Computer system and method for work management

A work management system comprising:

• processing means, including a data bank into which data is written and from which data is read, said data bank storing information regarding an initial transaction, work source information, office staff information, policy information, information regarding dates of importance, in formation regarding work processing activities, staff case load information, and predetermined text data for preparing documents, the data bank including staff table means for storing, retrieving, displaying and modifying information about staff members who access the system, wherein said stored information includes:
• name, user ID, job title, supervisor, experience level, cost rate, diary rollover limit, scheduled vacation, payment authority, and staff functional and processing authority levels;
• at least one terminal means for communicating with said processing means and operable by at least one operator to produce requests and to enter information and/or retrieve information for writing and/or reading from said data bank;
• display means for displaying information that is entered and retrieved;
• first merging means operatively interacting with said processing means for reading out from said data bank selected information regarding work processing activities and selected office staff information and merging said read out work processing activities information and said read out office staff information to compile an activity log listing key work activities and a staff member associated with those activities;
• case summary means for automatically summarizing said initial transaction information;
• routing means for routing transaction information to a staff member for processing in response to input through one of said terminal means;
• and staff member electronic mailbox means for receiving said initial transaction summary and other electronic messages;
• assignment means for assigning a case to a particular staff member for processing in response to input through one of said terminal means;
• reassignment means for reassigning cases from a particular staff member to another staff member for processing, diary means for automatically and manually setting, storing and displaying dates for various activities associated with the processing of a case including means for manually overriding automatically set diary dates;
• activity log means for automatically recording information about transactions undertaken through the system in the processing of a case and for manually recording information and comments about other activities in the processing of a case including means for selectively displaying said recorded information and comments on said display means;
• inquiry means for selectively retrieving and displaying transaction information in response to input of at least one case number through one of said terminal means;
• system controller means for controlling an operator's movements within the system, wherein said system controller means verifies the availability of each requested function during a system session and verifies said operator's authority to access a system function prior to permitting such access;
• and security means comprising security level means for selectively limiting access to certain predetermined functions of the system in accordance with a preset security level associated with each authorization code.