Patent Publication Number: US-11037175-B2

Title: Method and system for monitoring an issue

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/245,240, filed Oct. 7, 2005 and entitled “METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MONITORING AN ISSUE,” which claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/616,644, filed Oct. 8, 2004 and entitled “WEB-BASED SOFTWARE APPLICATION FOR ORGANIZING AND TRACKING THE REGULATORY IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS,” and U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/714,825, filed Sep. 8, 2005 and entitled “WEB-BASED SOFTWARE APPLICATION FOR ORGANIZING AND TRACKING THE REGULATORY IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS,” the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to monitoring an issue (i.e., regulatory or otherwise) implementation process using a web-based software application. 
     2. Detailed Description of the Related Art 
     Monitoring regulatory, contract, budgeting, and legal issues, etc., has been previously a labor and paper intensive process, with individuals assigned to such activities having to look up the regulations, contracts, case law etc., calendar target or compliance dates, and attempt to manage and track tasks performed by a number of individuals, related to achieving a certain target—for example, compliance with the regulations. This labor and intensive process inherently has inaccuracies which could lead to missed target dates. Accordingly, a comprehensive, accurate way to determine what issues are of importance to a company, and to monitor the activities related to achieving the targets of the issues, is desired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a web-based software application designed to monitor an issue implementation process. 
     In one embodiment consistent with the present invention, a method of monitoring an issue using a computerized network, includes receiving information from a user on the issue to be monitored; receiving information from a user on an assignment on the issue; and forwarding the assignment to a recipient. 
     In another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the method includes receiving an acknowledgement from the recipient, of the assignment. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the method further includes sending reminders to the recipient when the acknowledgement is not received within a predetermined time period. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the reminders are automatically forwarded at predetermined time periods. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the assignment is one of a project and an action assignment. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the method further includes receiving a completion status from the recipient; and displaying the completion status of the issue. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the method further includes creating another at least one of issue, project, and action, by duplication. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the method further includes generating a report showing activity on at least one issue over a predetermined period of time. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the method of providing information on an issue using a computerized network, includes receiving information from a user on the issue; and forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; wherein when action is necessary to be performed, an assignment is forwarded to the recipient; and wherein when action is not necessary to be performed, the information is forwarded to the recipient for informational purposes only. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a method of monitoring an issue using a computerized network, includes receiving information on a plurality of issues; storing information on the issues; filtering the issues according to predetermined criteria set by a user; and displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a method of monitoring an issue using a computerized network, includes receiving information on a plurality of issues; storing information on the issues; sorting the issues according to predetermined criteria set by a user; and displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system having a program which monitors an issue, includes means for receiving information from a user on the issue to be monitored; means for receiving information from a user on an assignment on the issue; and means for forwarding the assignment to a recipient. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system having a program which provides information on an issue, includes means for receiving information from a user on the issue; and means for forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; wherein when action is necessary to be performed, an assignment is forwarded to the recipient; and wherein when action is not necessary to be performed, the information is forwarded to the recipient for informational purposes only. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system having a program which monitors an issue, includes means for receiving information on a plurality of issues; means for storing information on the issues; means for filtering the issues according to predetermined criteria set by the user, and means for displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system having a program which monitors an issue, includes means for receiving information on issues; means for storing information on the issues; means for sorting the issues according to predetermined criteria set by a user, and means for displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system for monitoring an issue, includes at least one memory containing at least one program including the steps of: receiving information from a user on the issue to be monitored; receiving information from a user on an assignment on the issue; and forwarding the assignment to a recipient; and at least one processor for running the program. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system for monitoring an issue, includes at least one memory containing at least one program including the steps of: receiving information from a user on the issue; forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; and monitoring a progress of completion of the issue; and at least one processor for running the program. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system for monitoring an issue, includes at least one memory containing at least one program including the steps of: receiving information on a plurality of issues; storing information on the issues; filtering the issues according to predetermined criteria; and displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria; and at least one processor for running the program. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system for monitoring an issue, includes at least one memory containing at least one program including the steps of: receiving information on a plurality of issues; storing information on the issues; sorting the regulatory issues according to predetermined criteria set by a user, and displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria; and at least one processor for running the program. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer system to monitor an issue, the computer system having a program includes the steps of: receiving information from a user on the issue to be monitored; receiving information from a user on an assignment on the issue; and forwarding the assignment to a recipient. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer system to monitor an issue, the computer system having a program includes the steps of: receiving information from a user on the issue; forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; and monitoring a progress of completion of the issue. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer system to monitor an issue, the computer system having a program includes the steps of: receiving information on a plurality of issues; storing information on the issues; filtering the issues according to predetermined criteria set by a user, and displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer system to monitor an issue, the computer system having a program includes the steps of: receiving information on a plurality of issues; storing information on the issues; sorting the issues according to predetermined criteria set by a user; and displaying the issues which meet the predetermined criteria. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, an apparatus for monitoring an issue, includes a storage device which stores information on issues; a monitoring module which monitors at least one of the issues identified by a user from the information; and a display which displays the information on the issues in a format such that a user can view the issue and monitor completion of the issue. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a method of generating a GUI screen for monitoring an issue, includes displaying on a screen, at least one issue to be monitored, including information on the issue, such that a user can view the issue and monitor completion of the issue; wherein the information includes at least one of general information on the issue, issue details, classifications of the issue, attachments, observers, notes, a journal, and an audit field. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system having a program which generates a GUI screen for monitoring an issue, includes means for displaying on a screen, at least one issue to be monitored, including information on the issue, such that a user can view the issue and monitor completion of the issue; wherein the information includes at least one of general information on the issue, issue details, classifications of the issue, attachments, observers, notes, a journal, and an audit field. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system for generating a GUI screen for monitoring an issue, includes at least one memory containing at least one program including the steps of: displaying on a screen, at least one issue to be monitored, including information on the issue, such that a user can view the issue and monitor completion of the issue; wherein the information includes at least one of general information on the issue, issue details, classifications of the issue, attachments, observers, notes, a journal, and an audit field; and at least one processor for running the program. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer system to generate a GUI screen for monitoring an issue, the computer system having a program including the steps of: displaying on a screen, at least one issue to be monitored, including information on the issue, such that a user can view the issue and monitor completion of the issue; wherein the information includes at least one of general information on the issue, issue details, classifications of the issue, attachments, observers, notes, a journal, and an audit field. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a method of providing information on an issue using a computerized network, includes receiving information from a user on the issue; and forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; wherein the recipient is not required to perform any action, and the information is forwarded to the recipient for informational purposes only. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system having a program for providing information on an issue, includes means for receiving information from a user on the issue; and means for forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; wherein the recipient is not required to perform any action, and the information is forwarded to the recipient for informational purposes only. 
     In yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer system for monitoring an issue, includes at least one memory containing at least one program including the steps of: receiving information from a user on the issue; and forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; wherein the recipient is not required to perform any action, and the information is forwarded to the recipient for informational purposes only. 
     Finally, in yet another embodiment consistent with the present invention, a computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer system to monitor an issue, the computer system having a program including the steps of: receiving information from a user on the issue; and forwarding the information to a recipient on the issue; wherein the recipient is not required to perform any action, and the information is forwarded to the recipient for informational purposes only. 
     There has thus been outlined, some features consistent with the present invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features consistent with the present invention that will be described below and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. 
     In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment consistent with the present invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. Methods and apparatuses consistent with the present invention are capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein, as well as the abstract included below, are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. 
     As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the methods and apparatuses consistent with the present invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic of one embodiment consistent with the present invention, showing a client-server environment and connection via the Internet. 
