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Claims  |
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What is claimed is:
1. A method for generating and maintaining a structured collection of documents, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a conceptual model of a desired document system in terms of its interdependent entities, the model including (i) a plurality of entities of different entity classes, and (ii) relationships among the entities, said entities and
relationships being charted in an entity-relationship diagram;
categorizing each document in the structured collection of documents into one of the entity classes from the conceptual model, such that each document is an instance of a respective entity class;
based on the entity-relationship diagram, automatically generating and updating each document according to respective entity class, such that the structured collection of documents is automatically generated and maintained;
forming a relational database based on the conceptual model and entity-relationship diagram, such that the database holds actual information contents needed to automatically generate and format each document and hence the structured collection of
documents;
the step of generating and updating includes automatically generating the documents in complete formatted printable and compilable form from the contents stored in the database, enabling post processing into an on-line hypertext documentation;
and
wherein the step of providing a conceptual model includes charting and analyzing dynamic exchange among entities in a hierarchy of process-message matrices.
2. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the step of generating and updating further includes mapping relationships between the entities implemented in the relational database into hypertext links between the documents in the hypertext
documentation, the relational database providing a sequence of links to automatically propagate a change in each affected document upon an administrator-user entering a change in the relational database.
3. A method as claimed in claim 2 wherein the step of providing a conceptual model provides a Business System Model having business related entities, such that the entity-relationship diagram charts relationships among the business related
entities; and
the step of generating includes automatically creating, maintaining and distributing operation-related, management-related and quality-related documents as the structured collection of documents.
4. A method for generating and maintaining a structured collection of documents, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a conceptual model of a desired document system in terms of its interdependent entities, the model including (i) a plurality of entities of different entity classes, and (ii) relationships among the entities, said entities and
relationships being charted in an entity-relationship diagram;
categorizing each document in the structured collection of documents into one of the entity classes from the conceptual model, such that each document is an instance of a respective entity class;
based on the entity-relationship diagram, automatically generating and updating each document according to respective entity class, such that the structured collection of documents is automatically generated and maintained;
forming a relational database based on the conceptual model and entity-relationship diagram, such that the database holds actual information contents needed to automatically generate and format each document and hence the structured collection of
documents; and
the step of generating and updating includes automatically generating the documents in complete formatted printable and compilable form from the contents held in the database, enabling post processing into an on-line hypertext documentation.
5. A method as claimed in claim 4 wherein the step of generating and updating further includes mapping relationships between the entities implemented in the relational database into links between the documents in the hypertext documentation, the
relational database providing a sequence of links to propagate a change in each affected document upon an administrator-user entering a change in the relational database.
6. A method as claimed in claim 4 wherein the steps are performed in a computer system having a working memory for executing programs such that:
the step of forming a relational database includes employing a database application program executed by the computer system in working memory; and
the step of generating each document includes executing a word processing application program by the computer system in working memory.
7. In a computer system, computer apparatus for generating and maintaining a structured collection of documents from a conceptual model of a desired document system, the conceptual model including (i) a plurality of interdependent entities and
(ii) relationships among the entities, the computer apparatus comprising:
a source for indicating (a) the relationships among the entities in the conceptual model, and (b) entity class, from the conceptual model, of each document in the structured collection of documents, such that each document is an instance of a
respective entity class;
generation and maintenance means responsive to the source for automatically generating and updating each document according to respective entity class and the relationships indicated among respective entities in the source; and
wherein the source includes a relational database, the database holding (i) indications of the entities, (ii) indications of the relationships among the entities, and (iii) document contents with respect to the entities, such that the generation
and maintenance means is able to automatically generate complete formatted documents as the structured collection of documents, in at least one of printable and compilable form.
8. Computer apparatus as claimed in claim 7 further comprising an automatic hypertext generator coupled to the generation and maintenance means, said generator mapping relationships between the entities within the relational database to
hyperlinks between related documents enabling automatic hypertext generation in the structured collection of documents.
9. Computer apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein the modeled system is a business system and the structured collection of documents includes operation-related, management-related and quality-related documents.
10. Computer apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein:
a database application program is executed in working memory of the computer system to form the relational database; and
the generation and maintenance means employs a word processor for generating the documents.
