Information processing method, information processing device and program

Abstract

To accomplish an efficient reference to information.SOLUTION: An information processing method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: causing an information processing device to give, to a first employee of a first corporate body, reference authority to employee information on an employee of a second corporate body different from the first corporate body based on a predetermined condition relating to a reference to information; controlling an output of the employee information at a terminal device utilized by the first employee, in which at least a part of the employee information is output to the terminal device utilized by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority is given to the first employee; and restricting the output of at least a part of the employee information at the terminal device utilized by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority is not given to the first employee.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The disclosed technology relates to an information processing method, an information processing device, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART A personnel information management system has been known in the past that allows a person with inquiry authority to inquire about shared basic personnel information of a corporate group and personnel information for each company (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-122342 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, while conventional technology allows those with inquiry authority to inquire about personnel information, there is currently room for improvement in making information referencing more efficient, for example, through technology related to granting inquiry authority.

[0005] Therefore, one of the objects of the disclosed technology is to provide an information processing method, an information processing device, and a program that can improve the efficiency of information reference. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In one embodiment of the disclosed information processing method, an information processing device grants a first employee of a first corporation the right to view employee information regarding employees of a second corporation different from the first corporation based on specified conditions regarding the viewing of information, and controls the output of the employee information on a terminal device used by the first employee, outputting at least a portion of the employee information to the terminal device used by the first employee based on the first employee being granted the right to view, and restricting the output of at least a portion of the employee information on the terminal device used by the first employee based on the first employee not being granted the right to view. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The disclosed technology makes it possible to improve the efficiency of information reference. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an outline of the operation of the information processing system 1 according to the embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an outline of the operation of the information processing system 1 according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an information processing system 1 according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a server 10 according to an embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of information stored in a storage device 130 according to the embodiment. [Figure 6] 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 according to the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 7] 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 according to the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 8] 3 is a diagram for explaining an example of a display screen on the terminal device 20 of the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 9] 3 is a diagram for explaining an example of a display screen on the terminal device 20 of the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 10]3 is a diagram for explaining an example of a display screen on the terminal device 20 of the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 11] 3 is a diagram for explaining an example of a display screen on the terminal device 20 of the embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference numerals denote the same or similar configurations.

[0010] [Embodiment] A server 10 included in an information processing system 1 according to an embodiment (hereinafter simply referred to as "information processing system 1") associates multiple corporations, including a first corporation and a second corporation, with a common group. Furthermore, based on the association of the first corporation and the second corporation with a common group, the server 10 may grant employees of the first corporation access rights to employee information of the second corporation. By grouping the first corporation and the second corporation, related corporations can be flexibly grouped even if the first corporation and the second corporation have separate service contracts. This allows the first corporation and the second corporation to be grouped after the fact, even if the first corporation first signs a service contract and the second corporation subsequently signs a service contract. This makes it easier for service providers to acquire corporations than by proposing services to the entire group.

[0011] In this disclosure, a "group" is defined as a group of multiple corporations that are directly or indirectly associated. In other words, when multiple corporations are directly or indirectly associated, the multiple corporations may be said to be associated with a common group. A direct association of multiple corporations may mean, for example, that each of the multiple corporations is associated with a common identification (ID) that is different from the identification (ID) of each corporation. An indirect association of multiple corporations may mean, for example, that the multiple corporations are linked together in a chain-like manner, without being directly associated. For example, if a first corporation is directly associated with a second corporation, the second corporation is directly associated with a third corporation, and the third corporation is directly associated with a fourth corporation, the first corporation may be said to be indirectly associated with the fourth corporation. In this case, the first to fourth corporations may be said to be associated with a common group. The term "group" may or may not reflect the actual capital relationships between the corporations (e.g., a parent-child relationship based on shareholding ratios, a relationship as a group of companies, etc.).

[0012] In the disclosure, "employee information" may be at least one of information about an individual employee and statistical information about multiple employees. Information about individual employees may include, for example, information about each employee's name, address, age, gender, department, secondment status, qualifications held, working hours, medical examination results, personnel evaluation, employment classification, and granted authority. Statistical information about multiple employees may include, for example, statistics about working hours (e.g., average and / or median, etc.) for all employees, statistics about paid leave taken, statistics about engagement, and trends in each statistical value. Furthermore, employee information for a corporation may be employee information for the entire corporation, or employee information for a portion of the corporation (e.g., a portion of a department, etc.). Furthermore, in the disclosure, "granting authority to an employee" includes associating information about the authority with the employee's identification information, etc.

[0013] In this disclosure, an "employee of a corporation" may refer to a specific employee of the corporation, may refer to multiple employees of the corporation, or may refer to any employee of the corporation.

[0014] An outline of the operation of the server 10 shown in Fig. 3 will be described below with reference to Figs. 1 and 2. In the following description, a "company" is an example of a "corporation."

[0015] FIG. 1 shows a state in which a parent company and a first subsidiary company are associated with a common group, and a second subsidiary company is not yet associated with that group. Server 10 grants employees of the parent company access rights to the first subsidiary company. This allows employees of the parent company to access employee information for the first subsidiary company. More specifically, server 10 may transmit employee information for the first subsidiary company in response to a display request (e.g., an HTTP request) from a terminal device of an employee of the parent company.

