Product toolkit system and method
AssigneeSavvis Communications Corporation
InventorsSusan O. Kidd, Mitchell R. Sacks, Peter A. Bassey, Siamak Khodaei, Scott A. Abe, Baoren Liu, Jagadish Kiran, Zhongyu Wong, Reddy S. Pathepuram, Roderick A. Avery, Jon H. Brundage
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Abstract
A product toolkit system and method that tracks and maintains various product configurations of arrangements of product components available from various organizations throughout an enterprise. The product toolkit receives product component information, correlates component information and product management information and outputs product configuration information to a user.
Claims38
A product toolkit system comprising:
- a product toolkit server including a report engine;
- a database coupled to the product toolkit server, the database including product information and product component information;
- the product toolkit server being configured to arrange product information and product component information to form a global product hierarchy;
- the product toolkit server being further configured to determine at least one product instance defining a particular product offering selected from among the products and product components of the global product hierarchy based on user entered product information;
- the product information further including at least a geography designation, a sales channel, and product life cycle management stage information;
- the report engine being configured to produce at least one product configuration report based on the product information and product component information of the global product hierarchy;
- the product toolkit server being capable of outputting the at least one product configuration report to a user station using a network;
- and
- the product toolkit server being further configured to output an alert message to the user station via the network in response to the product life cycle management stage information entering the decommissioned stage.
A method for providing a product toolkit, comprising:
- receiving product information and product component information from a user station, the product information including at least a geography designation, a sales channel, and product life cycle management stage information;
- forming a global product hierarchy using the product information and product component information;
- storing the global product hierarchy and the product information and product component information using a database;
- determining at least one product instance defining a particular product offering by selecting certain of the products and product components of the global product hierarchy based on user entered product parameters;
- outputting at least one product configuration report to the user station using a network;
- and
- outputting an alert message to the user station via the network in response to the product life cycle management stage information entering the decommissioned stage.
A computer-readable medium upon which is embodied a set of programmable instructions that when executed cause a processor to:
- receive product information and product component information from a user station, the product information including at least a geography designation, a sales channel, and product life cycle management stage information;
- form a global product hierarchy using the product information and product component information;
- store the global product hierarchy and the product information and product component information using a database;
- determine at least one product instance defining a particular product offering by selecting certain of the products and product components of the global product hierarchy based on user entered product parameters;
- output at least one product configuration report to the user station using a network;
- and
- output an alert message to the user station via the network in response to the product life cycle management stage information entering the decommissioned stage.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.