11. A method for generating and maintaining a structured collection of documents, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a conceptual model of a desired document system in terms of its interdependent entities, the model including (i) a plurality of entities of different entity classes, and (ii) relationships among the entities, said entities and
relationships being charted in an entity-relationship diagram, including charting and analyzing dynamic exchange among the entities in a hierarchy of process-message matrices;
categorizing each document in the structured collection of documents into one of the entity classes from the conceptual model, such that each document is an instance of a respective entity class;
forming a relational database based on the conceptual model and entity-relationship diagram, such that the database holds actual information contents needed to automatically generate and format each document and hence the structured collection of
documents; and
based on the entity-relationship diagram, automatically generating and updating each document according to respective entity class, such that the structured collection of documents is automatically generated and maintained, including
automatically generating the documents in complete formatted printable and compilable form from the contents stored in the database, enabling post processing into an on-line hypertext documentation, and further including mapping relationships between the
entities implemented in the relational database into hypertext links between the documents in the hypertext documentation, the relational database providing a sequence of links to automatically propagate a change in each affected document upon an
administrator-user entering a change in the relational database.
12. A method as claimed in claim 11 wherein the step of providing a conceptual model provides a Business System Model having business related entities, such that the entity-relationship diagram charts relationships among the business related
entities; and
the step of generating includes automatically creating, maintaining and distributing operation-related, management-related and quality-related documents as the structured collection of documents.
13. A method for generating and maintaining a structured collection of documents, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a conceptual model of a desired document system in terms of its interdependent entities, the model including (i) a plurality of entities of different entity classes, and (ii) relationships among the entities, said entities and
relationships being charted in an entity-relationship diagram;
categorizing each document in the structured collection of documents into one of the entity classes from the conceptual model, such that each document is an instance of a respective entity class;
forming a relational database based on the conceptual model and entity-relationship diagram, such that the database holds actual information contents needed to automatically generate and format each document and hence the structured collection of
documents; and
based on the entity-relationship diagram, automatically generating and updating each document according to respective entity class, such that the structured collection of documents is automatically generated and maintained, including
automatically generating the documents in complete formatted printable and compilable form from the contents held in the database, enabling post processing into an on-line hypertext documentation, and further including mapping relationships between the
entities implemented in the relational database into links between the documents in the hypertext documentation, the relational database providing a sequence of links to propagate a change in each affected document upon an administrator-user entering a
change in the relational database.
14. In a computer system, computer apparatus for generating and maintaining a structured collection of documents from a conceptual model of a desired document system, the conceptual model including (i) a plurality of interdependent entities and
(ii) relationships among the entities, the computer apparatus comprising:
a source for indicating (a) the relationships among the entities in the conceptual model, and (b) entity class, from the conceptual model, of each document in the structured collection of documents, such that each document is an instance of a
respective entity class;
generation and maintenance means responsive to the source for automatically generating and updating each document according to respective entity class and the relationships indicated among respective entities in the source;
an automatic hypertext generator coupled to the generation and maintenance means, said generator mapping relationships between the entities within the relational database to hyperlinks between related documents enabling automatic hypertext
generation in the structured collection of documents; and
wherein the source includes a relational database, the database holding (i) indications of the entities, (ii) indications of the relationships among the entities, and (iii) document contents with respect to the entities, such that the generation
and maintenance means is able to automatically generate complete formatted documents as the structured collection of documents, in at least one of printable and compilable form.
15. Computer apparatus as claimed in claim 14 wherein the modeled system is a business system and the structured collection of documents includes operation-related, management-related and quality-related documents.
16. In a computer system executing at least a database application program and a word processing application program in working memory, a computer method for generating and maintaining a structured collection of documents describing a business
system, the method comprising the steps of:
executing the database application program in working memory to form a relational database to implement a conceptual model of the business system, the model including (a) business related entities and (b) relationships among the entities, the
database holding indications of each entity and the relationships among the entities with respect to the business system, the business system formed of a hierarchy of business processes, each process having an exchange of message entities;
storing document contents in the database with respect to the entities as indicated in the database;
coupling the database to the word processing application program in a manner such that execution of the word processing application program in working memory automatically generates the structured collection of documents as updated and maintained
throughout the database implementation of the model of the business system, such that the document contents include desired cross-references and are as recent as the indications in the database, such that the most up-to-date version of the structured
collection of documents is generated; and
forming matrices to chart dynamic exchange of message entities among the business related entities, the hierarchy being formed of an ordered set of matrices, there being a different matrix for each business process, each matrix (i) providing an
indication of communication exchange of a message entity among other entities with respect to a respective business process, and (ii) having a succeeding matrix providing indications of exchanges of message entities among other entities with respect to
another business process.