[0016] Furthermore, employees of the parent company may be able to refer to employee information of the parent company to which they belong. More specifically, server 10 may transmit employee information of the parent company in response to a display request from a terminal device of an employee of the parent company. This allows employees of the parent company to grasp both employee information of the parent company and employee information of the first subsidiary company.

[0017] 1, the second subsidiary is not associated with a common group with the parent company and the first subsidiary, so the server 10 does not grant the parent company's employees access rights to the second subsidiary, and therefore the parent company's employees cannot access the employee information of the second subsidiary.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state in which the server 10 has newly associated a second subsidiary with a group of a parent company and a first subsidiary. In this case, the server 10 may grant the parent company's employees access rights to the second subsidiary. When the parent company's employees are granted access rights to the second subsidiary, they may be able to access employee information for the second subsidiary. Hereinafter, the association of a certain corporation with another corporation by the server 10 with a common group will be referred to as "grouping."

[0019] The server 10 allows multiple corporations to be grouped and allows appropriate authorization to access employee information within the group. This makes it easier to grasp employee information across the group, and can improve the efficiency of, for example, personnel allocation and the compilation of work status data.

[0020] <System configuration> Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the information processing system 1. As shown in Fig. 3, the information processing system 1 includes a server 10, a terminal device 20A used by employees of the first corporation, and a terminal device 20B used by employees of the second corporation. Hereinafter, when there is no need to distinguish between the terminal devices, they will be referred to as terminal devices 20.

[0021] The server 10 and the terminal device 20 can transmit and receive data to and from each other via a network N. The server 10 may be configured with a plurality of processing devices, and the number of terminal devices 20 may be any number.

[0022] An application program (app) for using the present service provided by the server 10 may be installed on the terminal device 20. This app may be web browsing software. This app causes the terminal device 20 to execute at least a part of the processing disclosed in the following embodiments in the service provided by the server 10. When this app is executed, the terminal device 20 accesses the server 10 and transmits and receives information used to execute the app. Below, each component of the information processing system 1 that enables the execution of the service related to the disclosed technology will be described in detail.

[0023] <Server configuration> 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a server 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The server 10 includes one or more processors (e.g., CPUs) 110, one or more network communication interfaces 120, a storage device (storage unit) 130, and one or more communication buses 170 for interconnecting these components. The server 10 is not limited to being configured by a single physical device, but may be configured by multiple devices (including virtual machines).

[0024] The server 10 may optionally include a user interface 150, which may include a display and input devices (such as a keyboard and / or mouse or some other pointing device).

[0025] The storage device 130 may be, for example, a high-speed random access memory (main storage device) such as a DRAM, an SRAM, or other random access solid-state storage device. Alternatively, the storage device 130 may be a non-volatile memory (auxiliary storage device) such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid-state storage devices. Alternatively, the storage device 130 may be a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium that stores programs including instructions for a computer. Alternatively, the storage device 130 may be either a main storage device (memory) or an auxiliary storage device (storage), or may include both.

[0026] The storage device 130 stores data, programs, etc. used by the information processing system 1. In one embodiment, the storage device 130 stores a first corporation employee information DB 131, a second corporation employee information DB 132, and a secondment information DB 133. The first corporation employee information DB 131 stores employee information of the first corporation. The second corporation employee information DB 132 stores employee information of the second corporation. The secondment information DB 133 stores secondment information related to employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation, or from the second corporation to the first corporation. The number of pieces of corporate employee information stored in the storage device 130 is not limited to the example shown in FIG. 4 and may be any number. Specific examples of the information stored in each database will be described later with reference to FIGS. 5, 10, etc.

[0027] Another example of storage device 130 may be one or more storage devices located remotely from processor 110. In one embodiment, storage device 130 stores programs, modules, and data structures, or a subset thereof, that are executed by processor 110.

[0028] By executing the programs stored in the storage device 130, the processor 110 constitutes, for example, a service providing unit 111, an acquiring unit 112, an associating unit 113, an assigning unit 114, a generating unit 115, an output unit 116, and a storage control unit 117.

[0029] The service providing unit 111 provides each service disclosed in the embodiments. For example, the service providing unit 111 acquires from each terminal device 20 a request related to grouping, a request related to granting various permissions such as access rights, a request related to registering a transfer, and a request related to referencing employee information. The service providing unit 111 executes processing in response to these requests and outputs a response to the terminal device 20. The service providing unit 111 may have a function for providing a web service, and the request may be an HTTP request and the response may be an HTTP response. The service providing unit 111 includes an acquisition unit 112, an association unit 113, an assignment unit 114, a generation unit 115, an output unit 116, and a memory control unit 117 to control the execution of the services disclosed in the embodiments. Each process that the service providing unit 111 can provide will be described below.

[0030] <Grouping-related processing> The acquisition unit 112 acquires information about groupings input to the terminal device 20. The information about groupings may include identification information of a corporation and identification information of a group to which the corporation is associated. In other words, the information about groupings may include information indicating which corporation is associated with which group.

[0031] The associating unit 113 associates the first corporation with the second corporation based on the information on grouping acquired by the acquiring unit 112. Associating the first corporation with the second corporation may mean storing the identification information of the first corporation and the identification information of the second corporation in association with each other in the storage device 130.

[0032] The associating unit 113 associates the corporation with the group based on the information on grouping acquired by the acquiring unit 112. Associating the corporation with the group may involve storing the identification information of the corporation and the identification information of the group in association with each other in the storage device 130.