         FIG. 2  is a representative screen shot of an Issue List according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a representative screen shot of an Issue Filter according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a representative screen shot of a View Issue Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a representative partial screen shot of a General Information section according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a representative screen shot of an Edit Issue Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a representative partial screen shot of a Details section according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a representative partial screen shot of a Classifications section according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is a representative partial screen shot of an Attachments section according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 10  is a representative partial screen shot of an Observers section according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 11  is a representative partial screen shot of a Notes section according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 12  is a representative partial screen shot of a Journal section according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIGS. 13A and 13B  are a representative screen shot of a Duplicate Issue Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 14  is a representative partial screen shot of a Projects list according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 15  is a representative screen shot of a View Project Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIGS. 16A and 16B  are a representative screen shot of an Edit Project Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 17  is a representative screen shot of a Duplicate Project Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 18  is representative screen shot of a View Action Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 19  is a representative screen shot of an Edit Action Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 20  is a representative screen shot of a Duplicate Action Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 21  is a representative screen shot of a Send Assignment Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIGS. 22A and 22B  are representative screen shots of an Acknowledge Project Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIG. 23  is a representative screen shot of an Activity Report Page according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
         FIGS. 24A-B  are a flowchart depicting the major steps in the tracking of a regulatory implementation process according to one embodiment consistent with the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a method and system for tracking the implementation of a regulatory process. In particular, the present method and system provides a novel way for a centralized compliance department of a company, for example, and the department which is responsible for reviewing, assessing and overseeing the implementation of new regulatory and legislative changes, to do so easily and effectively. 
     System 
     In one embodiment consistent with the present invention, the system  100  (see  FIG. 1 ) includes a client computer  101 , such as a personal computer (PC), with display or monitor  102  and input means  104 . However, the client  101  may be a mobile terminal, such as a mobile computing device, or a mobile data organizer (PDA), operated by the user accessing the program remotely from the client  101 . 
     Methods and systems consistent with the present invention are earned out by providing an input means  104 , or user selection means, including hot clickable icons etc., or selection buttons, in a menu, dialog box, or a roll-down window of an interlace provided at the client  101 , and the user may input commands through a programmable stylus, keyboard, mouse, speech processing means, laser pointer, touch screen, or other input means  104 . 
     The input or selection means  104  may be constituted by a dedicated piece of hardware or its functions may be executed by code instructions executed on the client processor  106 , involving the display unit  102  for displaying the selection window and a stylus or keyboard for entering a selection, for example. 
     The client  101  typically includes a processor  106  as a client data processing means, the processor including a central processing unit (CPU)  107  or parallel processor and an input/output (I/O) interlace  108 , a memory  109  with a program  110  having a data structure  111 , all connected by a bus  112 . Further, as stated above, the client  101  would include an input device or means  104 , a display  102 , and may also include one or more secondary storage devices  113 . The bus  112  may be internal to the client  101  and may include an adapter to a keyboard or input device  104  or may include external connections. 
     The imaging display device  102  for the present invention is a high resolution computer monitor, which could also be a touch screen monitor. Alternatively, the display device  102  can also include other touch sensitive devices including tablet, pocket PC, and plasma screens. The touch screen would be pressure sensitive and responsive to the input of a stylus  104 , for example, which would be used to directly interact with the display device  102 . 
     Note that with respect to the client system  101 , the graphics user interface (GUI) is a client application written to run on existing computer operating systems which may be ported to other personal computer (PC) software, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and cell phones, and any other digital device that has a screen or visual component and appropriate storage capability. 
     The processor  106  at the client  101  may be internal or external thereto, and executes a program  110  adapted to predetermined operations. The processor  106  has access to the memory  109  in which may be stored at least one sequence of code instructions comprising the program  110  and the data structure  111  for performing predetermined operations. The memory  109  and program  110  may be located within the client  101  or external thereto. 
     Note that at times the system of the present invention is described as performing a certain function. However, one of ordinary skill in the art would know that the program  110  is what is performing the function rather than the entity of the system itself. 
     The program  110  which runs the method and system of the present invention can include a separate program code for performing a desired operation, or may be a plurality of modules performing sub-operations of an operation, or may be part of a single module of a larger program  110  providing the operation. For example, the program  110  or a portion thereof, can be defined as a monitoring module. 
     The processor  106  may be adapted to access and/or execute a plurality of programs  110  corresponding to a plurality of operations. An operation rendered by the program  110  may be, for example, supporting the user interface, performing e-mail applications, etc. 
     The data structure  111  may include a plurality of entries, each entity including at least a first storage area that stores the databases or libraries of image files, for example. The data structure can also have alternative embodiments including those associated with the stored information as one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate from the following descriptions. 
     The storage device  113  stores at least one data file, such as image files, text files, data files, audio, video files, etc., in providing a particular operation. The data storage device as storage means  113 , may for example, be a database, including a distributed database connected via a network, for example. The database can be a computer searchable database and may be a relational database. The storage device may be connected to the server  120  and/or the client  101 , either directly or through a communication network, such as a LAN or WAN. An internal storage device  113 , or an external storage device  114  is optional, and data may also be received via a network and directly processed. 
     In methods and system consistent with the present invention, the client  101  may be connected to other clients  101  or servers  120 , including administration, billing or other systems, via a communication link  116  as a client communication means, using a communication end port specified by an address or a port, and the communication link  116  may include a mobile communication link, a switched circuit communication link, or may involve a network of data processing devices such as a LAN, WAN, the Internet, or combinations thereof. In particular, the communication link may be to e-mail systems, fax, telephone, wireless communications systems such as pagers and cell phones, wireless PDAs and other communication systems. 
     The communication link  116  may be an adapter unit capable to execute various communications protocols in order to establish and maintain communication with the server  120 , for example. The communication link  116  may be constituted by a specialized piece of hardware or may be realized by a general CPU executing corresponding program instructions. The communication link  116  may be at least partially included in the processor  106  executing corresponding program instructions. 
     In one embodiment consistent with the present invention, if a server  120  is used in a non-distributed environment, the server  120  would include a processor  121  having a CPU  122  or parallel processor which is a server data processing means, and an I/O interlace  123 , but may also be constituted by a distributed CPU  122  including a plurality of individual processors  121  on one or a plurality of machines. The processor  121  of the server  120  may be a general data processing unit, but preferably a data processing unit with large resources (i.e., high processing capabilities and a large memory for storing large amounts of data). 
     The server  120  may include a memory  124  with program  125  having a data structure  126  all connected by a bus  127 . The bus  127  or similar connection line can also consist of external connections, if the server  120  is constituted by a distributed system. The server processor  121  may have access to a storage device  128  for storing preferably large numbers of programs for providing various operations to the users. 
     The data structure  126  may include a plurality of entries, each entry including at least a first storage area—which stores data and image files, for example, but may also have alternative embodiments including that associated with other stored information as one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate. 
     The server  120  may be a single unit or may be a distributed system of a plurality of servers  120  or data processing units, and may be shared by multiple users in direct or indirect connection to each other. The server  120  performs at least one server program for a desired operation, which is required in serving a request from the client  101 . 
     The communication link  129  from the server  120  is preferably adapted to communicate with a plurality of clients. 
     The present invention is implemented in software which can be provided in a client and server environment or in a distributed system over a computerized network across a number of client systems. Thus, in the present invention, a particular operation may be performed either at the client or the server, at the edge of a network or at the center, or both. Therefore, at either the client or the server, or both, corresponding programs for a desired operation/service are available. 
     In a client-server environment, at least one client and at least one server are each connected to a network  220  such as a Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), and/or the Internet, over a communication link  116 ,  129 . Interaction with users may be through secure and non-secure interne connectivity. Thus, the steps in the methods consistent with the present invention are carried out at the client or at the server, or at both, the server (if used) being accessible by the client over for example, the Internet using a browser application or the like. 
     The client system  101  may include communications via a wireless service connection. The server system  120  may include communications with network/security features, via a wireless server, which connects to, for example, voice recognition. However, one of ordinary skill in the art would know that other systems may be included. 
     In another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the client system may be a basic system, and the server may include all of the components necessary to support the software platform of the present invention. Further, the present client-server system may be arranged such that the client system can operate independently of the server system, but that the server system can be optionally connected. In the former situation, additional modules would instead be connected to the client system. In another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the client system and server system can be disposed in one system, rather being separated into two systems. 