17. A method as claimed in claim 16 further comprising the steps of:
using the database, mapping interdependencies of the entities according to their relationships into interdependencies of the documents;
executing the word processing application program in working memory to automatically generate and insert hypertext references for linking interdependent documents to each other in the structured collection of documents based on said mapping, the
word processing application program generating a collection of hyperlinked documents; and
transmitting on-line the collection of hyperlinked documents on a network of computers upon generation thereof, such that the collection of hyperlinked documents transmitted on-line are viewable by a network user. |
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Description |
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BACKGROUND
The reasons for the development effort behind the present invention are closely connected with the goals of TQM (Total Quality Management), especially with the need to support the following goals:
Customer satisfaction and trust to be achieved by a reliable, customer-oriented service at a competitive price/performance ratio.
Employee satisfaction and motivation to be a result of job transparency by formal task descriptions, clear communication channels and defined escalation procedures.
Organization productivity improvement to come from running streamlined operations with straightforward responsibilities, well-defined internal and external interfaces and centralized control of documentation.
Revenue growth and profit increase to be assisted by selling TQM services to external customers.
ISO9000 Registration to be obtained, based on innovative methods making one's TQM environment a show-case example.
One of the important aspects of so-called "Total Quality Management" is a good understanding of the business supplying products and services to customers. This understanding may be demonstrated and propagated into the day-to-day operation by
user friendly, always up-to-date documentation of the particular Business Systems which sets definitions and standards for quality in terms of objective and measurable evaluation criteria. By continuously observing, evaluating and benchmarking the real
business operation against the documented case, a steady improvement towards a desired zero fault operation may be gradually achieved. At the same time, the documentation may undergo changes based on new insights and desired improvements. The ultimate
goal of such an incremental improvement process should be a simplified and transparent business operation demonstrably saving costs by avoiding errors and contributing to satisfaction of both customers and employees.
The real life complexity of business operations and the dynamics of omnipresent system changes present the main obstacle in the successful implementation of the above-specified goals. The traditional ways of documenting and distributing the
business related information (handbooks, management directives, etc.) can hardly keep pace with the real life changes. In addition, it is very difficult to precisely document and maintain the detailed flow of information, and to provide consistent views
of interrelated entities in an ad hoc manner. Consequently, a certain systematics of quality defining and efficiently supporting all necessary analysis and documentation steps (business operation/system modeling, information flow analysis and its
simulation, structure of documents with their mutual relationships, documentation access, distribution, change control, etc.) must be established.
By considering the above requirements, one may arrive at the following problem statement: How to build up and maintain a user-friendly documentation of a business operation which supports a real and continuous quality improvement?
The traditional approach to create/maintain process-related and quality-related documentation is based on a more or less arbitrary set of templates. The templates are manually filled with information using document/text processing software.
These documents may then be distributed either in a printable or electronic form, or made available on-line for download by the end user. In a more modern version of this approach, the documents may be converted to one of the Web formats and linked to a
Web browser page, for example. In sum, the traditional approach is rather ad hoc, mostly manual and not systematic.
Another approach (sometimes used in connection with ISO9000 Registration) is to provide an integrated set of documents linked together by a predefined quality manual template. The quality manual template serves as the administrator's interface
for the data entry. However, the terms of these documents are often ill-defined (or not well defined and ambiguous).
Restated, many definitions by the ISO8402 and ISO9000 Standards are imprecise and problematic for purposes of practical implementation of a quality system by most traditional approaches. For example, the ISO8402 and ISO9000 Standards define
"Quality System" as the organizational structure, responsibilities, procedures, processes and resources for implementing quality management; and defines "Quality loop, quality spiral" as a conceptual model of interacting activities that influence the
quality of a product or service in the various stages ranging from the identification of needs to the assessment of whether these needs have been satisfied. However, the ISO9000 Standard does not define the terms "process", "procedure", "activity" and
"instruction".