[0033] The associating unit 113 associates one of the first and second corporations with the other corporation based on a request or invitation by the first corporation. In one embodiment, the associating unit 113 may associate one of the first and second corporations with a group based on a request by the first corporation that is not associated with the group. This request may be addressed to the other corporation associated with the group, or may be addressed to the group as a whole (i.e., without specifying a destination). In this case, the associating unit 113 may associate the first corporation with the group further based on approval by the other corporation.

[0034] The associating unit 113 may associate one of the first and second corporations, which is associated with the group, with the other corporation that is not associated with the group, based on an invitation from the other corporation. In this case, the associating unit 113 may associate the other corporation with the group based further on approval by the other corporation. This invitation may be in the form of generating a URL that, when pressed, allows the corporation to which the corporation belongs to be associated with the group.

[0035] The output unit 116 may transmit information regarding the grouping status to the terminal devices 20A and 20B. The information regarding the grouping status transmitted to the terminal device 20A may include information regarding a group associated with a first corporation, which is a corporation to which the employee using the terminal device 20A belongs, and information regarding other corporations associated with the group. Similarly, the information regarding the grouping status transmitted to the terminal device 20B may include information regarding a group associated with a second corporation, which is a corporation to which the employee using the terminal device 20B belongs, and information regarding other corporations associated with the group.

[0036] The storage control unit 117 may update the database of the storage device 130 with the information about grouping acquired by the acquisition unit 112.

[0037] Through the above processing, multiple corporations can be grouped, and the relationships between the corporations corresponding to the composition of an actual corporate group can be reflected in the information processing system 1. Grouping can play a fundamental role in the granting of authority, the registration of secondment information, and the referencing of employee information, which will be described below.

[0038] <Processing for granting permissions> The granting unit 114 grants various authorities to employees. Note that granting an authority to an employee of the first corporation, for example, may involve granting the authority to a specific employee, may involve granting the authority to the first corporation as a whole (without identifying the employee), or may involve granting the authority to a department (e.g., human resources department) within the first corporation to which the employee belongs.

[0039] The granting unit 114 can grant the following authorities: reference authority, function management authority, and secondment management authority. Each authority will be described below.

[0040] (Function management authority) The function management authority may be the authority to manage at least one of the following for other employees: reference authority, function management authority, and secondment management authority. The granting unit 114 may grant the function management authority to an employee based on predetermined conditions including at least one of the following (1) to (4): (1) Information regarding the setting of function management authority is acquired from the terminal device 20. (2) Information regarding the operations or approvals of other persons with function management authority is obtained. (3) The employee holds a designated position (e.g., manager, etc.). (4) The employee belongs to a designated department (e.g., the Human Resources Department).

[0041] For example, the type of authority that can be managed can be associated with the function management authority as a setting value. For example, if the function management authority granted to an employee is related to managing reference authority, the employee can manage the reference authority of other employees, but may not be able to manage function management authority and secondment management authority. Also, for example, if the function management authority granted to an employee is related to managing reference authority and function management authority, the employee can manage the function management authority in addition to the reference authority of other employees.

[0042] The process of granting function management authority allows for appropriate authority management. For example, by limiting the people who have function management authority, the scope of the authority to access information can be controlled, thereby protecting security and privacy.

[0043] (Read permission) The reference authority may be the authority to reference employee information of another corporation. The granting unit 114 may grant an employee of a first corporation the reference authority to employee information related to employees of a second corporation different from the first corporation. In this case, the granting unit 114 may grant the reference authority based on predetermined conditions including at least one of the following (1) to (4): (1) The first and second corporations are associated with a common group. (2) Information regarding the setting of access authority is acquired from the terminal device 20. (3) Information regarding the operations or approvals of persons with function management authority is obtained. (4) Information is obtained that indicates that the first corporation and the second corporation have a specified relationship (for example, a parent-child relationship based on shareholding ratio).

[0044] The granting unit 114 may grant the reference authority to an employee of the first corporation, for example, based on the fact that the first corporation and the second corporation are associated with a common group and an operation related to setting the reference authority has been performed by the employee of the first corporation. Furthermore, the granting unit 114 may grant the reference authority to an employee of the first corporation, for example, based on the fact that the first corporation and the second corporation are associated with a common group and information indicating that the first corporation is the parent company of the second corporation has been acquired.

[0045] The reference authority may be associated with, for example, the following (1) and (2) as setting values. (1) Identification of the referenced legal entity. (2) The scope of employee information that can be referenced at the referenced corporation. This scope can be specified by the department, position, job type, and secondment status of the referenced corporation. Note that this scope may also be set based on the information that can be referenced among employee information (for example, by allowing only the employee's name and department to be referenced). For example, if the reference authority granted to an employee of a first corporation is for a corporate division (an example of a department) of a second corporation, the employee may be able to reference employee information for the corporate division of the second corporation, but may not be able to reference employee information for other departments (e.g., the development department) of the second corporation. Also, if the reference authority granted to an employee of a first corporation is for a person seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation, the employee may be able to reference employee information for the person seconded at the second corporation.

[0046] The process of granting access permissions allows you to specify which employees in a group can access employee information and the scope of access that each employee can have. This allows for smooth access to employee information while also protecting security and privacy.

