a group proposal, or
whether the proposal will have financial consequences.
[0007] In the event that the financial information is not present
in the cost database for a particular item, the employee may send a
message to the server requesting that the additional information is
provided. The server will then route the request to the proper
department such as accounting in order to obtain the information.
Decisions may be made about the requested information based upon
the employee's log in information. If the employee is aware of the
financial information or receives a response with the information
provided by the accounting or other department, this financial
information will be automatically added to the cost database for
future users of the idea management system.
[0008] The process of routing the idea or contacting business
management to review the idea may be based in part upon the group
within the business that the employee has indicated will benefit
from the idea. Routing may also be based on other criteria entered
in the templates such as: whether the employee indicated that the
idea submission will have a financial benefit, whether the idea is
a team suggestion, the idea type that is selected, the workload of
the business management, information about the employee who
submitted the idea such as the department that the employee works
in or any time limits for example.
[0009] In another embodiment in which a third template is provided
to the employee by the server, the employee is queried regarding
the implementation process and asked to enter the names of
potential implementers. Routing in turn may be based upon the one
or more implementers that are selected by the employee.
[0010] After information has been gathered at the server such that
there is a structured idea submission the information is then
routed. The business management that either, approve, disapprove or
request additional information about the idea are contacted and
provided with evaluation templates. The business management can
then check the entries that are made by the employee regarding the
various costs and the financial impact of the idea that the
employee has submitted.
[0011] In certain embodiments there may be more than one level of
review of the idea. In other embodiments at each stage of the
review process the employee is contacted through e-mail and
informed of the progress of the idea submission status. The idea
submission is generally stored in an idea log in a memory location
associated with the server. The idea log contains all of the
information that has been submitted to the server for the idea
submission by the employee and any of the business management that
have reviewed the idea and may also include such time and date
information regarding the review process, and the status of the
idea. The idea log may be requested by any party involved in the
idea management process and sent to a processing device of the
party for display.
[0012] At each stage in the development of the idea, timers may be
employed. Upon expiration of a timer, the person that is required
to give a response or to add additional information will be
contacted by the server and sent a reminder communication.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] The foregoing features of the invention will be more readily
understood by reference to the following detailed description,
taken with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
[0014] FIG. 1 is an environment for implementing systems and
methods for idea management according to one embodiment of the
invention;
[0015] FIG. 2 is flow chart that generally shows the steps used for
idea management in a client server environment;
[0016] FIG. 2A is a more detailed flow chart of FIG. 2.
[0017] FIG. 3 is a flow chart that shows the steps for creating a
structured idea of an employee using templates;
[0018] FIGS. 3A-3H show various comparative analysis templates
wherein each template has a different series of fields that require
data entry by the employee;
[0019] FIG. 4 is a representation of an idea log that shows the
information that is contained within the log for storage in memory
associated with the server
[0020] FIG. 5 is a graphical representation of the information
sources and research tools that an employee has access to in
formulating the structured idea;
[0021] FIG. 6 is representation of the idea-fundamental template
that an employee first receives after requesting the creation of an
idea log;
[0022] FIG. 7 is a representation of the comparative analysis
template that allows an employee to make a comparative analysis
between the new idea and the old method;
[0023] FIG. 8 is a representation of the financial information
template;
[0024] FIG. 9 is a representation of the implementation
template;
[0025] FIG. 10 is a flow chart that shows the evaluation process in
one embodiment of the present invention;
[0026] FIG. 10A is a sample template that is provided to an
evaluator;
[0027] FIG. 11 is a sample template that is provided to an
implementer;
[0028] FIG. 12 is a sample template that is provided to a decision
maker;
[0029] FIG. 13 is a flow chart that shows the steps for idea
submission in which the process is performed manually;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS
[0030] Definitions. As used in this description and the
accompanying claims, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated, unless the context otherwise requires: the term
"business" as used herein shall apply to all organizations
including both for-profit, non-profit organizations and may be
associated with clients of an organization including customers and
suppliers. The term "business management" as used herein shall
apply to evaluators, implementers and decision-makers of an idea
submission and is not strictly limited to a particular level of
management of a business. The term "employee" shall refer to an
individual submitting an idea and may be any user of the system who
submits an idea including business management, clients, customers,
and suppliers of the business. The term "template" as used herein
shall refer to forms on any media which have one or more locations
for the entry of information. Templates include electronic forms
which are computer readable and displayable. As used herein the
term "financial impact item" shall refer to a cost associated with
an item that is not present in the cost database of the system. The
cost may be obtained in a manner other than through retrieval from
a cost database either by making a request to a group or division
having knowledge on the item or through a request to the accounting
department. The term "financial information" as used herein shall
refer to a cost associated with an item and may include accounting
codes and other identifiers of the association of the item to the
cost. As used herein the term "routing" shall refer to the
determination of at least a destination address and any
intermediate addresses that are necessary in a computer network. In
embodiments, in which the system and method are applied without the
use of a processor, routing refers to the determination of the next
person(s) that are to receive the idea submission. As used herein
the term "routing decision" or "network routing" refers to the
destination address and not necessarily to the information about an
employee's idea, but only a destination that is to be contacted via
internal messaging or through an integrated electronic mail system.