     Although the above physical architecture has been described above as client-side or server-side components, one of ordinary skill in the art would know that the above components of the physical architecture may be in either client or server, or in a distributed environment. 
     Further, although the above-described features and processing operations may be realized by dedicated hardware, or may be realized as programs including code instructions executed on data processing units, it is further possible that parts of the above sequence of operations are carried out in hardware, whereas other of the above processing operations are carried out using software. 
     The underlying technology allows for replication to various other sites. Each new site can maintain “state” with its neighbors so that in the event of a catastrophic failure, other server systems can continue to keep the application running, and allow the system to load-balance the application geographically as required. 
     Further, although aspects of one implementation of the present invention are described as being stored in memory, one of ordinary-skill in the art will appreciate that all or part of the methods and systems consistent with the present invention may be stored on or read from other computer-readable media, such as secondary-storage devices, like hard disks, floppy disks, CDROM, a carrier wave received from a network such as the Internet, or other forms of ROM or RAM either currently known or later developed. Further, although specific components of the system have been described, one skilled in the art will appreciate that the system suitable for use with the methods and systems consistent with the present invention, may contain additional or different components. 
     Login 
     The user gains access to the present system in one of two ways: 1) either by following a web link contained within an e-mail notification, or 2) by directly logging onto the system over the Internet. The e-mail notification is discussed further below. The direct login onto the system is performed as follows. 
     Once the user accesses the website of the system using a browser, the program  110  will provide a Login page, at which the user will enter the company&#39;s identification (i.e., company&#39;s web address), user name, password, and group, for example. 
     If the user has forgotten their password, the user can click on the link “Forgot My Password” on the login page, and the program  110  will display a prompt requesting that the user input their e-mail address. The user can enter their e-mail address and select “Send Request.” Once inputted, the program  110  will then send the user an e-mail with a link that will allow the user to reset their password. If the user has more than one user account, the program  110  will present a list of all of the user accounts that use the e-mail address that the user entered, and the user can select one or more of them to reset their password. 
     Issues 
     Once the program  110  has approved the user identification and password, the program  110  will display an “Issue” List (see  FIG. 2 ), for example. The Issue List can also be displayed by the program, by the user selecting “Issue List” from a menu. 
     In one embodiment consistent with the present invention, an Issue is a requirement that demands some type of Action to be performed. When a company identifies a relevant requirement, the requirement can be added to the present system and will be referred to as an Issue. The Issue describes the statute, regulation, agency bulletin, case law, contract, budget, or other item which must be review or acted upon. Compliance or project/issue target dates, internal Target dates, and Attachments are also part of the Issue. The Action associated with an Issue may be as simple as distributing a new list of operating procedures to a single department or as complex as integrating a far reaching change throughout the organization, for example. 
     Although the present invention will mainly be described with respect to compliance and regulatory issues, it would be clear to one of ordinary skill in the art, that the present invention is also directed to monitoring Issues, Projects, Actions and Assignments in a variety of other areas, such as financial (i.e., budgets) areas, government contracts, case law etc. 
     In one exemplary embodiment related to the regulatory implementation process, for example, there are two types of Issues that can be created in the present system. The first is a Standard Issue (referred to simply as an Issue) which is intended to track an existing compliance requirement. The second type of Issue is an FYI Issue which is intended as a mechanism to inform individuals in the organization about a proposed or pending compliance requirement. 
     If a user has Issue Administrator rights, all Issues are displayed in the Issue List by the program  110 . If not, then only those Issues in which the user is involved in any role will be displayed by the program  110  to that user (i.e., as an issue observer, action implementer, issue owner). 
     The Issue List (see  FIG. 2 ) can be sorted by the program  110  by the user clicking on a sortable column header (see  FIG. 3 ). Sortable column headers are underlined, and include the Issue No., Priority, Citation, Compliance date, Date Created, Issue Owner, (described below) etc. In use, the   icon appears when the user moves the input means  104  over a sortable column header. The   icon indicates the sort order and the current sort column. The first time the user clicks a sort column, the information is sorted by the program  110  in ascending order. The second time the information is sorted in descending order by the program  110 . 
     The number of pages of the Issue List is displayed by the program  110  on the screen (see  FIG. 2 ), at the top and bottom of the grid. The user simply clicks on the page number and the program  110  will display that new page. 
     The Issue List provides a system generated number (created by the program  110  automatically when the Issue is created). The Issue Overview and Detailed Summary of the Issue are displayed by the program  110  when the   icon is accessed by the user. Attachments (if any) are displayed by the program  110  when the   icon is accessed by the user, and the   icon starts the process of duplicating an Issue. 
     The completion percentage % is calculated by the program  110  and displayed in the Issue List, so that the user can note the status of the completion of the Issue. 
     The program  110  also displays a Priority Level in the Issue List, based upon the likelihood of severity of financial or procedural impact. The Priority Levels are High, Normal, and Low. 
     Note that the headers, such as Categories, Jurisdictions, etc., are editable, and may be changed by the user to correspond to the terms used in each company. 
     The Jurisdictions header displays the areas of governance defined by the company, such as particular states, territories, or regions of the United States. Citations refers to state statutes, bills, bulletins, or other cited regulations containing the compliance information to be processed. Categories are user-defined topical classifications that specify the scope of an Issue. 
     The Compliance Date is established by the user as the date the company must be in compliance with the requirement, for example, or when the issue, project, or action, should be completed. 
     Further, an Issue Creation Date is provided, as well as the Issue Owner, who is the individual responsible for monitoring the status of the Project(s) to ensure the Issue&#39;s timely resolution. 
     Icons that are displayed by the program  110  in the % column of the Issue List, such as different color buttons or symbols, refer to Standard and FYI Issues, which have or do not have Projects, and inform the user as to whether those Projects are late or on-time, and whether the Issues were closed or canceled. FYI Issues can also be marked. 
     The Issue List can also be filtered by the program  110  to display only those Issues which meet certain criteria—i.e., Issue Owner, Jurisdiction, Categories, Status (i.e., open, closed, canceled) (see  FIGS. 3-4 ). For example, to display only those Issues for a particular Jurisdiction, the user would select the desired entry from the Jurisdiction dropdown list and then click the Filter button. The program  110  will retrieve the Issues that match the filter criteria and redisplay the Issue List with only those Issues that match the criteria specified. 
     To reset the filter to its default options, the user can select the Reset button, which will cause the filter options to be reset to their default values so that other filter criteria can be entered, or the default list can be displayed by the program  110 . The Default Filter setting instructs the program  110  to display Issues with a current status of Open. 
     An Advanced Filter option (see  FIG. 3 ) provides the user with the ability to further filter the list of displayed Issues. The Advanced Filter option instructs the program  110  to display only Issues which meet all of the specified criteria. If an Issue matches one of the criteria but not another, it will not be displayed by the program  110 . If the user selects a particular Jurisdiction and a specific Department, for example, then only those Issues that meet both the Jurisdiction and the Department criteria are displayed by the program  110 . 
     Using Advanced Filter Fields (see  FIG. 3 ), the program  110  can filter for Jurisdictions, Categories, Departments, Issue Owner, Status, Priority, Business Units, Products, Enacted Date (the date the new legislation/regulation/bulletin, etc. is enacted/adopted/released), Effective Date (the date the new legislation/regulation/bulletin, etc. takes effect), Compliance Date (the date established by the company to be in compliance with the requirement), Issue Number, and also perform a Text Search (a case-insensitive keywords for searching the Source, Citation, Overview and Detailed Summary fields). 
     Specifically, with regard to Jurisdictions, company-defined geographic areas (i.e., states, territories, regions) are used for classifying issues by affected geographic area. By default, the program  110  populates the Jurisdictions with the fifty states and Washington D.C. The user can change the label of this classification to match the company&#39;s naming convention (i.e., Regions, Branches, or Territories). 