[0047] (Secondment management authority) The secondment management authority may be the authority to manage secondment information related to the secondment of other employees. The granting unit 114 may grant the secondment management authority to an employee based on predetermined conditions including at least one of the following (1) to (4): (1) Information regarding the setting of secondment management authority is acquired from the terminal device 20. (2) Information regarding the operations or approvals of persons with function management authority is obtained. (3) The employee holds a designated position (e.g., manager). (4) The employee belongs to a designated department (e.g., the Human Resources Department).

[0048] The secondment management authority may be associated with, for example, the following (1) and (2) as setting values. (1) The scope of employees who can be registered as seconded employees. The scope can be specified by corporation, department, position, job type, etc. (2) Corporations that can be registered as the source and / or destination of secondments.

[0049] By granting the transfer management authority, the transfer status can be managed appropriately.

[0050] <<Processing for secondment registration>> The acquisition unit 112 acquires information regarding the registration of a seconded employee from a first corporation to a second corporation, or from a second corporation to a first corporation. The information regarding the registration of a seconded employee may include identification information of the seconded employee, identification information of the company from which the employee is seconded, identification information of the company to which the employee is seconded, information regarding the start of the secondment, and information regarding the end of the secondment. In other words, the information regarding the registration of a seconded employee may indicate who is seconded, from where to where, and from when to when.

[0051] The acquisition unit 112 may accept information regarding the registration of a seconded employee from the first corporation to the second corporation or from the second corporation to the first corporation, based at least on the fact that the first corporation and the second corporation are associated with a common group. For example, when an employee of the first corporation registers a seconded employee from his / her own corporation, the employee may be able to select a secondment destination from at least one other corporation associated with a common group with the first corporation.

[0052] The acquisition unit 112 may receive information regarding the registration of a seconded employee from the first corporation to the second corporation or from the second corporation to the first corporation based on an operation by an employee who has been granted secondment management authority. In other words, the registration of a seconded employee may be performed by an employee who has been granted secondment management authority.

[0053] The storage control unit 117 may store secondment information including information regarding the registration of the seconded employee in a database of the storage device 130, based on the acquisition unit 112 acquiring information regarding the registration of the seconded employee. At this time, the storage control unit 117 may store the secondment information in a database (hereinafter referred to as a "shared database") that is configured to be accessible by employees of the first corporation and employees of the second corporation. Specifically, employees of the first corporation and employees of the second corporation may be able to access the secondment information stored in the shared database using terminal devices 20A and 20B, respectively.

[0054] Furthermore, the shared database storing the secondment information may be configured to accept changes from either employees of the first corporation or employees of the second corporation. That is, the shared database may be configured to accept changes from employees of one of the secondment destination and secondment origin corporations, while restricting changes from employees of the other corporation. Accepting changes to the shared database includes the acquisition unit 112 acquiring a request to change the secondment information and the storage control unit 117 changing at least a portion of the information stored in the shared database based on the change request. Restricting changes to the shared database may mean either the acquisition unit 112 not acquiring a request to change the secondment information, or the storage control unit 117 not changing the information stored in the shared database even when the acquisition unit 112 acquires a change request.

[0055] The various authorities (functional management authority, reference authority, secondment management authority, etc.) granted to an employee may be inherited at the company to which the employee is seconded (or at the next company to which the employee is seconded). For example, if an employee at a first corporation is granted reference authority and is then seconded to a second corporation, the employee may continue to be granted reference authority. Note that if the seconded corporation is not a corporation associated with a common group with the company from which the employee is seconded, the various authorities do not need to be inherited.

[0056] The above process allows for management of the secondment status within a group. This prevents duplicate management of information about seconded employees between corporations associated with a common group. Furthermore, both the secondment company and the secondment origin company can access the secondment information stored in the shared database, improving the efficiency of information management and access. Furthermore, by configuring the shared database to accept changes from either the secondment company or the secondment origin company, either the secondment company or the secondment origin company can retain management authority for the secondment information while maintaining ease of access to the secondment information. Furthermore, the secondment company to which the seconded employee currently belongs can also retain management authority for the secondment information.

[0057] <<Processing related to output of employee information>> The output unit 116 outputs at least a portion of the employee information of the second corporation to the terminal device 20A used by an employee of the first corporation, based on the fact that the employee has been granted access rights. This employee information may include information about employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation.

[0058] The output unit 116 restricts the output of at least a portion of the employee information of the second corporation to the terminal device 20A used by an employee of the first corporation based on the fact that the employee has not been granted reference authority. Restricting the output of at least a portion of the employee information may mean that the employee information is not output, or may mean that more limited employee information is output than when the employee of the first corporation has been granted reference authority. For example, if the output unit 116 outputs the names and overtime hours of the employees of the second corporation (an example of employee information) based on the fact that the employee of the first corporation has been granted reference authority, but the employee of the first corporation does not have reference authority, the output unit 116 may output the overtime hours of the employees of the second corporation (an example of limited employee information).

[0059] The output unit 116 can output information displaying information about the seconded employee to a terminal device used by an employee of the second corporation. That is, the employee of the second corporation can refer to information about the seconded employee from the first corporation to their own corporation.