The terms, "submission" and "proposal" are used interchangeably
herein to refer at least to the information that is provided by an
employee regarding an idea for improvement of the business.
[0031] FIG. 1 is an environment for implementing systems and
methods for idea management according to one embodiment of the
invention. The following system and method are generally
implemented in a client/server architecture in which a
processor/server interacts with a processing device of an employee
through a computer network. Information is transferred in two-way
communication between the client and the server. It should be
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the network
that the system may be implemented in may include, local area
networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs) and may include networks
such as the internet and the World Wide Web.
[0032] The server of the embodiment of FIG. 1 performs the method
of the flow chart of FIG. 2. The server sends a series of templates
to a processing device associated with an employee who is
developing an idea (Step 210). The templates are created to illicit
an idea in a structured manner submission of an idea may be kept
confidential. In such embodiment the employee has an associated
code/name for accessing an idea log which is contained in memory
associated with the processor. The server/processor may store the
employee's information and make an association with the associated
code, using this information to send messages to the employee,
however it can be requested (selected by user or manager) or
configured that no personal information will be shown or sent to
other parties involved in the idea development, review and
implementation process. The first template captures the type of
idea and allows the employee to express the idea as a written
description. The second template captures the financial
consequences of the idea and the third template captures the
implementation details of the idea. Once the idea has been
developed in this structured manner, the server processes the
information that is received in the templates and makes a routing
decision based at least on information that is submitted by the
employee (Step 220). The routing of the idea may be based on, for
example, the type of idea and the group/division of the business
affected. Once a routing decision has been made, information is
passed to at least one party (evaluator) that will make a decision
about implementation of the idea. The information that is gathered
in the templates from the employee may be selectively provided to
the evaluator. For example, the evaluator may be sent a message
which indicates that an idea has been submitted and the party has
been selected as a reviewer of the idea. The server then allows the
evaluator access to the idea which is stored in memory associated
with the server and also provides a template to the evaluator. In
other embodiments, the information may be reformatted to provide a
business case format to the evaluator of the idea submission. A
business case format includes not only the financial elements, but
additional material such as that which are provided in an idea log
as described below with respect to FIG. 4 including the names of
all other evaluators and their decisions if already made along with
potential implementers of the idea and other factors which effect
the implementation of the idea.
[0033] In a preferred embodiment, the evaluator may select to
approve the idea, disapprove the idea or request more information.
The server receives this information and evaluates the information
based upon the decision (Step 230). The server may then send a
message to the employee who formulated the idea which contains the
decision of the evaluator. It should be understood that the
decision making process may require multiple evaluators. For
example, there may be an initial evaluator, a pre-implementation
evaluator and a final decision maker, all of whom are part of the
overall decision making process. Such an embodiment is elaborated
on in FIG. 2A.
[0034] In FIG. 2A, an employee of a business who has an idea or
suggestion for improvement of the business makes a request to begin
development of the idea over the computer network to the
server/processor. A series of templates are then sent to the
employee over the network for development of the structured idea
submission (Step 210A).
[0035] The processor first sends a template to the employee
providing for employee identification. Once the employee is
recognized and authenticated by the processor through a log-in
process the processor provides an idea fundamental template to the
employee. The idea fundamental template allows the user to enter
information about the idea and allows the employee to identify the
type of idea which is selected from a group of categories. It
should be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that each
template that is provided to the employee is designed for entry and
submission of information. The information is entered and coupled
with an identifier so that the information may be sent in a format
that the server may process. In one embodiment of the invention,
the computer network is the Internet and the template is created
such that it may be displayed in a web browser. It should be
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the template
may be XML, DHTML, HTML or another type of displayable document
which is operable with a web browser.
[0036] The employee then transmits the information to the
processor. Based in part upon the type of idea that is selected the
employee further develops the structured idea through a series of
templates which are tailored to the specific type of idea. The
employee refines the idea to include the financial consequences of
implementing the idea as well as elaborating on the requirements
for implementing the idea.
[0037] Once the employee has completed the series of templates and
the information entered into the templates is sent to the
processor, the processor makes routing decisions based upon routing
rules (Step 220A). The decisions include which department or
departments the employee idea should be routed to and to whom in
those departments the idea should be sent.
