Patent ID: 8170980

Claim:
A computer program product (CPP) utilizing a distributed computing architecture for supporting user supervision of an automated computing system, said CPP comprising: a machine-readable recording medium; first instruction means, recorded on said medium, for directing said automated computer system to initiate a connectivity tier for activating a data object representative of application specific data, said data object being an object-oriented abstraction of the application specific data; second instruction means, recorded on said medium, for directing said automated computer system to initiate a management tier, coupled to said connectivity tier, for activating a workflow object in response to said data object and an application specific rule, said workflow object being an object-oriented abstraction of activities involved in performing an assigned task, said workflow object including a context, a goal, and a sequence of actions required to accomplish the goal; third instruction means, recorded on said medium, for directing said automated computer system to initiate a presentation tier, coupled to said management tier, for providing a user with a decision support elements responsive to said workflow object and user input, said presentation tier including a plurality of client objects for presenting the decision support elements to users; and fourth instruction means, recorded on said medium, for directing said automated computer system to initiate a corporate tier, coupled to said connectivity tier, for providing said application specific data and said application specific rule.