     With regard to Categories, the company-defined categories are used by the program  110  for classifying issues by category. For example, the user might configure Categories to represent various areas of legislation, such as Telecommunications, Privacy, Personal Property, Corporate Governance, etc. This classification can be relabeled at the user&#39;s discretion to be used to classify issues in any manner that the user wishes. 
     In one embodiment, company-defined departments within the organization are used for classifying Issues by affected department. This classification is used to classify Issues by the affected Department(s), but it is also used to organize users. By assigning each user to a Department, the authorized user will automatically group each user into address groups that can be easily selected within the system. The user can change the label of this classification to match the Company&#39;s naming convention (e.g., Sections, Divisions), but it will always be used to classify Issues and users. 
     In one embodiment, company-defined business units within the organization are used for classifying issues by affected business unit. This classification can be relabeled by the user, to classify Issues in any manner that the user wishes. 
     Finally, with regard to Products, the company-defined products within the organization are used for classifying issues by affected product. This classification can be relabeled by the user to classify Issues in any manner desired. 
     The filter and sort preferences can be saved in a storage device  113 , for example, by the program  110 , by selecting the   icon above the filter or sort area (see  FIG. 3 ). Selecting this icon will instruct the program  110  to save the current filter or sort options so that the user can instruct the program  110  to restore them at a later time by the user selecting the appropriate Restore Preferences icon  . The program  110  will store the filter and sort preferences and restore them each time the user logs-in. 
     Each Standard Issue (see  FIG. 4 ) has the following major components: the General Information section  201 , which contains the fundamental information about the requirement (i.e., Jurisdiction(s), Citation(s), Enacted Date, etc.), Overview, Attachments  202 , Notes section  203 , Journal  204 , and Audit Field  205 . 
     In addition to these sections, Standard Issues also have a Project Assignment section  206 , which is a list of all Project(s) (created to address the Issue) and their current status, and an Issue Observers section  207 . 
     Every Issue has one individual who is responsible for monitoring the status of a Project(s) to ensure its timely resolution. This individual is known as the Issue Owner. The default Issue Owner is the person who created the Issue. 
     A user with Issue Administrator rights can instruct the program  110  to create a new Issue by selecting the Add Issue or Add FYI Issue button on the Issue List page (see  FIG. 2 ), by selecting the Add New or Add New FYI item from the Issues menu, or by selecting the duplicate icon   for an existing Issue. When a new Issue is created, the program  110  displays the new Issue Page (see  FIG. 4 ), and the user can enter the applicable information and click the Save or Save/Return button. 
     To view an Issue, the user may select the issue number link in the Issue List (see  FIG. 2 ), and the program  110  will display the View Issue Page  200  (see  FIG. 4 ). The View Issue Page displays Issue General Information Details  201  (such as Jurisdiction, Overview), Attachments  202 , Projects  206 , Observers  207 , Notes  203 , Journal  204 , and Audit Field  205  sections. 
     In addition, the Issue Page can be edited by the user clicking on the Edit Issue button on the View Issue Page  200 , or the   icon in the Issue List page (see  FIG. 2 ). The program  110  will display the Edit Issue Page  300  (see  FIG. 6 ). The Edit Issue Page  300  contains General Information  301 , Details  302  (such as Jurisdiction, Citations, Overview, Issue Details), Classifications  303  (such as Categories, Businesses, Departments, and Products), Attachments  304  (see  FIG. 9 ), Observers (see  FIG. 10 ), Notes (see  FIG. 11 ), Journal (see  FIG. 12 ), and Audit Field (see  FIG. 4 ) sections. 
     The Edit Issue Page  300  is similar to the View Issue Page  200 , except that in the Edit Issue Page, each of the fields can be modified. Further, some of the editable data on the Edit Issue Page (i.e., Jurisdictions, Businesses, and Categories), for example, may be hidden when the page is initially displayed (see  FIG. 4 ). To display these sections and edit the information, the user would simply click on the   icon next to that section of data and the program  110  will display these sections for user modification. 
     The following discusses the different sections of the View and Edit Issue Pages in more detail. 
     a. General Information 
     The General Information section (see  FIGS. 4 and 6 ) for an Issue is entered into the system by the Issue Owner. The General Information elements are shown in  FIGS. 4 and 6 , and include, for example, Issue Owner, Status, Priority, Enacted Date, Effective Date, Compliance Date, Source, and, for example, the Calendar Icon   which is a tool for selecting dates. 
     b. Details 
     The Details section of the View and Edit Issue Pages contains detailed information about the legislation or regulation itself, for example, including the Jurisdictions that it applies to, the Citations, and an Overview and detailed description of the legislation (see  FIG. 5 ). Essentially, the Details section contains detailed information about the Issue. 
     When the View Issue Page is initially displayed by the program  110  (see  FIG. 4 ), some of the information is hidden. The user can view this additional information by selecting the Show/Hide Details link at the top of the page and the program  110  will show the Details. 
     However, in the Edit Issue Page (see  FIG. 6 ), the Details, such as Jurisdictions, Citations, Overview (a succinct definition of the Issue), and Issue Details (a summary of the referenced citation contained in the Issue and how it may affect the organization, and which may include instructions or plans for implementing changes), are displayed by the program  110  in full. 
       FIGS. 5 and 7  shows the Issue Details in expanded form. Note that Compliance Date details are not displayed by the program  110  for FYI Issues. 
     c. Classifications 
     In addition to the Generation Information and Details about an Issue, each Issue can be further classified into one or more classifications using company-defined Issue attributes, such as, for example, Categories, Business Units, Departments, and Products (see  FIG. 8 ). The user can define the elements of each of these groups and the program  110  can classify the Issues according to which elements apply to a particular Issue. 
     Using Classification attributes will allow the user to instruct the program  110  to filter, sort, and report on the Issues based on their classification attributes. For example, a particular user may only be interested in Issues that affect the company&#39;s Long-Term Care Division; or perhaps those that affect the IT Department and its Web-Based Software Products. 
       FIG. 8 , for example, shows the fields that are available in the Classification section of the Edit Issue Page (i.e., Categories, Businesses, Departments, and Products). 
     d. Attachments 
     The Attachments section (see  FIG. 9 ) includes links to documents (i.e., word processing documents, scanned documents, spreadsheets, etc.), or links to Internet web pages. The Attachments section allows the user to instruct the program  110  to add additional information to the Issue Page to assist all users in understanding and working on the Issues. 
     Attachments can be added by the user selecting the Add Attachment button below the Attachment table, as shown in  FIG. 9 . The Attachments can vary from zero to any number, and are only limited by the storage capacity of the system. 
     The Attachments include the Attachment Name (the user-defined name of an electronic document or web link attached to the Issue for the purpose of clarification, and background information and/or full text of the cited reference), File Name (actual file name or Internet address of the Attachment), and File Type (i.e., type of Attachment, including but not limited to, word processing document, spreadsheet, image, scanned document, text document, and URL). The Edit icon can be clicked on by the user, so that the user can make modifications to an Attachment. 
     e. Observers 
     The Observers information for an Issue is added by the user, but is not displayed by the program  110  for FYI Issues, since FYI Issues have Recipients, not Observers. Observers can be added or removed by the user, using the controls in the Observers section (see  FIG. 10 ), at anytime during the life of an issue, and the program  110  will add or remove the individuals chosen. 
     In the Observers section of the View and Edit Issue Pages (see  FIGS. 4 and 10 ), the following information may be displayed by the program  110  if chosen by the user, for example: full name of Observer; Initial Contact (the date the first Issue Notification e-mail was sent to the individual; Last Contact (the date of the last e-mail Notification); and Status (status of response, such as: Not Sent, Awaiting Acknowledgement and Acknowledged). 
     f. Notes 
     The Notes section in the View and Edit Issue Pages (see  FIGS. 4 and 11 ) provides, for example, the user a way to communicate further information about an Issue or to make comments about steps that were taken to resolve the Issue or decisions that were made during implementation. 