[0038] Routing of the idea may be based upon routing policies which
are stored in the server. These policies may be established by the
business management prior to the routing of an idea. The policies
may be based upon organizational conditions, based upon template
entries or a combination of both. For example, one organizational
condition might be that all employee ideas are routed to the
employee's superior or to the department manager. An example of
routing based upon a template entry is sending the idea submission
to the head of the department that was indicated by the employee as
the department to be affected on the idea fundamental template. An
example of the combination of both organizational conditions and
the template entries might be routing the idea to a potential
implementer selected by the employee based upon the workload of the
implementer during the time period for implementing the idea. In
such an embodiment, the server would eliminate implementers based
upon the implementer's availability.
[0039] As such routing may be determined based upon a criteria set
which includes data from the submitted idea and also organizational
conditions. Some criteria which may be used for routing which is
gathered from the templates are the department affected, the origin
of the idea, the type of idea, and any time limits for
implementation or responding. In the preferred embodiment at least
two criteria are used for determining the routing of the idea. A
further example of a routing rule is determining an evaluator from
group of evaluators by rotating the selection of the evaluator each
time a new idea is presented.
[0040] The idea is then sent through the network to at least one
member of the business's management of the identified department so
that the idea may be evaluated. Based upon the type of idea, the
business management, also known as an evaluator, is provided with
one or more templates which include the information that was
developed for the employee's idea. The business management can then
make a decision whether to approve the idea, not approve the idea
or request additional information regarding the idea (Step 230A).
If the idea is approved, the pre-implementation phase is begun. The
processor then determines the next person or persons to whom the
idea will be routed (Step 240A). One or more templates are sent to
the employee(s) of the business who would most likely be involved
in implementing the employee's idea. The implementers then evaluate
whether the idea is feasible and whether any benefit would actually
result for the company. Based upon the decision by the
implementer(s), the idea is either approved for implementation, not
approved or more information is requested of the employee (Step
250A). The idea submission is then routed to a decision maker
within the business (Step 260A). If not decided at this level, the
idea can be routed based upon routing criteria which may include
workload of the various decision makers as well as the type of idea
and the department that the idea will affect. The decision maker
benefits from the information which is added by the evaluator(s)
and the implementer(s) who have reviewed the idea and checked the
financial impact of the idea. If at any point in the idea process,
the idea is rejected the employee is informed and the process ends.
The decision maker like the implementer and evaluator has the
ability to approve, reject or request information (Step 270A). If
the employee's idea is to be implemented, the implementation
follows based upon the proposal in the submission of the employee
and any additional suggestions which have been provided by the
evaluators, or decision makers implementers (Step 280A). If
information is requested at any stage in the process, the server
sends a message to the employee requesting information. The
employee may then enter information into a template, which is then
sent by the server back to the appropriate evaluator, implementer
or decision maker respectively (Steps 231A, 251A, 271A).
[0041] Each time a template is presented and information is entered
into the template in the pre-defined fields, the information is
translated into a data stream which includes delimiters for the
response for each field. The data stream is addressed and sent to
the processor through the computer network and parsed by system
rules or in case-specific ways by the processor. Based upon the
parsed information, the server can then use portions of the parsed
information to determine the type of template that needs to be
presented along with determining the identity of who should be
evaluating the idea and the address/routing information for sending
a message or the information from the templates (the structured
idea) to the identified evaluator.
[0042] It should be recognized that the foregoing system is more
than an idea submission system, as the system provides for
refinement of an idea, routing of the idea to business management,
evaluators, and decision makers based upon a criteria set, and
development of an implementation based in part upon financial
consequences and workload of other employees who may be involved in
implementing or evaluating the idea.
[0043] FIG. 3 is a flow chart which shows a three step process
which is used for development of an employee idea. After logging
into the server and proceeding through an authentication process,
an employee is provided with a template for outlining the suggested
idea (Step 310). The employee may through a written description
define what the idea is and provide a title for the idea. The
template, at a minimum, requires that the employee classify the
idea into one of a plurality of categories. Potential categories
include, but are not limited to cost savings, revenue generating,
quality improvement, safety improvement, customer service
improvement, development of a new product, and new company slogan.
The template allows the employee to identify if the idea will have
a financial impact and also the departments of the business that
are to be affected by the idea. This information may be gathered on
a single template or through multiple templates. In one embodiment,
a second template is provided which allows an employee to enter a
comparative analysis of the method that was previously implemented
if the idea is a new method or procedure. The employee is queried
as to the impact of the method and the potential drawbacks of the
method. The template that is selected by the server and then sent
to the employee for comparative analysis may be selected based on
the idea type chosen in the idea fundamentals template. FIGS. 3A-3H
show various comparative analysis templates wherein each template
has a different series of fields which require data entry by the
employee. Each template is based upon a different selected idea
type.