As a consequence, it is difficult to establish a "conceptual model" of "interacting activities" which depends on the definition of "process", "procedure" and "activity", and which depends on the relationships of (i) "process" to organizational
structure, (ii) process to business communication (information exchange) and (iii) "process" to "activities" and "instructions". Thus, there is an inconsequent and intermixing usage of these terms in traditional approaches (including the foregoing) and
traditional process related documentation.
To this applicant's/inventor's knowledge, none of the current approaches takes an integral view of the documentation problem complexity. This means starting with the conceptual model of interacting activities (i.e., definition of all necessary
terms and relationships among participating business related entities), implementing the model in a relational database and automation software which is capable of generating complete documentation with automatically maintained mutual cross-references,
and providing a clear methodology to direct the information flow analysis and data collection steps, as in the present invention. Further details and description of the present invention are provided later.
In order to appreciate the major distinguishing features of the present invention approach in comparison with the traditional ways, one has to examine typical work during the life cycle of the resulting documentation. In particular, the steps of
data acquisition, classification, and structuring, the phase of original documentation creation and its ongoing maintenance, as well as its presentation to the end user must be examined.
Data Acquisition, Classification and Structuring:
The traditional approach is mostly specifying the information items in an ad hoc manner, emphasizing the isolated point of view of the information provider; this generally applies to information item contents as well as its format. No (or
little) consideration is given to the question of each information item's relationship to the surrounding information, possible contents overlapping and/or inconsistencies.
The present invention considers all information items in context of the established conceptual/relational model. Depending on the information item (i.e., entity instance) definition and its predefined entity relationships, the information
provider is often directed to supply the specific contents only, without worrying much about its format. The redundancy and consistency problem is controlled by the documentation administrator using support of the powerful model and various provided
tools. The Data Analysis Methodology of the present invention also proposes the right questions to ask during the data acquisition step, thus substantially improving the overall quality and conciseness of the resulting documentation. By accepting that
the exchange of communication (i.e., information flow) is the controlling agent which uniquely defines the workflow of activities, the generation of workflow of arbitrary complexity may be fully automated by the present invention.
Documentation Creation and Maintenance:
The traditional approach assigns the responsibility to write and update complete documents to the information provider who, when consequently using established rules and well-designed templates, may be able to keep a certain internal consistency
of format and presentation. However, because of the obviously limited view of and influence on the related surrounding information, contents overlapping and/or inconsistencies may still occur. The quality and usefulness of the resulting documentation
strongly depend on the individual contributor, and the amount of analysis and maintenance work invested.
The present invention approach does not typically require the information provider to write complete documents; rather it collects clearly structured pieces of data from the individual contributor which serve as the database-resident building
blocks in the automatic document composition step. A very important advantage of the present invention is the automatic handling of all links to the surrounding information which are kept in the database and extracted to the resulting documents. The
documentation maintenance is monitored (e.g., expiration dates) and controlled by the documentation administrator.
End User Presentation:
The traditional approach to provide end user access to on-line documentation (Applicants disregard, for this comparison, the option of printed document distribution) is to manually create the end user interface structuring and listing the
individual documents and supporting either on-line or off-line loading of the desired document. This may work well for a relatively static situation in which the structure and amount of documents do not change rapidly. For complex and highly dynamic
information systems, however, the manual maintenance of the interface which must also support numerous relationships among various documents cannot cope with the problem at hand. As a result, even an originally consistent information system deteriorates
over time and loses its usability.
The present invention approach delegates the creation of the end user interface to an automated mechanism which uses the structural information existing in the relational database. The preferred embodiment creates (a) the so-called Daily
Operation Interface providing a simplified view of the documentation structure, and (b) the so-called Relational Navigator Interface supporting full access according to the relational model. Based on the actual database contents in the moment of the
specific documentation release, a corresponding on-line interface is dynamically generated and made available.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a method and apparatus which define, develop and implement a systematic approach for the creation/maintenance/distribution of operation-related, management-related and quality-related information. In particular,
the present invention takes an integral view of the above-discussed documentation problem complexity and includes the steps of (i) categorizing each document in the desired documentation collection as a respective class or type of entity, where the
document collection characterizes/describes a modeled system (e.g., business operation, individual business process, computer/application system, etc.); (ii) charting or otherwise indicating the entities and their mutual dependencies in an
entity-relationship diagram (i.e., associating entities by their mutual dependencies); and (iii) using the entity-relationship diagram to maintain the documents and hence generate and maintain the desired collection of documents.