     A user adds a Note by simply typing the Note text into the Add Note box (see  FIG. 11 ), and then clicking on the Save Note button and the program  110  will store the same. The Notes section is essentially a collection of Issue related comments. 
     The Notes section includes the Date the Note was added to the Issue, the Author (individual who added the Note), and the text of the Note (editable). 
     g. Journal 
     The Journal section (see  FIGS. 4 and 12 ) contains a Journal of events that occur in the life of an Issue, for example (i.e., change in status (i.e., opened, closed), when an issue is sent, etc.). Journaling may be performed at the Issue, Project, and Action levels, and may be displayed by the program  110  independently in the Issue, Project, or Action views (see  FIG. 4 ). Journaling events are recorded by the program  110  and are not editable by the user. The Journal is not displayed by the program  110  by default, but can be displayed by the program  110  by the user clicking the Show Journal button in the Journal section of the View Issue Page or Edit Issue Page, for example (see  FIGS. 4 and 12 ). 
     The Journal section includes the date and time the event took place, the user that initiated the event, the Event (i.e., Issue owner changed, the Issue status changed, the Issue compliance reminder sent (Standard only), Project deleted (Standard only), Issue sent (FYI only), Issue visited by recipient (FYI only), Issue acknowledged by recipient (FYI only), and the Description of the Event that took place. 
     h. Audit Field 
     The Audit Field section displays basic Audit information generated by the program  110  and can not be modified (see  FIG. 4 ). The Audit Field section provides information on the user who created the Issue, the date the Issue was created, the user who last modified the Issue, and the date the Issue was last modified. 
     i. FYI Issue 
     In an FYI Issue, the Recipients Section of the Edit Issue Page is similar to the Observers section, except that with FYI Issues, there are no Observers—simply Recipients, and there are no Projects. The Recipients are the individual users that an FYI Issue are sent to by the program  110 , and are not displayed for Standard Issues—only FYI Issues. Recipients can be added or removed by the program  110  by the user selecting the appropriate controls in the Recipients section of the Edit Issue Page. 
     The Recipients section includes the name of the recipient, the initial contact (i.e., the first time this FYI Issue was sent to the recipient), last contact (i.e., the last time this FYI Issue was sent to the recipient), and the status (the recipient&#39;s status, such as Not Sent, Awaiting Acknowledgement, Acknowledged). 
     There are two methods of sending FYI Issues—1) sending the FYI issue with an expected acknowledgement, and 2) sending it and closing the issue. In the latter case, the Issue is closed by the program  110  immediately after sending it to the FYI Recipient, and the FYI Recipient is not required to acknowledge the Issue. 
     The Edit Issue Page allows the program  110  to perform a number of functions, such as saving the changes to the Issue, saving the changes to the Issue and returning to the Issue List page, canceling the Issue, viewing the current Issue (no editing allowed), sending an Assignment associated with the Issue (discussed further below), and returning to the Issue List Page, for example. 
     In addition, when an Issue is no longer needed, even though the Issue may not be completed or ready to be closed, a Cancel Issue button on the Edit Issue Page (see  FIG. 6 ) can be clicked by the user and the program  110  will cancel the Issue. When an Issue is canceled, the program  110  will no longer send reminders for the Issue and the Issue will only appear on the Issue List if the user selects All or Canceled in the Status filter. If the Issue needs to be reopened at any time, the user can select the Open button on the Edit Issue Page, and the Issue will be reopened by the program  110 . 
     The program  110  will display canceled Issues for archival purposes, although in another embodiment consistent with the present invention, the Issue may also be deleted from the system. 
     j. Duplicate Issues 
     The program  110  of the present invention also provides a method of creating a new Issue that is similar to an existing Issue—which is the duplicate   feature. When an Issue is selected for duplication, the program  110  will display the Duplicate Issue Page (see  FIGS. 13A and 13B ), which will allow the user to customize the new Issue that will be created by duplication. 
     The user can select which data elements they wish to duplicate, for example, by selecting the checkboxes next to the data elements the user wishes to include in the new Issue. For example, the user may wish to copy the Projects and the Businesses, but not wish to copy the dates, since the new Issue will have different dates. Or, in another example, the user may wish to copy the dates, but shift them by a number of weeks. The Options at the bottom of the Duplicate Issue Page adjusts the dates for the new Issue. 
     When all the selections have been made, the user simply clicks the Duplicate button, and the program  110  will create a new Issue in accordance with the selections made. 
     Projects 
     One of the novel features of the present invention is the Project capability. A Project is an objective that must be realized in order to comply with the Issue requirement. The program  110  may create one Project for every required objective. Usually a Project consists of those activities which can be performed by a single Department/Business Unit, for example. So in general, if multiple Departments/Business Units are involved, an Issue will contain multiple Projects. 
     A Project is normally comprised of Action Items that make up the Action Plan for the completion of the Project, although a Project does not have to have an Action Plan. 
     Every Project has a single individual who is ultimately responsible for its resolution, known as the Project Manager. An Action is assigned to a single person who is responsible for performing the task within a specified time period. This person is referred to as the Action Implementer. 
     The program  110  allows for the selection of more than one Project Manager for the Project(s). This is performed by Duplication (similar to Issue Duplication above), whereby selecting more than one Project Manager, the program  110  creates multiple copies of the same Project, each with a different Project Manager. 
     The fields that are displayed by the program  110  on the Projects section of the Edit Issue Page (see  FIG. 4 ), include Project No. (provided sequentially by the program  110 ), Action (lettered sequentially within a Project), % (percent complete or an icon indicating status), Description (of the objective to be accomplished), Status, Target Response Creation, and Manager/Implementer. 
     Status indicates the current status of the Project or Action (i.e., Not Sent, Awaiting Acknowledgement, In Process, Ready for Approval, and Complete). 
     In one embodiment, a list of Project/Action percent complete icons include differently colored buttons, symbols, and icons, which provide the information that an Action has not been sent, is awaiting Acknowledgement, that is Ready for Approval, that is a percentage amount complete, or is complete. 
     Target Response Creation includes, for example: Target—date by which the Project or Action is to be completed; Response—date by which an acknowledgement or response is due; and Creation—date the Project or Action was created. 
     To add a new Project or Projects, the Issue Owner/user would simply click the Add Projects button in the Projects section of the Edit Issue Page, or the duplicate icon   and the program  110  will open the New Project screen where the user can create a new Project or multiple new Projects simultaneously. 
     Creating a new Project is very similar to editing a Project. The user selects a Project Manager, enters the Project description and Project due dates, selects Observers (if any, and saves the Project(s) and sends it to the Project Manager. To select a Project Manager(s), the user simply clicks on one or more names in the Address Book and clicks the Add button. 
     The Projects section (see  FIG. 14 ) of the View Issue Page and Edit Issue Page, displays a list of all Projects and Action Items associated with the Issue. To view a Project, the user selects a Project number link in the Project section of the Issue Edit or View Issue Page, and the program  110  will display the View Project Page (see  FIG. 15 ). Note that Projects are displayed with Standard Issues only, since FYI Issues do not have Projects associated with them. 
     The View Project Page (see  FIG. 15 ) displays a General Information section  401 , Project Date Section  402 , Attachments section  403 , Action Items section  404 , Observers section  405 , Notes section  406 , Journal section  407 , and Audit Field section  408 . 
     The Edit Project Page  500  (see  FIGS. 16A and 16B ) can be accessed by the user clicking on the Edit Project button on the View Project Page  400  (see  FIG. 15 ) or the icon WT in the Issue List page (see  FIG. 2 ). The Edit Project Page  500  contains the General Project Information  501 , the Dates section  502 , links to the Attachments  503 , Action Plan section  504 , Observers section  505 , Project Notes section  506 , Journal section  507 , and Audit Field section  508 . The program  110  will then display the Edit Project Page (see  FIGS. 16A and 16B ), which is identical to the View Project Page (see  FIG. 15 ), except that on the Edit Issue Page, each of the fields can be modified. 