[0044] After the general information template is completed, the
information is forwarded through the computer network to the
processor and the processor processes the information in order to
determine the next template to send to the employee. Based upon the
information which is sent to the processor which was entered by the
employee in the template, the processor accesses a look-up table
and compares the received information with the look-up table to
select the next template to send to the client processing device.
For each entry entered into a template by an employee, a new
template may be assigned from a plurality of pre-configured
templates. The processor determines the new template to send based
upon the type of idea that is selected by the employee and also on
whether the idea will have financial consequences.
[0045] If the employee indicates that the idea will have financial
consequences, the processor then provides a financial information
template to the employee (Step 320). The financial information
template queries the employee as to the cost of the original
method, the cost of the new method, whether revenue will be
generated by the new method, the cost of implementing the new
method and the capital required for the idea. Based upon the
information provided by the employee, the processor can then
determine the overall financial impact of the idea. During the
process of entering information into the template, the employee is
provided with access to a cost database. By selecting the cost
database on the template, a new document is provided to the
employee by the server which contains data listings of various
costs from the cost database. For example, the listings may include
costs of material associated with the business, fees for attorneys,
manufacturing costs, fuel costs, real estate costs etc. As such,
there may be further sub-categories with associated costs which can
assist the employee in determining the financial impact of the
idea. For example, under the category of manufacturing costs, the
subcategories may include, heavy machinery, workers compensation
etc.
[0046] If a cost is not listed that the employee believes is
necessary to determine the financial benefit to the business, the
employee has two options. The first is to request the financial
information from a financial database or from the accounting
department or another source that is coupled to the computer
network. By making a request to the server the employee may be
granted access to the information or denied access to the financial
information based upon some preset criteria. For example, certain
employees may have access to certain financial information that
other employees would not be privy to, such as, employee salaries.
The processor, based upon the request will check whether the
employee has access privileges to the financial information. This
may be achieved by comparing the employee's log-in information to
an access list. If the employee has access privileges the
information will be sent to the employee via the server. One such
mechanism for sending the information may be through electronic
mail. The information may also be provided by sending another
template to the employee.
[0047] If the employee is denied access to the requested financial
information or is capable of obtaining financial information from
an outside source which is not part of the idea submission process,
the employee can enter this information into the financial
information template and the processor will automatically add the
information into the cost database so that other employees may have
access to that financial information for future idea submissions.
Additionally, the added information will be used by the processor
for calculating the overall financial impact of the idea. The
processor passes the new cost information and associated category
identifier and makes a comparison with the available fields within
the cost database. The processor may then select an appropriate
field for adding the new cost information to the cost database. In
other embodiments the employee enters a pre-identified code which
is used for determining which field(s) to populate with the cost
information in the cost database.
[0048] It should be understood that this automatic self-population
of the cost database feature may be coupled to any template such
that the employee, the reviewers, the coaches, or a resource
representative (discussed below) may use this feature.
[0049] After the financial information has been entered and the
financial impact has been automatically calculated by the
processor, a template is provided to the employee from the
processor which requests information concerning implementation of
the idea (Step 330). Some of the information that may be queried
are the recommended steps for implementing the idea, the
non-financial consequences of the idea, other potential benefits of
the idea, recommended implementers of the idea and an estimated
time frame for implementing the idea. This information is then
passed back to the processor through the computer network and the
information is then stored in a storage location associated with
the employee's idea.
[0050] Upon submission of an idea by an employee, the processor
creates an idea log as shown in FIG. 4. Information that is
submitted in a template by the employee is stored to memory
associated with the idea. This log contains all of the information
that has been provided by the employee in the templates and may
include the date of submission of the idea and information about
the routing of the idea to other members of the business as well as
the status of the idea. FIG. 4 shows a sample idea log which
contains the history of the workflow of the idea submission
(routing), the information contained within the submitted templates
as entered by the employee, the identity of the team members if
applicable, financial information which is provided by the various
parties involved in the idea submission process, and statistics
about the idea submission. This information may then be accessed by
the employee and may be made private or public to other members of
the business.
[0051] Formulation of an idea may take more than one session. It
should be understood that an employee may save the idea in an idea
log which is stored in memory associated with the processor at any
stage prior to completion of the templates. The employee may then
retrieve the idea and continue to develop the idea. This allows the
employee to gather information from various sources before the idea
is completed and submitted to the processor for forwarding the idea
to business management for review.