In addition, for analysis and presentation of information exchange in the modeled system, a process-message matrix is employed to chart (indicate) exchange of the information-related entity.
A relational database may be designed according to the entity-relationship diagram and may be filled with actual information contents needed to automatically generate the complete formatted documents, both in printable and compilable form. In
turn, the generated documents may be post-processed into the on-line hypertext version of the document collection using release, composer and compiler software (and a periodic documentation release mechanism).
In the preferred embodiment, the present invention maintains a collection of documents describing a business system. The invention (i) categorizes or otherwise classifies each document as a respective business related entity, (ii) forms a
conceptual model of interacting activities (i.e., definition of all necessary terms and relationships among participating business related entities and hence in entity-relationship association); and (iii) implements the model in a relational database and
with automation software which is capable of generating complete documentation with automatically maintained (hypertext) mutual cross-references. In addition, the preferred embodiment provides a clear methodology to direct the information flow analysis
and data collection steps.
According to one aspect of the present invention, the major business-oriented benefits of the preferred embodiment are:
Support of Daily Operation
Support of Employee Training
Support of Management Decisions
Support of ISO9000 Registration
These benefits are enabled by utilization of process related information for a given business operation describing and mutually relating the following topics:
business operation structure in terms of organization-related processes
roles people or systems/utilities are playing within the business operation
external roles interfacing with the business operation
business operation structure in terms of workflow related procedures
details of procedures in terms of activities and their work instructions
qualification requirements for people and functional requirements for systems/utilities
agreed standards for information exchange among roles and/or external roles
agreed standards for services provided to other business operations
forms and checklists used in the business operation
access to related information
communication exchange within the business operation and with other business operations.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the above topics are structured and interlinked according to the so-called relational model (Business System Model discussed later) and preferably presented in three complementary
documents:
Quality Management Handbook (QMH) provides a general overview of the quality system by addressing the quality elements specified in ISO 9000 standard and cross-referencing the other two documents below
Business System Documentation (BSD) is a detailed, event-driven, information-flow-oriented description of the business operation
Process-Message Matrix (PMM) shows the formalized results of the information flow analysis and emphasizes the communication exchange interfaces.
Based on the third document set (i.e., PMM) which is created during the original information flow analysis phase (and then extended by additional data and descriptions), a relational database mapping the assumed Business System Model is
populated. All further steps leading to the on-line hypertext documentation as well as a set of printable documents are fully automated. The end user may access the on-line hypertext documentation from a PC Desktop, either by clicking a Desktop icon or
via a web browser page. The current technical implementation of the preferred embodiment is based on an integrated set of Microsoft PC-based applications. However, it is understood that the disclosed approach/invention is rather generic and may be
implemented using other software applications or other technologies as well.
Thus it is an object of the present invention to provide an innovative approach to design a quality system supported by a consistent, on-line, hypertext documentation.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of preferred embodiments and the drawings in which like reference characters refer to the same parts
throughout the different views.
FIG. 1 is a schematic overview of a Business System Model utilized in the preferred embodiment of the present invention method and apparatus.
FIG. 2 is a software architecture diagram of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of an entity-relationship diagram of entities in an example Business System Model, utilized to form the database in FIG. 2.
FIGS. 4a-4d are illustrations of process-message matrices utilized in forming the original information flow analysis among entities of FIG. 3.
FIGS. 5a1, 5a2, 5b1 and 5b2 are graphical illustrations of Workflow Procedure entity documents including a workflow table in the Business System Model of FIG. 3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Key to the present invention are the following concepts:
I. Any collection of documents describing related "things of interest" which may be organized and/or assigned to specific classes (categories) of entities (such as Business Process, Service Agreement or Check List), may be conveniently described
by a so-called entity-relationship diagram. Such a diagram is a traditional tool in the design of relational databases and represents all entities within the scope under consideration. In the present invention, a relational database is designed
according to the entity-relationship diagram and is filled with actual information contents needed to automatically generate the complete formatted documents, both in printable and compilable form, which in turn may be post-processed into an on-line
hypertext documentation. It is this concept of applying the techniques and tools known from traditional relational database design to a structured collection of documents which is key to the present invention.