     The Edit Project Page allows the program  110  to perform a number of functions, such as saving the changes to the Project, saving the changes to the Project and returning to the Issue List page, canceling the Project, viewing the current Project (no editing allowed), sending an Assignment associated with the Project (discussed further below), and returning to the Issue List Page. 
     The following discusses the different sections of the View and Edit Project Pages in more detail. 
     a. General Information 
     The Issue Owner/user should provide the General Information  501  elements of the Project. This information should include the name of the Project Manager, the Status (i.e., Not Sent, Awaiting Acknowledgement, In Process, Ready for Approval, and Complete), and a Description of the Project to be completed. 
     b. Dates 
     The Dates section  502  includes date information on a Project added by the Issue Owner. The date elements may include, for example, the Response Due (date indicating when an Acknowledgement of the Project Assignment is due), Response Date Reminder (date when a scheduled auto-reminder email goes out for acknowledgement of the Project), Target Completion (date indicating when the Project is to be completed), and Target Date Reminder (a scheduled auto-reminder for completion of the Project). The program  110  can be set to send reminder e-mails at predetermined periods (i.e., for 1 day to 6 weeks) before the due date. 
     Response Date Reminder e-mails can also be set to be sent at a predetermined time period (i.e., for 1 day to 6 weeks) before the due date. The reminder, as well as the Target Date Reminder, can be repeated at a predetermined time (i.e., once, daily, every two days, weekly, or every 2 or 4 weeks) up to the Target Date. 
     c. Attachments 
     Each Project can have a number of Attachments (i.e., zero to any number that can be accommodated by the system). The Attachments section  503  includes links to documents (i.e., word processing documents, scanned documents, spreadsheets, etc.), or links to Internet web pages. The Attachments section allows the user to add additional information on the Action or to document what work was done to implement the Project. 
     As stated above with respect to Issues, Attachments can be added by selecting the Add Attachment button below the Attachment table, as shown in  FIG. 9 . 
     d. Action Plan 
     The Action Plan  504  information for a Project is added by the Project Manager. There is one Action Plan per Project. An Action Plan is a collection of Actions to be performed in order to fulfill the Project objective. Action Plans are discussed in greater detail below. 
     e. Observers 
     The Observers information  505  for a Project is added by the Issue Owner or Project Manager, for example. The Observer has no assigned Actions but needs to be aware of the Project objective and its current status. The Observer information is not displayed for FYI Issues, since FYI Issues have Recipients, not Observers. Observers can be added or removed by the user, using the controls in the Observers section (see  FIGS. 16A and 16B ). 
     In the Observers section of the View and Edit Issue Pages (see  FIG. 4 ), the following information is provided: full name of Observer; Initial Contact (the date the first Issue Notification e-mail was sent to the individual); Last Contact (the date of the last e-mail Notification); and Status (status of response, such as: Not Sent, Awaiting Acknowledgement and Acknowledged). 
     f. Notes 
     The Notes section  506  displays a list of all Project related notes, for example. Notes can be entered by the Issue Owner, Project Manager, and/or Observers. Notes can be used to communicate further information about a Project or to make comments about steps that were taken to resolve the Project or decisions that were made during implementation. 
     A user adds a Note by simply typing the Note text into the Add Note box (see  FIGS. 16A and 16B ), and then clicking on the Save Note button. 
     The Notes section includes the Date the Note was added to the Issue, the Author (individual who added the Note), and the text of the Note (editable). 
     g. Journal 
     The Journal section  507  contains a Journal of events that occur in the life of a Project, for example (i.e., change in status (i.e., opened, closed), when an issue is sent, etc.). Journaling is performed at the Project and Action levels, and can be viewed independently in the Project or Action views (see  FIGS. 16A and 16B ). Journaling events are recorded by the program  110  and are not editable by the user. The Journal is not displayed by default, but can be displayed by clicking the Show Journal button in the Journal section of the View Project Page or Edit Project Page (see  FIGS. 15 and 16A -B). 
     The Journal section  507  includes the date and time the event took place, the User that initiated the event, the Event (i.e., Action Item deleted, Project status changed, Project Assignment sent, Project Response Reminder sent, Project target reminder sent, Project acknowledged by Manager or Observer, Project visited by Manager or Observer, Project Manager changed, for example), and the Description of the Event that took place. 
     h. Audit Field 
     The Audit Field section  508  displays basic Audit information generated by the program  110  and can not be modified (see  FIGS. 16A-B ). The Audit Field section on the View Project Page or Edit Project Page (see  FIGS. 15 and 16A -B), provides information on the user who created the Issue, the date the Issue was created, the user who last modified the Issue, and the date the Issue was last modified, for example. 
     After a Project is created, the Issue Owner can save the new Project, or save and return to the Issue List. Once the Project is created, the user can instruct. the program  110  to send an Assignment Notification e-mail to the involved individuals (or in another embodiment, emails may be sent automatically). The e-mail contains a web link to the Project Acknowledgement page (discussed below). 
     To send the Projects and associated Action Items for an Issue, the user would simply click the Send Assignments button (discussed further below) in the Projects section. The program  110  will display the Send Assignments Page and the user will be able to select which users he/she wishes to send the Assignments. 
     When all Projects are completed, the close button—which does not appear until all the Projects are completed—can be clicked on. 
     i. Duplicate Projects 
     As stated above, the program  110  of the present invention also provides a method of creating a new Project that is similar to an existing Project, which is the duplicate   feature. When a Project is selected for duplication, the program  110  will display the Duplicate Project Page (see  FIG. 17 ), which will allow the user to customize the new Project that they will create by duplication. 
     In a duplicated Project, the user can also select which data elements the user wishes to duplicate by selecting the checkboxes next to the data elements the user wishes to include in the new Projects. For example, the user may wish to copy the Action Plan and Observers, but not the dates, because the new Project will have different dates. Or, in another example, the user may wish to copy the dates, but shift them by a number of weeks. The Options at the bottom of the Duplicate Project Page adjust the dates for the new Projects. 
     When all the selections have been made, the user simply clicks the Duplicate button, and the program  110  will create a new Project in accordance with the selections made. 
     Action Plans 
     Each Project has an Action Plan which is a collection of Action Items to be performed in order to fulfill the Project objective. 
     The Action Plan of the Edit Project Page includes the Action No. (labeled with letters, for example, sequentially within a Project), Action Implementer, %, Instructions (includes specific details about a task to be completed), Target Date (date when an Action is to be completed), Completion Date (date the Action was actually completed), and Status (Not Sent, Awaiting Acknowledgment, In Process, Ready for Approval, and Complete). 
     A new Action Item can be created by the program  110  by the user selecting the Add Actions button on the Edit Project Page or by selecting the duplicate icon   for an Action Item. Creating a new Action Item is very similar to editing an Action Item. For example, the program  110  will receive a selection of an Action Implementer, receive the Action Item instructions and due dates, and will save the Action Item and send it to the Action Implementer. If multiple Action Items are created by the program  110  that have the same or similar instructions and dates, the user can select multiple Accountable Individuals and the program  110  will create multiple Action Items, each with the same description and dates. 
     The user can view an Action Item by selecting the Action letter link in the Action Plan section of the Project Edit or View Project Page, and the program  110  will display the View Action Page (see  FIG. 18 ). 
     The View Action Page  600  (see  FIG. 18 ) includes a General Information section  601 , a Date section  602 , Attachments section  603 , Implementation Notes section  604 , Journal section  605 , and Audit Field section  606 . 
     The Edit Action Page  700  (see  FIG. 19 ) can be accessed via a web link in an E-mail Notification (discussed further below), by clicking either the Action number or the   icon in the Action Plan section of a Project. The Edit Action Page  700  contains the General Action Information  701 , the Dates section  702 , links to the Attachments  703 , Implementation Notes section  705 , Journal section  706 , and Audit Field section  707 . 