[0052] In certain embodiments the server maintains the idea log and
after an evaluator, implementer or decision maker is determined by
the routing criteria, the server sends a message either via e-mail
or through another communications mechanism, such as an internal
mailing system that an idea has been submitted and may be viewed
and retrieved from the server. In such an embodiment, the persons
reviewing the idea can make changes to the idea log which can then
be viewed by the employee and the other reviewers. In other
embodiments, all of the information that is contained within the
idea log is passed to the evaluator, implementer or decision
maker.
[0053] During the formulation of the structured idea, the employee
has access to multiple information sources for assisting in
completion of the templates as shown in FIG. 5. In the preferred
embodiment, these tools are available throughout the entire idea
process, from formulation of the idea through implementation, and
therefore the tools are not directly coupled to a particular
template. It should be understood that in other embodiments that
the tools could be tailored, as such, so that the tools are only
available with relevant templates.
[0054] The employee may access an idea database 501 which includes
submitted ideas which are designated as public ideas. For
clarification, there may be other ideas which are designated as
private ideas and are only viewable by business management/other
employees who have been granted permission by the employee who
originated the idea. If the templates are created using HTML or a
similar mark-up language, the templates can be provided with
visually selectable buttons which will send a request to the server
for accessing the idea database.
[0055] By reviewing other ideas that have been submitted and
approved the employee can better formulate responses to the
template and can identify if there is duplication of the idea
presently being considered for submission. In one embodiment of the
invention, upon submission of the initial idea, the server 502
parses the information that is submitted and compares words within
the title and the description of the idea to a database in which
the title and/or written description of the idea are stored. By
comparing words, previous ideas may be identified as being in a
similar category or of a similar nature to the presently submitted
idea and therefore of more relevance for review by the
employee.
[0056] Other tools include access to coach. As shown in FIG. 5, an
employee who is creating an idea in a specified category can select
to correspond with a coach 503 who is familiar with the idea
category. By selecting a button or other indicia as to the desire
to correspond with a coach 503, a signal is sent from the device on
which the template is being displayed 504 to the processor 502. The
processor 502 then uses a look-up table or database to find an
appropriate coach based upon the specified idea category. Other
criteria may be used to select a coach, including the workload of
the coach. As such, if there are two or more coaches which are
associated with an idea category, the coach having the lesser
amount of work will be selected as the coach. Further, routing
criteria which have been described above can be used in the
determination of the coach. After the coach is identified, the
coach is sent a message indicating that the coach should contact
the employee submitting the idea. This contact may occur via
e-mail, or through a series of templates that are passed through
the processor and then to the employee. The system may be
configured as a peer-to-peer messaging system. The coach can be
provided with a template for addressing the employee and for
assisting the employee in fully exploring the presented idea. The
processor will pass on the idea log entry for the idea of the
employee to a device associated with the coach so that the coach
may review the proposed idea to date. Through an exchange with a
coach the employee may choose to add information or delete
information in the idea log. This exchange may take place
instantaneously or may occur over a period of time. This process
like all other interactions between evaluators, coaches and other
representatives within the business may be done anonymously.
[0057] Additionally the employee may send e-mail to a resource
representative 510 through selection of button or selector which
sends a signal to the processor 502 requesting a resource
representative. The processor then sends a template to the
employee. The employee selects a department or topic as indicated
on the template and enters a question to the resource
representative. The system automatically determines the resource
representative based upon routing criteria. The message is then
forwarded from the processor to the resource representative. The
resource representative can then answer the question/message in a
template forwarded from the processor. The template allows the
resource representative to indicate that information that is
contained in the reply to the employee should be incorporated into
the cost database 520.
[0058] Further, the employee on any of the templates can indicate a
time limit for response to the query or the idea. The processor may
also be configured to have pre-defined time limits for each phase
of the idea submission process. If the time limit for a reply is
exceeded, a reminder is then sent by the processor to the
individual or individuals who are currently required to provide a
response. To this end, the processor maintains within the idea log
the person or persons that a request for information or a decision
regarding the idea has been sent to along with the time limit/frame
for responding to the request. The processor routinely compares the
end of the time frame to the current time to see if the system
should send the reminder.
[0059] Both the coach and the resource representative may be
granted complete access to the idea log and therefore can augment
the idea directly or the coach and the resource representative can
provide the information to the employee and let the employee update
the idea accordingly.
[0060] The templates will be further described below. The first
template that the employee receives after log-in and authentication
is an idea-fundamental template as shown in FIG. 6. This template
has various fields which require a response from the employee. The
fields include a title for the idea. In another field requiring
employee input, the employee is queried whether this is a group
idea. If it is a group idea, the names of the other participants in
the group are added.