II. The above approach (in I.) is uniquely suitable to create and easily maintain complex collections of related documents in a generic hypertext system. Thus, a second key concept of the present invention is the mapping of links between the
entity instances within the relational database into the links between the related documents in the hypertext environment. That is, in a collection or set of documents (or other information structure), there are many links between interdependent
documents (information structures). The present invention relational database provides the chain or sequence of links to propagate a change in each affected document (information structure), upon the administrator-user entering the change one time
(i.e., in one place in the database).
III. To support an original information flow analysis and formalization of its results, a Process-Message Matrix formalism may provide a flexible charting of communication exchange between entities. Such a hierarchical matrix formalism is
generally applicable whenever various instances of one or more entities are establishing their mutual relationships via exchange (i.e., sending and receiving) of another entity (e.g., a message entity).
In the preferred embodiment, these concepts are applied to the business/enterprise environment as follows:
By way of overview, in terms of enterprise modeling, any business operation exists at the crossroads of three models, as a so-called "Business System Model" 12 shown in FIG. 1. An Organization Model 10 represents the organizational,
administrative and legal structures of a subject company and, in the context of Business System Documentation (BSD), emphasizes the human resources supporting or controlling the business operation.
A Data and Information Model 16 represents the data and information structures of the company and, in the context of BSD, emphasizes the information flow and interaction of business related information.
A Technology Model 14 represents the technical infrastructure of the company and, in the context of BSD, emphasizes the technical capabilities (hardware and software platforms, networks, printing) for collecting, formalizing, distributing and
maintaining the business related information.
One objective of a relational BSD environment (or approach) provided by the present invention specifies the need to facilitate a clear correspondence to all enterprise models 10, 14, 15. The present invention Business System Model 12 definition
is thus formulated in such a way as to allow an easy mapping between its own BSD entities and the entities of the surrounding enterprise models 10, 14, 16.
The usability of any model depends on its ability to mirror the real-life situation while, at the same time, moving its complexities to an abstraction level with just a right amount of detail. The goal of the present invention is to efficiently
support the day-to-day business operation including its optimization and gradual improvement.
A second objective of the present invention specifies the need for a sufficient level of details. The invention Business System Model 12 definition thus reflects the actual information flow and data exchange between various parts of the business
operation and provides detailed enough descriptions for the work to be reliably and reproducibly done. The resulting workflow is then an obvious consequence of actions responding to the information flow triggers. In addition, the most important
frequently used business related information appears as an integral part of the documentation environment in the present invention.
There are many separate tools (in the prior art) for writing, managing and distributing documentation which provide high functionality features and also support data sharing. Unfortunately, using these tools without an interconnecting
methodological principle and automated supporting software environment cannot cope with the complex problem at hand, simply because of the amount of information, the necessity to maintain numerous relationships, and the high rate of information change.
By using the prior art tools alone, the quality and usefulness of the resulting documentation strongly depend on the individual documentation administrator, his/her sophistication and the amount of analysis and maintenance work invested. Therefore, a
definition and software support of documentation life cycle is required.
A third objective of the present invention specifies the need for a documentation methodology and supporting environment. The present invention Business System Model 13 definition is thus seamlessly integrated into the process of collecting and
analyzing business related information, the formalization and entry into the supporting tools and the transformation into a user-friendly documentation. In the present invention, the documentation structure, including mutual relationships between
document types and their possible interaction with the information flow, is specified as part of the supporting environment which must promote consistency of information contents and presentation, and allows rapid updates resulting in a new release of
up-to-date documentation.
In view of the often experienced frequent upheavals of the Organization Model 10 and possible future modifications of both the Data and Information Model 16 and Technology Model 14, a great deal of flexibility and independence of the surrounding
models is desired. The speed of documenting and propagating such changes down to the end user is instrumental to the acceptance and success of the proposed approach. The same kind of (planned or unplanned) changes may pose a question to the management
about their potential impact on running the business operation; the answers should be facilitated by the appropriate definition and presentation of communication interfaces.
