Patent ID: 6952828

Claim:
A method at least partially implemented on a computer for of dynamically managing the resources of a hierarchical organization, wherein the hierarchical organization comprises n levels L 1 . . . L n with n being a positive integer, wherein for at least i>1 each level L i comprises a plurality of members, and wherein the members of level L i−1 comprise groupings of the members of level L i , said method comprising: creating a maintenance plan comprising at least one task at each level L 1 . . . L n , wherein for at least i>1 the at least one task at leach level L i at least partially includes groupings of the at least one task of level L i−1 , and wherein the maintenance plan at each level includes an associated predetermined threshold time; scheduling performance of the at least one task by at least one resource, wherein the at least one resource acts on at least a portion of the at least one task to thereby perform the at least one task; performing one of the at least one task at the level L i ; monitoring the performance of the at least one task to determine an amount of time required to perform the task performed and thereafter projecting a completion time associated with the maintenance plan; comparing the projected completion time to the predetermined threshold time associated with the maintenance plan, wherein when the projected completion time is no greater than the predetermined threshold time another task of the maintenance plan is performed, monitored and compared at the level L i until the each of the at least one task of the maintenance plan has been performed; determining whether performance of the other tasks of the maintenance plan can be rescheduled such that the maintenance plan can be completed within the predetermined threshold time, wherein determining occurs when the projected completion time is greater than the predetermined threshold time; soliciting additional resources from a higher level L i+1 , wherein soliciting occurs when at least one resource cannot be rescheduled to execute the other tasks of the maintenance plan within the predetermined threshold time; and allocating additional resources to level L i and thereafter rescheduling the at least one resource at level L i to include the additional resources allocated from level L i+1 to act on at least a portion of other of the at least one task to thereby perform the other of the at least one task.