[0061] After this information is sent to the processor, the
processor can then send a message to each of the indicated members
of the group that an idea log has been established and that each
member of the group may add to the idea independently, wherein all
information entered by members of the group are stored in a single
idea log entry including any change of status to the by a group
member. The template also provides a location for indicating
whether the idea has an expected financial impact. Such queries may
be achieved using a check box on a WebPage or some other "yes/no"
indicator. By structuring the templates requiring information
within a specified format for preset fields, the information can be
integrated into a database for analysis purposes, allowing for
system metrics to be monitored. Additionally, the structured nature
of the templates simplifies the creation of an idea and provides a
mechanism for determining efficient routing and tracking of the
idea for decision and implementation purposes.
[0062] The idea fundamental template also inquires which department
is affected by the idea. The employee may then select one of the
departments from a list. In larger organizations there may be
sub-categories such as groups within a department or the first
inquiry may be for the division that will be affected.
[0063] In certain embodiments a second template will be provided
which allows for comparative analysis. An example of the
comparative analysis template is shown in FIG. 7. This allows the
employee to define the idea. The employee is requested to submit in
prose what the idea is. Further, the comparative analysis page
queries about the currently implemented method and how the new
method will improve the currently implemented method including any
benefits to the business. Based upon the type of idea that is
selected, additional custom questions may be asked. The responses
that are provided are associated with indicia which may be indicia
of fields of a database stored at the server/processor. An example
of a custom question for an idea which is categorized as the idea
type "quality improvement" might be "How would you measure the
potential quality improvement?". This question would be added in
addition to the standard questions "Describe the current practice."
and "Describe your improvement idea." This template again is
customized by creating a custom HTML page or may be selected from
one a group of pages based upon the initial responses by the
employee to the idea fundamentals template.
[0064] The second step of the three part process is the financial
information template as shown in FIG. 8. This template queries the
employee to enter information regarding financial costs and
benefits. The employee is queried to enter information into a table
which has five sections. The first section asks the employee to
enter financial information about the costs of the currently
implemented method. Similarly the employee is asked to provide the
new costs of the method, the new revenues of the method, costs
associated with implementation of the method and capital required
for the idea. By entering this information into discrete locations
wherein each location is associated with a separate identifier, the
system can calculate the overall financial benefit of the idea.
This may be determined locally by running a program such as a JAVA
application that is associated with the template or the information
may be sent in a data stream to the processor which calculates the
financial impact and then sends a template back to the employee
which contains the overall financial impact. The employee has
access to the cost database during entry of the financial
information. The final financial impact cost/benefit assists the
employee in determining if the idea is actually beneficial to the
business and whether the employee should proceed with submission of
the idea for implementation.
[0065] The third template that is provided is the implementation
detail template as shown in FIG. 9. The implementation details
template queries the recommended steps for implementing the idea.
It further asks such questions as what are the non-financial costs
of implementation and other benefits of the idea. The employee is
also requested to enter the names of potential implementers and
additional information for contacting the implementers. The
template also includes a location for entry of the estimated time
for implementing the idea. Once this template is completed the idea
can be sent from the processor/server to the evaluators or it may
be saved as a work in progress. The evaluation process operates in
the following manner in accordance with the flow chart of FIG. 10.
The processor provides a message to the evaluator that an idea has
been submitted (Step 1000) and sends a message to the employee that
an evaluator has been selected. The message to the evaluator
includes a time period for evaluation of the idea. The time period
may be determined by any number of sources, including system
policy, the employee formulating the idea, or a system
administrator. It should be understood that at any time the idea is
routed to another individual a separate time period may be
initiated.
[0066] The system can then provide a key or password to the
evaluator for accessing the idea log which is stored on the server.
In another embodiment, the server forwards the idea log for the
idea to the evaluator. This forwarding may occur in the form of a
template, electronic mail or a series of templates. The evaluator
can then request to begin the evaluation process, by sending the
request which is received by the server (Step 1200). The server
responds by providing a template a sample of which is shown in FIG.
10A (Step 1300). The evaluator can then enter a decision regarding
the idea. The template allows the evaluator to approve the idea
(Step 1310), disapprove the idea (Step 1320) or request more
information (Step 1330). The evaluator may also evaluate the
financial impact of the idea. Upon completion of the template, the
information contained therein is sent to the server and the server
parses the data stream. The decision of the evaluator is
transmitted to the employee. The employee will receive a
communication from the server which indicates that the idea was
accepted 1400, was denied 1410 or that more information is required
1420. If the evaluator indicates that the idea is approved, the
server begins the pre-implementation process and determines the
routing of the idea to appropriate evaluators (1500). If more
information is required, the server will provide a template to the
employee for entering the additional information that was requested
by the evaluator. It should be understood by one of ordinary skill
in the art that this template may be automatically transmitted to
the employee or that the system may be configured to send a message
to the employee informing the employee to log into the server and
view the idea log which would indicate that additional information
is required. The server would be configured to provide a mechanism
such that the employee could select to receive the template for
adding the additional information. One example, of such a mechanism
would be an automatic e-mail response mechanism, in which the
employee would reply to the e-mail indicating that more information
is required and the server would provide the template to the
employee in response to receiving the reply e-mail.
