Patent ID: 7302400

Claim:
An automated method of optimizing management of service elements, said method comprising: automatically searching through data structures representing service elements to locate commonality in design with a service element to be developed, each service element being represented by a data structure comprising a set of information to manage the service element, the data structure including integration properties and a customization specification, the commonality including one or more customization or integration tasks; creating another service element that includes the commonality; referencing the another service element in a composition item of the data structure representing the service element to be developed, wherein the another service element is a non-executable entity providing at least part of a design specification usable in constructing the service element to be developed by a service provider, the data structure representing the service element to be developed comprising multiple additional properties, the multiple additional properties comprising multiple composition items and a cost case, the cost case including an indication of quantity of the multiple composition items of the service element and cost to the service provider of the multiple composition items, one composition item of the multiple composition items comprising a reference to the another service element; for the service element under development, generating a development plan therefor, wherein the development plan includes a design of the service element, and a customization specification, and during development plan generation for the service element of the multiple service elements: employing the data structure representations of the service element and another service element of the multiple service elements in consolidating at least a portion of the customization or integration tasks of the development plans of the service element and the another service element which are duplicative; saving the development plan for the service element in the data structure representation of the service element; generating a deployment plan for the service element using the development plan, wherein the deployment plan directs customization or integration of entities within the service element pursuant to the development plan; saving the deployment plan for the service element in the data structure representation of the service element; and constructing and deploying the service element by a service provider based on the generated development and deployment plans.