[0060] The output unit 116 can generate and output statistical information about employees within the scope of the reference authority. For example, suppose that an employee of a first corporation is granted reference authority to employee information of a second corporation. In this case, the output unit 116 may output statistical information about employees of the first corporation and the second corporation as a whole (e.g., information about working hours, overtime hours, paid leave utilization rate, and health checkup attendance status for the first corporation and the second corporation as a whole) to the terminal device 20A used by the employee of the first corporation, and output statistical information about employees of the second corporation (excluding the first corporation) to the terminal device 20B used by the employee of the second corporation.

[0061] <Processing related to the generation and output of billing information> The generation unit 115 generates billing information regarding service usage fees for at least one of the first corporation and the second corporation based on the number of employees of at least one of the first corporation and the second corporation. The output unit 116 outputs the billing information to, for example, the terminal device 20. The service usage fee may be a usage fee for a service provided by the information processing system 1, or may be a usage fee for other services (for example, a usage fee for groupware, a usage fee for a communication service, etc.).

[0062] The generation unit 115 may generate billing information based on the number of employees at the first corporation, the number of employees at the second corporation, and the number of employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation, in relation to billing at least one of the first corporation and the second corporation for service usage fees provided by the first corporation and the second corporation. In one example, the generation unit 115 may generate billing information based on the number of employees at the first corporation and the second corporation, excluding duplicates of the number of employees seconded from the first corporation. For example, assume that the first corporation has 100 employees, 10 of whom are seconded to the second corporation, and the second corporation has 50 employees, 10 of whom are seconded from the first corporation. In this case, the total number of employees at the first corporation and the second corporation is 150, but because 10 seconded employees are included in the total, the actual total number of employees at the first corporation and the second corporation is 140. The generation unit 115 may generate billing information based on this number of employees: 140. The number of employees at the first corporation and the second corporation, excluding any overlaps in the number of seconded employees, is calculated, for example, using the following formula (1) or (2). (1) [Number of employees at the first corporation if the employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation are employed at the first corporation] + [Number of employees at the second corporation if the employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation are employed at the second corporation] - [Number of employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation] (2) [Number of employees in the first corporation excluding employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation] + [Number of employees in the second corporation excluding employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation] + [Number of employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation]

[0063] Note that the seconded employees from which duplicates are eliminated may be limited to those seconded employees among multiple seconded employees whose identification information at the secondment origin has been associated with that at the secondment destination (i.e., seconded employees whose association with employees at the secondment destination has been completed). The association of seconded employees will be described later.

[0064] The generation unit 115 may generate billing information related to billing one of the first and second corporations for service usage fees provided by the first and second corporations. In the above example, the generation unit 115 may generate billing information related to billing one of the first and second corporations for service usage fees for a total of 140 employees of the first and second corporations. In this case, the acquisition unit 112 may acquire information related to which of the first and second corporations should be billed. The information related to which of the first and second corporations should be billed may be input to the terminal device 20, for example. That is, which employee should pay the service usage fees provided by the first and second corporations may be decided as appropriate by the employee. Naturally, billing information related to the service usage fees provided by the first and second corporations may be generated for each of the first and second corporations depending on the number of employees actually employed at each corporation. In this case, the number of employees actually employed at each corporation may be determined by the number of employees at each corporation and the number of seconded employees. For example, it may be calculated as [Number of corporate employees] + [Number of employees seconded (accepted)] - [Number of employees seconded (seconded)].

[0065] The above process can optimize service fees within a group. For example, it can prevent service fees from being charged multiple times for each seconded employee. It can also enable a parent company to pay all service fees for its subsidiaries in one lump sum.

[0066] <Examples of information stored> 5, an example of information stored in the first corporation employee information DB 131, the second corporation employee information DB 132, and the secondment information DB 133 will be described. In this example, it is assumed that the first corporation and the second corporation are associated with a common group.

[0067] FIG. 5(A) shows an example of information stored in the first corporation employee information DB131. The first corporation employee information DB131 includes information about each employee of the first corporation, such as user ID, employee number, name, secondment status, department, whether or not the employee has reference authority, whether or not the employee has function management authority, and whether or not the employee has secondment management authority. Note that the user ID may be information that can uniquely identify each employee in the information processing system 1. FIG. 5(A) shows that the employee with user ID "X100" has reference authority, function management authority, and secondment management authority. FIG. 5(A) also shows that the employee with user ID "X101" is seconded to another corporation with the first corporation as the secondment source.

[0068] FIG. 5(B) shows an example of information stored in the second corporation employee information DB 132. The second corporation employee information DB 132 contains the same type of information as the first corporation employee information DB 131 regarding each employee of the second corporation. FIG. 5(B) shows that the employee with user ID "X200" has reference authority, function management authority, and secondment management authority. FIG. 5(B) also shows that the employee with user ID "X201" is seconded from another corporation to the second corporation.

[0069] FIG. 5(C) shows an example of information stored in the secondment information DB 133. The secondment information DB 133 includes information such as a secondment ID, a secondment origin, an employee number at the secondment origin, a secondment destination, an employee number at the secondment destination, a start time of the secondment (not shown), and an end time of the secondment (not shown). The secondment ID may be information that can uniquely identify each secondment. FIG. 5(C) shows that an employee with an employee number "Y101" at the first corporation is seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation, and that the employee's employee number at the second corporation is "Y201." In the examples shown in FIGS. 5(A) and 5(B), the user ID for the same employee is "X101" at the first corporation and "X201" at the second corporation. However, the user ID for the employee may be the user ID "X101" at the first corporation.