[0067] In certain embodiment the evaluator is required to approve
all aspects of the idea. The evaluator may be required to approve
or adjust the selection of the one or more implementers as well as
all of the cost estimates that were provided by the employee.
[0068] Upon expiration of the timers without receipt by the server
of a decision from an evaluator, pre-implementer or decision maker,
the server will send a reminder message indicating that a decision
is required. In certain embodiments timers are automatically set
such that any reviewer of the idea must respond within a fixed
period of time. Further, the reminder message may also be sent to
the reviewer's supervisor and the reminder may also be sent by the
server to the employee creating the idea. Routing is determined by
the server for the implementers by any of the above described
routing criteria. Further, the implementer may be determined based
solely upon the implementers selected by the employee submitting
the idea, or the implementer may be determined based upon a look-up
table for the given idea type. In either case, evaluators may be
eliminated based upon workload. For example, workload may be based
upon the overall number of hours being worked by an implementer,
the availability of the implementer to actually implement the idea
during a specified time period, or a combination thereof. It should
be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the overall
workload and the availability of the implementer may be weighted
with different weights when determining an implementer. Workload as
a routing criteria may be used at any point during the method for
idea management including determining the evaluator(s),
implementer(s) or decision maker(s).
[0069] Once the implementer is selected the implementer is
presented with a template which is similar to the template of the
evaluator as shown in FIG. 11. The template of the implementer is
different in emphasis, as the implementer judges whether the
implementation process suggested by the employee and reinforced by
the evaluator is indeed feasible and whether the financial analysis
of the employee is accurate for the implementation. The implementer
may augment the implementation costs and recalculate the financial
benefit to the business thereby updating the idea log which can
then be reviewed by the employee. In other embodiments, the
implementer is required to agree with all aspects of the idea
before approving the idea. The implementer must also be willing to
commit to execution of the idea by a given date.
[0070] After approval by the implementer, the server in some
embodiments may make a routing decision and contact one or more
final decision makers. Again, the routing decision that is made by
the server can be based upon entries that are provided by either
the employee, any of the previous evaluators of the idea or by a
pre-configured default. For example, the server may be so
configured as to use the names of additional suggested implementers
which are entered by an implementer for determining the final
decision maker(s). The server might make a routing decision and
contact each of the superiors of the suggested implementers as the
final decision makers. It should be understood by one of ordinary
skill in the art that the methodology for routing can vary between
different businesses without straying from the overall inventive
concept. Further, it can be imagined that the routing criteria can
be varied in a number of ways to best suit a particular business.
For example, in smaller businesses, routing may be directed
initially to the employee's supervisor and then to the company
president for a final decision. In such an embodiment the evaluator
at the pre-implementation phase may be the superior or the
implementer may be the employee himself.
[0071] Once a decision maker is determined and the server
identifies a destination address associated with the one or more
decision makers through a look-up process, the decision makers are
provided with a template. An example of such a template is shown in
FIG. 12. The template allows the decision maker to approve the
entire idea, disapprove the idea or approve the idea with
modifications. These modifications may be modifications of the
decision maker or modifications that were proposed by the first
evaluator, or the implementer(s) during the pre-implementation
phase. In other embodiments the decision maker may request
additional information from any party having participated in the
idea formulation process.
[0072] It should be understood, that there may be one or more
person evaluating the idea at any step in the decision process.
When there are more than one decision maker, the server coordinates
all of the responses from the decision makers. In one embodiment
the server waits for all of the decision makers to provide their
decision before proceeding to determine routing. In such an
embodiment, the idea needs approval from all of the decision
makers. In other embodiments the decision may be made by a
consensus of the decision makers and report a majority approval the
server will begin to determine routing.
[0073] At the time of implementation of the idea, the implementer
maintains a log which is stored within the idea log which contains
the date of completion of the implementation and the actual costs
accrued during the implementation. This information can then be
compared to the predicted costs and the estimated time for
completion of the idea's implementation and system metrics may be
developed. As such, better estimates may be developed for future
ideas and the cost database may be updated with the actual numbers.
During the post-implementation, the implementer can maintain a log
which the server uses in conjunction with the idea log to evaluate
the actual value to the company.
