Patent ID: 7590972

Claim:
An enhanced method of business analysis available within a layered development environment, the method including: accessing layers of development tools running on a computer, wherein the access is controlled by role-oriented privileges that differentiate at least between builder, power user and end user roles; using builder-layer tools in the builder role, creating one or more encapsulated business data objects that provide access to raw data, wherein the encapsulated business data objects are presented graphically to a power user without builder-layer details of the raw data sources, further using the builder-layer tools to assign data source types to the encapsulated business data objects; using power user-layer tools in the power user role, repeating one or more times the following: choosing the data source type that applies to one or more of the encapsulated business data objects; applying at least one spreadsheet-style function to construct a calculator applicable to data from the data source type; and constructing a filter that tests results from the calculator and produces filtered test results; wherein the power user-layer tools allow the power user to manipulate data in the encapsulated business data objects using a declarative, non-coding interface; further using the power user-layer tools, creating a named collection that includes on or more of the filter tests and at least one display of the filtered test results; and authorizing an end user to apply the named collection including the filter tests to data that the end user selects, compliant with the data source type.