[0070] In the examples shown in Figures 5(A) and (B), information regarding the presence or absence of reference authority, function management authority, and secondment management authority is included in each employee information, but this is not limited to this, and the setting values ​​for each authority may also be associated.

[0071] <Operation description> Next, we will explain an example of the operation of the information processing system 1. Fig. 6 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the operation of the process of grouping the first corporation and the second corporation, the process related to authorization, and the process of an employee of the first corporation referring to employee information of the second corporation.

[0072] <<Example of grouping processing>> In step S100, the terminal device 20B used by an employee of the second corporation accepts an invitation operation to invite the first corporation to the group. In step S102, the terminal device 20B transmits information related to inviting the first corporation to the group to the server 10.

[0073] The server 10 acquires information regarding the invitation to the first corporation to the group via the acquisition unit 112. In step S104, the output unit 116 of the server 10 transmits a notification that the invitation has been received to the terminal device 20A used by an employee of the first corporation.

[0074] The terminal device 20A receives the notification that the invitation has been received and accepts an approval operation for accepting the invitation from the employee of the first corporation. In step S106, the terminal device 20A transmits information regarding the acceptance of the invitation to the server 10.

[0075] The server 10 acquires information regarding the invitation acceptance by the acquisition unit 112. In step S108, the association unit 113 of the server 10 associates the first corporation with a common group with the second corporation, thereby completing the grouping of the first corporation and the second corporation.

[0076] <<Example of processing related to authorization>> (Granting function management authority) In step S110, the terminal device 20B used by an employee of the second corporation accepts a granting operation for granting function management authority. In this example, the employee of the second corporation performs the granting operation to grant function management authority to an employee of the first corporation. In step S112, the terminal device 20B transmits a request for granting function management authority to the server 10.

[0077] The server 10 acquires a request for granting function management authority via the acquisition unit 112. In step S114, the granting unit 114 of the server 10 grants function management authority to the employee of the first corporation based on the granting request. In this example, this function management authority enables the employee of the first corporation to grant reference authority to himself or herself and other employees.

[0078] Although not shown in the figures, if the employee of the second corporation who performed the operation to grant the function management authority does not have the function management authority, the server 10 may refuse to grant the function management authority.In addition, although not shown in the figures, if the function management authority granted to the employee of the second corporation does not allow the function management authority to be granted to other employees (for example, if the employee only has the authority to grant secondment management authority), the server 10 may refuse to grant the function management authority.

[0079] (Granting reference authority) As described above, the employee of the first corporation is granted function management authority in step S114, and is thereby able to grant reference authority to himself and other employees. In step S116, the terminal device 20A receives a granting operation from the employee of the first corporation regarding granting reference authority to himself. In step S118, the terminal device 20A transmits a request to grant reference authority to the server 10.

[0080] In steps S120 and S124, the granting unit 114 of the server 10 grants the reference authority to the employees of the first corporation based on the fact that the first corporation and the second corporation are associated with a common group. In this example, since the first corporation and the second corporation are associated with a common group in step S108, the granting unit 114 of the server 10 grants the reference authority to the employees of the first corporation in step S124.

[0081] In step S120, if the first corporation and the second corporation are not associated with a common group, the server 10 may refuse to grant the reference authority (step S122). In addition, although not shown, if the reference authority cannot be granted based on the function management authority granted to the employee of the first corporation (for example, if only the authority related to the granting of secondment management authority exists), the server 10 may refuse to grant the reference authority.

[0082] <<Processing related to output of employee information>> In step S126, terminal device 20A used by an employee of the first corporation transmits a display request for employee information of the second corporation. Server 10 acquires the display request via acquisition unit 112. In steps S128 and S132, output unit 116 of server 10 transmits employee information of the second corporation to terminal device 20A based on the fact that reference authority has been granted to employees of the first corporation. In this example, because reference authority has been granted to employees of the first corporation in step S124, output unit 116 of server 10 outputs employee information of the second corporation in step S132. This allows employees of the first corporation to grasp the employee information of the second corporation.

[0083] If it is determined in step S128 that the employee of the first corporation is not granted the reference authority, the server 10 may refuse to send the employee information of the second corporation (step S130).

[0084] 7 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the processing operations for registering a seconded employee from the first corporation to the second corporation, outputting employee information including secondment information, and changing the secondment information. Note that in this example, the explanation will be given assuming that employees of the first corporation are granted reference authority and secondment management authority.

[0085] <<Processing for seconded employee registration>> In S200, the terminal device 20A accepts a registration operation for registering a seconded employee from an employee of the first corporation. In S201, the terminal device 20A transmits secondment information to the server 10 based on the registration operation. In this example, the secondment information includes information regarding the registration of a seconded employee from the first corporation to the second corporation. In other words, for the seconded employee, the first corporation is the source of the secondment, and the second corporation is the destination of the seconded employee.

[0086] The server 10 acquires the secondment information by the acquisition unit 112. In S202, the storage control unit 117 of the server 10 stores the secondment information in the shared database. The information stored in the shared database can be referenced from both the terminal devices 20A and 20B. That is, both employees of the first corporation, which is the source of the secondment, and employees of the second corporation, which is the destination of the secondment, can reference the secondment information.

