Systems and methods for network-based design submission and management

A method for managing work in a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, the method comprising:

• receiving, by way of the client portal, a project request at the management platform;
• making the project request available to a preselected group of contractors;
• transmitting a plurality of project acceptances to the management platform by way of the contractor portal, the plurality of project acceptances corresponding to the project request;
• receiving the plurality of project acceptances at the management platform;
• transmitting a plurality of products to the management platform by way of the contractor portal, each of the plurality of products corresponding to a respective project acceptance;
• and
• receiving the plurality of products at the management platform;
• and
• transmitting the plurality of products to the client portal.

A method for managing work in a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, the method comprising:

• presenting, to a preselected group of contractors, a project request, the project request having been initiated at the client portal and presented at the contractor portal;
• receiving, at the contractor portal, a plurality of project acceptances corresponding to the project request;
• receiving, at the contractor portal, a plurality of products, each of the plurality of products corresponding to one of the plurality of project acceptances;
• and
• transmitting the plurality of products to the management platform.

A method for requesting and obtaining a product in a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, the method comprising:

• receiving, at the client portal, input from a client;
• generating, at the client portal, a project request corresponding to the input received from the client;
• transmitting the project request to the management platform;
• and
• receiving, at the client portal, a product corresponding to the project request, the product having been generated by at least one contractor of a preselected group of contractors authorized to interact with the client by way of the management platform.

A method for managing the performance of work in a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, the method comprising:

• receiving, at the management platform, a project request from the client portal;
• transmitting the project request to the contractor portal for presentation to a preselected group of contractors;
• receiving, at the management platform, a project acceptance corresponding to the project request, the project acceptance having been transmitted from the contractor portal;
• receiving, at the management platform, a product corresponding to the project acceptance;
• and
• transmitting the product to the client portal.

A computer program product for implementing a method for managing and executing work in a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, the computer program product comprising:

• a computer readable medium carrying computer executable instructions for performing the method, wherein the method comprises:
• presenting, to a preselected group of contractors, a project request, the project request having been initiated at the client portal and presented at the contractor portal;
• receiving, at the contractor portal, a plurality of project acceptances corresponding to the project request;
• receiving, at the contractor portal, a plurality of products, each of the plurality of products corresponding to one of the plurality of project acceptances;
• and
• transmitting the plurality of products to the management platform.

A computer program product for implementing a method for requesting and obtaining a product in a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, the computer program product comprising:

• a computer readable medium carrying computer executable instructions for performing the method, wherein the method comprises:
• receiving, at the client portal, input from a client;
• generating, at the client portal, a project request corresponding to the input received from the client;
• transmitting the project request to the management platform;
• and
• receiving, at the client portal, a product corresponding to the project request, the product having been generated by at least one contractor of a preselected group of contractors authorized to interact with the client by way of the management platform.

A computer program product for implementing a method for managing the performance of work in a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, the computer program product comprising:

• a computer readable medium carrying computer executable instructions for performing the method, wherein the method comprises:
• receiving, at the management platform, a project request from the client portal;
• transmitting the project request to the contractor portal for presentation to a preselected group of contractors;
• receiving, at the management platform, a project acceptance corresponding to the project request, the project acceptance having been transmitted from the contractor portal;
• receiving, at the management platform, a product corresponding to the project acceptance;
• and
• transmitting the product to the client portal.

A method for implementing a performance rating system to facilitate evaluation of the performance of a contractor with respect to one or more clients, the method being implemented in connection with a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, and the method comprising:

• establishing performance criteria for a contractor concerning products or services requested by a client by way of the client portal;
• assigning an initial rating of a predetermined number of points to a contractor;
• determining whether the contractor has met the performance criteria;
• deducting a predetermined number of points from the initial rating of the contractor if the contractor fails to meet the performance criteria, and then recalculating the contractor rating;
• and
• adding a predetermined number of points to the initial rating of the contractor if the contractor meets the performance criteria, and then recalculating the contractor rating.

A method for implementing a peer review system to facilitate evaluation of materials prepared by a contractor for one or more clients, the method being implemented in connection with a computer network that includes a management platform accessible by way of a client portal and a contractor portal, and the method comprising:

• assigning an initial rating of a predetermined number of points to the contractor;
• presenting, at the contractor portal, the materials prepared by the contractor;
• receiving, at the management platform, input from one or more peers concerning the materials prepared by the contractor, the input being transmitted to the management platform by way of the contractor portal;
• correlating the input received from the peers with a point value;
• and
• recalculating the rating of the contractor, using the point value.