[0074] It should be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art
that there may be more than one employee submitting an idea. The
first template queries the initial employee submitting the idea if
the idea is a group idea. If it is a group idea the employee enters
the names of the other participants. The server then parses the
names of the other team members and sends each a message indicating
that an idea has been created. If the idea is not a public idea
each team member may be provided with a password to view the idea
or the system may automatically recognize the team member based
upon the log-in process to the server.
[0075] The system as presented may also include a workflow
interface. This interface which is sent provided by the server to a
processing device of an employee or a part of the business
management allows for establishing the workflow criteria that will
be used for making routing decisions. The manager may identify
individuals to be designated as reviewers for each of the various
idea types and for each of the departments or groups of the
business. The division of labor may further be based upon location,
and time zone. Order of the evaluation process may be changed in
the workflow interface. Each business has its own workflow such
that the pre-implementation process could be made to occur before
the evaluation process simply by changing the workflow definition.
Additionally, process steps could be included or left out. For
example a business may require only a two step evaluation process
where there is no final decision maker and only an initial
evaluator and an implementer. After the work flow is configured and
stored in associated memory the system may be created. For example,
for each process step there can be either a pre-compiled module or
an interpreted module which could then be combined in a deployment
step which incorporates the stored workflow information.
[0076] FIG. 13 is a flow chart which shows the method as
implemented in a manual environment. One of ordinary skill in the
art should appreciate that the above described method of idea
submission and development of an idea may take place without the
use of a computer network. For example, a set of templates may be
submitted to an employee for creation of a structured idea (Step
3300). The employee may fill out the templates. Based upon
responses in the templates the employee is either presented with a
new template or selects the next template to complete based upon
the answers provided on a previous template. Once the employee has
completed the three step process of filing out an idea fundamental
template, a financial template and an implementation template, the
templates are presented to a router (Step 3310). The router may be
a person who reviews the responses in the templates and then can
manually review lists of potential evaluators. The router then
selects an appropriate evaluator (Step 3320). The evaluator may be
selected based upon, for example, the department effected by the
idea, workload of the evaluator, idea type, pre-defined business
criteria. The evaluator is then provided a template by the router
along with a copy of the templates of the employee which define the
structured idea (Step 3330). The evaluator then makes a
determination about the idea and fills in the template and he may
indicate approval, disapproval or request additional information
from the employee about the idea and sends the structured
evaluation to the router (step 3335) The router who evaluates to
whom the idea should be routed (Step 3340). If the evaluator has
disapproved the idea, the router delivers a message to the employee
indicating that the idea has been disapproved (Step 3342). If the
template indicates that more information is required for an
evaluation, the router sends a new template to the employee
requesting additional information (Step 3341). If the evaluator
approves the idea, the router then determines, based in part upon
the structured idea and the structured evaluation who the idea
should be routed to for implementation purposes (Step 3343). The
router then forwards the structured idea and the structured
evaluation to the selected implementer for further evaluation (Step
3344). As with the embodiment in which the system and method
operated in a computer networked environment, there may be one or
more evaluators in the process. If there is only one evaluator, the
evaluator may perform the preliminary evaluation, the
pre-implementation evaluation and make a final decision about the
structured idea. If multiple parties are involved in the idea
evaluation process, there may be one or more initial evaluators,
one or more pre-implementation implementers and one or more final
decision makers.
[0077] Preferred embodiments of the invention may be implemented as
a computer program product for use with a computer system. Such
implementation may include a series of computer instructions fixed
either on a tangible medium, such as a computer readable media
(e.g., a diskette, CD-ROM, ROM, or fixed disk) or transmittable to
a computer system, via a modem or other interface device, such as a
communications adapter connected to a network over a medium. Medium
may be either a tangible medium (e.g., optical or analog
communications lines) or a medium implemented with wireless
techniques (e.g., microwave, infrared or other transmission
techniques). The series of computer instructions embodies all or
part of the functionality previously described herein with respect
to the system. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that such
computer instructions can be written in a number of programming
languages for use with many computer architectures or operating
systems. Furthermore, such instructions may be stored in any memory
device, such as semiconductor, magnetic, optical or other memory
devices, and may be transmitted using any communications
technology, such as optical, infrared, microwave, or other
transmission technologies. It is expected that such a computer
program product may be distributed as a removable media with
accompanying printed or electronic documentation (e.g., shrink
wrapped software), preloaded with a computer system (e.g., on
system ROM or fixed disk), or distributed from a server or
electronic bulletin board over the network (e.g., the Internet or
World Wide Web or ASP).
[0078] Although various exemplary embodiments of the invention have
been disclosed, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art
that various changes and modifications can be made which will
achieve some of the advantages of the invention without departing
from the true scope of the invention. These and other obvious
modifications are intended to be covered by the appended
claims.
* * * * *