     The Edit Action Page  700  (see  FIG. 19 ) includes, for example, a Save/Return button for the program  110  to save changes to the Action and return to the Edit Project Page (see  FIG. 16AB ), a Save button for saving changes to the Action, a Send Assignment button to send the Action Assignment to selected Recipients, a Delete button to delete the Action, a View Action button to return the Action to View mode, and Back button for the program  110  to return to the Edit Project Page. 
     When an Action is resolved or complete, the user selects the Ready for Approval status option and clicks on the Save or the Save/Return button. The program  110  automatically sends the Project Manager an e-mail stating that the Action is complete. 
     a. General Information 
     The General Information for an Action Plan is added by the Project Manager. The General Information  601  includes the Action Implementer, Status, and Instructions, for example. The Action Implementer is the individual responsible for completion of an Action. The Status indicates the status of the Action response cycle. Status labels include, for example: Not Sent, Awaiting Acknowledgement, In Process, Ready for Approval, and Complete. The Instructions section is an area for specific instructions to be entered for completion of the Action Item. 
     b. Action Date Section 
     The Date Section  602  of the Edit Action Page is added by the Project Manager, and includes the Response Due, the Response Date Reminder, Target Completion, and the Target Date Reminder, for example. 
     The Response Due is the date indicating when an Acknowledgement of the Action Assignment is due. The Response Date Reminder is the date when a scheduled auto-reminder email is sent for Acknowledgement of the Action. The Target Completion is the date indicating when the Action is to be completed, and the Target Date Reminder is a scheduled auto-reminder for completion of the Action. Reminder e-mails can be set to go out at predetermined periods (i.e., for 1 day to 6 weeks) before the due date, by the program  110 . 
     Response Date Reminder e-mails can be set to be sent at a predetermined time period (i.e., for 1 day to 6 weeks) before the due date, by the program  110 . The reminder, as well as the Target Date Reminder, can be repeated at a predetermined time (i.e., once, daily, every two days, weekly, or every 2 or 4 weeks) up to the Target Date, by the program  110 . 
     c. Attachments 
     Attachments  603  may be provided in the Action Plan and are handled as described above with respect to Issues and Projects. 
     d. Notes 
     The Implementation Notes section  604  displays a list of all Action related notes, and is handled as described above with respect to Issue Notes and Project Notes. Notes can be entered by the Issue Owner, Project Manager, and Action Implementer, for example. Notes can be used to communicate further information about an Action or to make comments about steps that were taken to resolve the Action or decisions that were made during implementation. 
     e. Journal 
     The Journal section  605  contains a Journal of the events that occur in the life of a Project, for example (i.e., change in status (i.e., opened, closed), when an issue is sent, etc.). Journaling is performed at the Project and Action levels, and can be displayed by the program  110  independently in the Project or Action views (see  FIGS. 15 and 18 ). Journaling events are recorded by the program  110  and are not editable by the user. The Journal is not displayed by default, but can be displayed by clicking the Show Journal button in the Journal section of the View Project Page or Edit Project Page (see  FIGS. 15 and 16A -B), for example. 
     One feature of the Journal is that if a user receives an e-mail regarding an Issue, and uses the link in the e-mail to review the Issue but does not acknowledge it, the Journal records will record the user&#39;s accessing the link. This is proof that the recipient has accessed the Issue/Project/Action Plan, for example. 
     Journaling is handled as described above with respect to Issues and Projects. 
     f. Duplicate Action Items 
     Creating a new Action Item that is similar to an existing Action Item is performed by using the duplicate   feature (see  FIG. 20  for the Duplicate Action Item Page). This feature is handled the same way as duplicating Issues and Projects is handled as described above. 
     Assignments 
     Normally, Action Item Assignments are not automatically sent, but in one embodiment consistent with the present invention, Action Item Assignments could be set up for automatic sending based upon certain criteria. 
     To send an Assignment, the user clicks the Send Assignment button on the Edit Action Page, and the program  110  will send the Assignment. It is the responsibility of the Issue Owner or Project Manager to send the Assignments at the appropriate time. Project and Action Item Assignments should be sent when a Project or Action Item is first created, or any time during the implementation of the Issue that changes need to be communicated, for example. 
     When an Assignment is first sent to a user, they will receive a New Assignment notification by the program  110 . Subsequent Assignments for the same Project will result in an Update Assignment notification being sent to the user by the program  110 . A user may send an Assignment as many times as desired, and each one will result in a new e-mail by the program  110  to the addressee. If a user is assigned to more than one Action Item, they will receive an e-mail for each Action Item that they are assigned to, by the program  110 . 
     There are several places where a user can initiate the sending of Assignments. For example, all Project and Action Item assignments for an Issue can be sent by the program  110  in a single step to all Issue Observers, Project Managers, Project Observers, and Action Implementers. The user would simply click on the Send Assignments button on the Edit Issue Page. The program  110  will display the Send Project Assignments Page with all of the Projects and Action Items available for that Issue. The list of users is organized by Project, for example. 
     To send all the Assignments for a specific Project, which includes all Action Implementers and Observers for the Project, the user can select the Send Assignment button on the Edit Project Page, and the program  110  will display the Send Project Assignments Page with all the Assignments for that Project. 
     The user may also select the Send Assignment button on any of the Action Items within a Project and the program  110  will display the Send Project Assignments Page with each of the users associated with the Project displayed. The program  110  will automatically check the Action Implementer of the Action Item that the user selects, assuming that this is addressee the user wants to send the Assignment to, but the user can select any of the other users if desired. 
     Another way to send Assignments for a specific Project is to select the   (e-mail) icon in the Projects section of the Issue Page or the Actions section of the Project Page. The program  110  places this icon next to any user that has been assigned to a Project, but has not yet been sent the Project Assignment. 
     Regardless of how the user initiates the sending of Assignments, the program  110  will display the Send Projects Assignments Page (see  FIGS. 21A-B ). This page allows the user to specify an optional subject and text for the e-mail that will be sent to each Assignment recipient, for example. Also, the program  110  allows the user to select or de-select any users that the user does not wish to send an Assignment. 
     If the Send Project Assignments Page contains more than one Project, the user list will be organized by Project, by the program  110 . Because users may have Assignments on more than one Project within an Issue, it is possible for a user to appear on the list more than once. 
     The Send Assignments fields (see  FIGS. 21A-B ) include the E-mail Subject (if the user does not specify a subject, the program  110  will use a default subject that contains the Issue and Project Information); E-mail Comments (text can be inserted by the user, and the program  110  will automatically append detailed information about the Issue, Project, and Action Item as appropriate in the e-mail); Recipient (a check in the box indicates which individuals are to be sent the Notification e-mail); User (recipient), Role (Recipient&#39;s role(s) within the Project; First Contact (date the Recipient was first sent an Assignment for this Project or Not Sent if they never received an Assignment); and Last Contact (date the Recipient was last sent an Assignment for this Project or Not Sent if they never received an Assignment). 
     Acknowledgements 
     Regardless of their role, each person assigned to the Project or Action item Assignment, must acknowledge the Assignment. The program  110  tracks when the Assignment was sent and when it was acknowledged by the addressee. The program  110  sends Response Reminder Notification e-mails until they are acknowledged by the addressee, if the Response Reminders are enabled by the Issue Owner. 
     Accordingly, the addressee will receive an E-mail Issue or Project Notification by the program  110  which provides the addressee with information on the role to be played by the addressee. The addressee should then click on the web link contained in the e-mail, and an Acknowledgement Page  800  will be displayed by the program  110  (see  FIG. 22 ), which includes four sections of the Assignment (i.e., Issue  801 , Project  802 , Action  803 , and Acknowledgement  804 ). The Acknowledgement for each type of addressee (i.e., Project Manager, Action Implementer, Project Observer, Issue Observer), has a different meaning depending on that addressee. 
     For example, when a Project Manager acknowledges his Assignment, the Project Manager is agreeing that he/she is responsible for the Project and will take the proper course of action. If Action is required, the Project Manager is ensuring that they will perform all the necessary tasks by the deadlines set by the Issue Owner and others. 