[0087] <Processing related to output of employee information including secondment information> In step S204, the terminal device 20A used by the employee of the first corporation transmits a display request for employee information of the second corporation, including the secondment information. The server 10 acquires the display request via the acquisition unit 112. In steps S206 and S210, the output unit 116 of the server 10 transmits the employee information of the second corporation, including the secondment information, to the terminal device 20A, based on the fact that the employee of the first corporation has been granted the right to view the information.

[0088] If it is determined in step S206 that the employee of the first corporation is not granted the reference authority, the server 10 may refuse to transmit the employee information of the second corporation, including the secondment information (step S208).

[0089] <Processing for changes to secondment information> In step S211, the terminal device 20B receives a change operation for changing the secondment information from an employee of the second corporation. In step S212, the terminal device 20B transmits a change request for the secondment information to the server 10.

[0090] The server 10 acquires the change request by the acquisition unit 112. In steps S214 and S218, the storage control unit 117 of the server 10 changes the secondment information based on the fact that the change request is from the secondment destination (in this example, the second corporation).

[0091] In step S214, if the change request is not from the secondment destination, the server 10 may reject the change of the secondment information (step S216).

[0092] The operation of the information processing system 1 described with reference to FIGS. 6-7 is merely an example, and may be modified as appropriate based on the contents of the disclosure and the knowledge commonly held by those skilled in the art.

[0093] <Screen example> Next, examples of screens displayed in the information processing system 1 will be described. FIG. 8 shows an example of a screen related to the management of function management authority. These screens may be displayed on the terminal device 20, for example, in step S110 of FIG. 6. The screen D2 displays a list E100 of employees to whom function management authority has been granted, and an Add New button E106. The list E100 may be displayed based on, for example, information stored in the "Function Management Authority" column of the first corporation employee information DB 131 and the second corporation employee information DB 132. The list E100 includes a Change button E102 and a Delete button E104. The Change button E102 may be a button for displaying a screen for changing the setting value of already granted function management authority. The Delete button E104 may be a button for deleting already granted function management authority (i.e., canceling the grant). The Add New button E106 may be a button for transitioning the screen D2 to the screen D4.

[0094] Screen D4 displays target employee information E108, a setting value input field E110, and an Add button E114. The target employee information E108 displays information about the employee to whom function management authority is to be granted. At least a portion of the target employee information E108 may be input by the employee who performs the function management authority granting operation. The setting value input field E110 may be an area where setting values ​​related to grouping, reference authority management, and function management authority management for the granted function management authority can be input. The Add button E114 is a button for granting function management authority associated with the setting value entered in the setting value input field E110 to the employee displayed in the target employee information E108. For example, when the Add button E114 is pressed on screen D4, function management authority capable of grouping, reference authority management, and function management authority management may be granted to a user with a user ID of "X102." Although not shown in the figure, a setting value relating to management of secondment management authority may also be input in the setting value input field E110.

[0095] FIG. 9 shows an example of a screen related to managing reference permissions. These screens may be displayed on the terminal device 20, for example, in step S116 of FIG. 6. Screen D6 displays a list E200 of employees to whom reference permissions have been granted, and an Add New button E210. The list E200 may be displayed based on, for example, information stored in the "Reference Permission" column of the first corporation employee information DB 131 and the second corporation employee information DB 132. List E200 includes Change buttons E202 and E206 and Delete buttons E204 and E208. Change buttons E202 and E206 may be buttons for displaying a screen for changing the setting value of already granted reference permissions. Delete buttons E204 and E208 may be buttons for deleting already granted reference permissions (i.e., canceling the grant). Add New button E210 may be a button for transitioning screen D6 to screen D8.

[0096] Screen D8 displays target employee information E212, a setting value input field E214, and an Add button E216. The target employee information E212 displays information about the employee to whom the reference permission is to be granted. At least a portion of the target employee information E212 may be input by the employee who performs the operation to grant the reference permission. The setting value input field E214 may be an area where a setting value related to the scope of reference that the reference permission will be granted can be input. The Add button E216 is a button for granting, to the employee displayed in the target employee information E212, a reference permission associated with the setting value entered in the setting value input field E214. For example, when the Add button E216 is pressed in the screen D8 state, a user with a user ID of "X102" may be granted a reference permission that allows the user to view employee information about any employee of any corporation associated with a common group with the corporation to which the user belongs.

[0097] FIG. 10 shows an example of a screen related to secondment management. Screen D10 may be displayed on terminal device 20, for example, in step S200 of FIG. 7. Screen D10 displays secondment target employee information E400, secondment destination 401, non-linked registration input area E402, linked registration input area E404, and add button E406. Secondment target employee information E400 displays information about the employee who will be seconded. Secondment destination 401 displays the destination of the employee who will be seconded. At least a portion of secondment target employee information E400 and secondment destination 401 may be entered by the employee performing the secondment registration operation.

[0098] When registering a seconded employee, it is possible to select whether or not to link the seconded employee with an employee at the seconded company. Linking a seconded employee with an employee at the seconded company may involve associating the seconded employee's identification information at the company from which the seconded employee was seconded with that at the company to which the seconded employee was seconded. Linking a seconded employee with an employee at the company to which the seconded employee was seconded may be equivalent to recording that the seconded employee and the employee at the company to which the seconded employee was seconded are actually the same person (although they are stored as separate entities in the database). Note that linking a seconded employee with an employee at the company to which the seconded employee was seconded may be possible on the condition that settings for linking employee information have been completed between the company from which the seconded employee was seconded and the company to which the seconded employee was seconded. Linking employee information may be set up based on a request or invitation from either the company from which the seconded employee was seconded or the company to the other.