The fourth objective of the present invention specifies the need for flexibility and a process oriented view. The invention Business System Model 12 thus allows not only fast business data entry and their semi-automated controlled release to the
end user, but also the option of changing itself in terms of its data structures and/or customized language. The links to external organization and data structures are readily modifiable. A process oriented (as opposed to an organization-oriented)
structure of descriptions is used to increase the data stability in case of changes in the surroundings. The optimization of the business operation design is supported by the presentation of information flow and business related information.
There are three major practical benefits of documenting the business related information:
The formal task descriptions which are provided to the end users within the business operation define in unequivocal terms the work to be done and the metrics to judge the success or failure. This promotes the work quality and reliability as
well as the employee satisfaction.
The relationship between the task descriptions and the information flows helps management to get the overall view of the business operation including its various workflows. This is the necessary basis for work optimization and low-risk change
management.
The capability to demonstrate a documented business operation to customers supports their trust in the reliability of the provided products and services, and together with the resulting ISO9000 Registration, provides a competitive edge in the
marketplace.
The fifth objective of the present invention specifies the need for accessibility, understandability and conformance to ISO9000 in the preferred embodiment. The invention Business System Model 12 definition must result in a user-friendly
version-controlled documentation which can be easily distributed. The documentation structure corresponds and is detailed down to the task description of a particular end user who is accomplishing the work; it is also clearly related to the incoming and
outgoing information flow. The resulting document is compatible with the ISO9000 standard and, in conjunction with the related Quality Management Handbook, leads to the ISO9000 Registration.
Based on the foregoing Business System Model 12 definition objectives, the present invention implements a Relational Business System Documentation Environment (Relational BSD Environment) as follows and illustrated in FIG. 2.
In general, the Relational BSD Environment implementation follows the below design principles set forth in two categories--environment design and operation analysis.
Environment Design Principles:
The invention software 24 for Relational BSD Environment is implemented using standard PC products running under MS Windows (MS Access 15, MS Word 19, MS Help Compiler 39, MS WinHelp 89) as illustrated in FIG. 2. The finished environment is then
able to be ported to Windows 95 and Windows NT.
The process oriented, generic relational model 12 of a Business System is described by an overview diagram 13 (discussed later in FIG. 3) using the proven technique of entity-relationship modeling.
The relational database 17 is designed in MS Access 15 by the standard mapping of entities, attributes and relationships from the overview diagram 13 (FIG. 3). Included is a high-functionality administrator's interface and documentation raw data
release extraction mechanism 97.
The automatic document composition 85 is implemented using MS Word 19 programming capabilities. The automatic document composition 85 integrates the customized language of the environment with the raw data extracted from the relational database
17 and produces compilable source documents and, in parallel, a consistent set of printable documentation.
The MS Help Compiler 39 runs under control of a MS DOS batch file 87 and produces a set of standard MS Windows (hypertext) help files which are displayable on any PC using MS WinHelp application 89 (available on MS Windows, Windows 95 and Windows
NT). The end user accesses the on-line information 35 from the PC Desktop, either by clicking a Desktop icon or via a World Wide Web browser page.
Operation Analysis Principles:
The live data collection for the invention Relational BSD Environment starts with a bottom-up, event-driven, information-flow-oriented analysis based on a familiar process-message diagonal matrix 71 (discussed later in FIG. 4). The original
matrix approach is extended to accommodate matrix hierarchies and a clear definition of internal/external communication interfaces in the present invention.
The information collected in process-message matrices 71 (FIG. 4) determines all basic entity instances of the subject business operation/Business System Model 12, including the detailed information flow. This data is entered 93 (via MS Access
15) by a documentation administrator into the database 17 and completed by appropriate descriptions. All related entities (as determined by the overview diagram 13FIG. 3) are found, associated and entered as well in data entry step 93 of FIG. 2.
The raw data release 97 from MS Access 15, document composition 85 in MS Word 19 and document compilation 87 in MS DOS are the finishing fully automated steps; a new documentation release 35, 88 (including for example in the preferred embodiment
a Quality Management Handbook 90 and the Business System Documentation 92) is then ready to use (on-line and/or in hard copy via a printer 37).
Referring to FIG. 3, the entities of the Business System Model 12 including their mutual relationships are shown in diagram 13 format. The process oriented, generic relational mod | | |