     Thus, in the present invention, the Project Manager can review the Project and select the appropriate response by selecting Action Required, No Action Required, or Not My Responsibility, and can enter any pertinent comments, for example. Then, the Project Manager can the click on the Acknowledge button (see  FIG. 22 ) and the program  110  will acknowledge the Project. 
     If Action is required, the Project Manager is responsible for creating an Action Plan and instructing the program  110  to send Assignments to notify the Action Implementer(s) of their responsibilities. Thus, other individuals can be added to a Project by the user, and the program  110  will send the added individuals each an Assignment Notification e-mail. The Project Manager monitors activity, can add pertinent Notes, and resolve the Project upon completion, for example. 
     With respect to the Action Implementer, once the Action Implementer receives the E-Mail Notification of the Project and the Action by the program  110 , he/she can follow the same procedure as the Project Manager—i.e., select the applicable response type (i.e., Action Required, No Action Required, or Not My Responsibility, enter any pertinent comments, and click on the Acknowledge button, for example. If Action is required, the Action Implementer is responsible for completing the assigned task(s) with the specified timeframe. The Action Implementer resolves the Actions—when the Assignments have been completed. 
     The Project Observer similarly receives an E-Mail Notification from the Issue Owner or other person, and will be able to review the Project—which is displayed by the program  110 . However, the Project Observer is included for informational purposes only, and does not have any assigned Actions on the Project. The Project Observer adds applicable comments and monitors the progress of the Project, for example. The web link in the E-mail can be used by the Project Observer to instruct the program  110  to display the current status of the Project, and to enter Project-related comments. 
     The Issue Observer receives an E-mail Notification of the Issue, and can review the Issue displayed by the program  110 . The Issue Observer then can click on the Acknowledge button and the program  110  will acknowledge the Issue. As with the Project Observer, the Issue Observer is included in the Issue for informational purposes only, and does not have any assigned Projects for the Issue. However, the Issue Observer can add applicable comments and monitor the progress of the Issue, for example. The Issue Observer uses the web link in the e-mail to view the current status of the Issue or to enter Issue related comments. 
     FYI Issue Recipients are similar to Observers in that they are made aware of the Issue by an e-mail Notification by the program  110 . The FYI Issue Recipient reviews the Issue and then clicks on the Acknowledge button for the program  110  to acknowledge the Issue. The FYI Recipient is included in the Issue for informational purposes only. The FYI Recipient uses the web link in the email to view the current status of the Issue or to enter the Issue related comments. 
     Once Assignments are completed and the user has indicated such by locating the Assignment button and then marking the status as Ready for Approval or Complete, the Action or Project is resolved. The program  110  also automatically sends an e-mail notification to the appropriate individuals when the Assignment is marked Ready for Approval or Complete. 
     E-Mail Notifications 
     As noted above, the program  110  sends a number of e-mail notifications to the various individuals involved with the Issues. The e-mail contains a web link that, when clicked, launches the program  110  of the present invention. The page displayed depends on the type of notification. 
     E-mail Notifications are sent by the Issue Owner, Project Manager, Action Implementer, or can be sent by the program  110  as an automatic reminder. The typical e-mail Notifications include, among others, notifying a Recipient of their Assignment, or that they have failed to acknowledge an Assignment, that the Recipient needs to review the Issue or Project information, a Project update, notify of a person being made an Observer, or provides a means for the Recipient to acknowledge an Assignment or Action, or that the Project or Action is complete. In particular, the program  110  can send automatic reminders to individuals to acknowledge an Assignment, notify of a compliance date, etc. 
     Reports 
     Issue Activity Reports can be generated by the program  110 , to show the Issue activity for a specified period of time. They can be run for Product, Issue Creator, Issue Owner, Priority, Business, Category, Department, and Jurisdiction, for example, among others. Output formats can be specified by the user. 
     The Activity Report page (see  FIG. 24 ) can be accessed by selecting the Activity Report item under the Report Menu option. The date range (start and end date) and the reports desired can be selected by clicking on Create Report, for example, and the program  110  will create a single file containing all of the Reports selected. 
     Operational Example 
     In one example of operation consistent with the present invention, a centralized compliance department responsible for reviewing, assessing and overseeing the implementation of new regulatory and legislative changes, for example, is notified of a new regulatory change by a Political Action Committee PAC. Accordingly, the compliance employee would access the website for the tracking application of the present invention and log into the present system. 
     Thus, the compliance employee would create an Issue for the new regulation and assigns them self as the Issue Owner. An Issue is the legislative, regulatory or other event that motivates an organization to implement a new requirement, for example. 
     Accordingly, the Issue Owner, for example, would copy the summary from the PAC and paste it into the Description field and then add a few Comments outlining how this specifically affects the company. The Issue Owner would then attach a copy of the full-text of the regulation as an html document, for example, which was received from the PAC. This information is received by the program  110  in step  900  (see  FIGS. 25A-B ) to create the Issue. All of this information will be available to everyone who works on this Issue. 
     The Issue Owner would then input the information into the system, and input information to create a Project for the Legal Department, for example, which the program  110  receives in step  901 . Another employee can be assigned as the Project Manager. The Issue Owner would then instruct the program  110  to send an e-mail from the system in step  902 , informing the Project Manager of the assigned Project. If Issue Observers are deemed necessary, they can be added by the Issue Owner, and the program  110  will forward the Issue Observers e-mails in step  903 . The e-mail contains a web link that takes the Project Manager directly to the description of the Issue -where the Project Manager can obtain the full-text of the new regulation. 
     The Project Manager would then click a button to acknowledge acceptance of the Project Assignment. The program  110  in step  904  will determine if acknowledgement is received. If so, the Project Manager immediately can begin creating an Action Plan involving several personnel in the Legal Department, for example. The program  110  will receive the information on the Action Plan in step  905 . If Project Observers are deemed necessary, the user can add the Project Observers and the program  110  will inform them by e-mail in step  906 . The Project Manager&#39;s Action Plan may contain several Actions, for example, starting with some fact-finding to determine the scope of the necessary changes, which are sent to Action Implementers by the program  110  in step  907 , and acknowledgement will be received by the program  110  in step  908 . 
     When the Project Manager has acknowledged the Assignment and has started working on same, the program  110  will change the status from “Awaiting Acknowledgement” to “In Process” in step  904 A. This tells the Issue Owner that the Project Manager has already seen and acknowledged the Project and is making the necessary changes. 
     If the Project Manager does not acknowledge the Project, the Issue Owner can configure the program  110  to send an e-mail reminder in step  909  to the Project Manager every day until he/she acknowledges his Project/Issue. 
     All of the involved Action Implementers receive e-mails from the program  110  inviting them to acknowledge the Actions, examine the Issue and to complete their assigned Actions in step  910 . When acknowledged, the status of the Action Implementers changes to “In Process” in step  911 . Reminder emails are automatically sent by the program  110  in step  912  to those who have not acknowledged their assigned Action or are approaching their deadlines to keep everyone on track. 
     The program  110  in step  912 , also sends reminders regarding compliance, response, and target due dates to the members involved with the Issue. 
     As each Action is completed, the work is documented in the system by the Action Implementer, which completion status is received by the program  110  in step  913 , and the Action is marked as “Ready for Approval” so the Project Manager knows the Action has been performed. Once the Project Manager reviews and approves the Action, the program  110  marks the Action as “Complete” in step  914 . 
     After all of the Actions in a Project&#39;s Action Plan are completed, the Project Manager marks the Project as “Ready for Approval” and the program  110  in step  915  sends an email notification to the Issue Owner. 
     When the Issue Owner marks each Project with its final status of “Complete,” and marks the Issue as “closed” in step  916 , the program  110  will close and archive the Issue in step  917 . 
     It should be emphasized that the above-described embodiments of the invention are merely possible examples of implementations set forth for a clear understanding of the principles of the invention. Variations and modifications may be made to the above-described embodiments of the invention without departing from the spirit and principles of the invention. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of the invention and protected by the following claims.