[0099] The non-linked registration input field E402 is used when registering a seconded employee without linking them to the employee at the secondment destination. The linked registration input field E404 is used when registering a seconded employee by linking them to the employee at the secondment destination. In this case, the employee registering the secondment can choose to register new employee information at the secondment destination and link it to existing employee information at the secondment destination, or link it to existing employee information at the secondment destination. The add button E406 is a button for registering a secondment of an employee displayed in the secondment target employee information E400 to the secondment destination displayed in the secondment destination 401 based on the information entered in the non-linked registration input field E402 or the linked registration input field E404. For example, when the add button E406 is pressed on screen D10, a secondment of a user with user ID "X102" can be registered linked to an employee at the second corporation with employee number "Y203."

[0100] 11 shows an example of a screen displaying employee information. Screen D12 may be displayed on terminal device 20, for example, after step S132 in FIG. 6. Screen D12 displays a first corporation list E500 and a second corporation list E502. First corporation list E500 may be displayed based on information stored in first corporation employee information DB131 and secondment information DB133. Second corporation list E502 may be displayed based on information stored in second corporation employee information DB132 and secondment information DB133.

[0101] In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the shared database is configured to accept changes from either employees of the first corporation or employees of the second corporation, but this is not limiting. The shared database may be configured to accept changes from both employees of the first corporation and employees of the second corporation.

[0102] The above-described embodiments are merely examples for explaining the disclosed technology, and are not intended to limit the disclosed technology to only these embodiments. The disclosed technology can be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit of the invention. In addition, the processes on the server side and the user's processing device side may be integrated as appropriate, or the processes may be transferred to the other device or to a different device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0103] 1...information processing system, 10...server, 20...terminal device, 20A, 20B...terminal device, 110...processor, 111...service providing unit, 112...acquisition unit, 113...association unit, 114...assignment unit, 115...generation unit, 116...output unit, 117...storage control unit, 120...network communication interface, 130...storage device

Claims

1. The information processing device Granting a first employee of a first corporation the right to view employee information relating to employees of a second corporation different from said first corporation, based on predetermined conditions for viewing the information; Controlling the output of the employee information on a terminal device used by the first employee, outputting at least a portion of the employee information to a terminal device used by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority has been granted to the first employee; restricting output of at least a portion of the employee information on a terminal device used by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority has not been granted to the first employee; An information processing method that performs the following:

2. the predetermined condition includes at least that the first legal entity and the second legal entity are related; The information processing device, The information processing method according to claim 1 , further comprising: associating at least the first corporation with the second corporation based on an application or invitation by either one of the first corporation and the second corporation.

3. The information processing device, and further acquiring information regarding the setting of the reference authority from a terminal device of at least one of a second employee of the first corporation and a third employee of the second corporation; The information processing method according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition includes obtaining information relating to the setting of the access authority.

4. The information processing device, and further acquiring information regarding the registration of employees seconded from the first corporation to the second corporation or from the second corporation to the first corporation; The information processing method according to claim 1 , wherein the employee information includes information about the seconded employee.

5. The information processing device, 5. The information processing method according to claim 4, further comprising outputting information displaying information about the seconded employee to a terminal device used by an employee of the second corporation.

6. The information processing device, 5. The information processing method according to claim 4, further comprising storing information about the seconded employee in a database that is accessible to employees of the first corporation and employees of the second corporation.

7. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the database is configured to accept changes from at least one of employees of the first corporation and employees of the second corporation.

8. The information processing device, generating billing information determined based on the number of employees of the first corporation, the number of employees of the second corporation, and the number of seconded employees, for billing at least one of the first corporation and the second corporation for service usage fees by the first corporation and the second corporation; outputting the billing information; The information processing method according to claim 4 , further comprising the steps of:

9. The information processing device, generating billing information related to billing one of the first and second entities for service usage fees by the first and second entities; outputting the billing information; The information processing method according to claim 1 , further comprising:

10. The information processing device, The information processing method according to claim 9 , further comprising obtaining information regarding whether the first corporation or the second corporation is to be billed.

11. An information processing device including one or more processors, The processor: Granting a first employee of a first corporation the right to view employee information relating to a second corporation different from said first corporation based on predetermined conditions for viewing the information; Controlling the output of the employee information on a terminal device used by the first employee, outputting at least a portion of the employee information to a terminal device used by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority has been granted to the first employee; restricting output of at least a portion of the employee information on a terminal device used by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority has not been granted to the first employee; thing, An information processing device that executes the above.

12. In the information processing device, Granting a first employee of a first corporation the right to view employee information relating to a second corporation different from said first corporation based on predetermined conditions for viewing the information; Controlling the output of the employee information on a terminal device used by the first employee, outputting at least a portion of the employee information to a terminal device used by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority has been granted to the first employee; restricting output of at least a portion of the employee information on a terminal device used by the first employee based on the fact that the reference authority has not been granted to the first employee; thing, A program that executes.

Images