Information processing device, information processing method, and information processing program

Abstract

Provided is an information processing device, an information processing method, and an information processing program capable of reducing the effort required for obtaining quotes and selecting a vendor for system development. This information processing device comprises: a requirements entry screen presentation unit that presents a requirements entry screen for entering user requirements with respect to a system to be developed in a system development context; a step generation unit that, on the basis of the requirements entered on the requirements entry screen, generates required steps which are development steps required for the system development; and an information presentation unit that, on the basis of the required steps generated by the step generation unit, presents preliminary quotes for the system development or vendor information for the system development.

Description

Information processing device, information processing method, and information processing program

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and an information processing program.

[0002] Although it is possible to simplify work by using a predetermined system, if the desired system is not available in the user's environment, it is necessary to consider introducing a system.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses an electrical equipment design support system that designs electrical equipment and provides an estimate for the design of the electrical equipment.

[0004] JP 2024-050781 A

[0005] However, when introducing a system, the user must search for a development vendor based on the desired system functions, etc., and then communicate the desired system details to the vendor and request an estimate, which is time-consuming. Although the electrical equipment design support system of Patent Document 1 can be used to obtain an estimate for electrical equipment, it cannot build the system desired by the user and issue an estimate for systems other than electrical equipment, which results in a problem of not satisfying the user.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and one of its objects is to provide an information processing device, an information processing method, and an information processing program that can provide a quote for the costs required to develop the system desired by the user, or information on vendors that can develop the system.

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a requirements input screen providing unit that provides a requirements input screen for inputting user requirements for a system to be developed in system development, a step generation unit that generates necessary steps, which are development steps necessary for system development, based on the requirements input on the requirements input screen, and an information provision unit that provides a rough estimate for the system development or selected vendor information indicating the vendor for system development, based on the necessary steps generated by the step generation unit.

[0008] The information processing device may include an estimate data storage unit that stores estimate data including at least past estimate amounts for each development step related to system development including a plurality of development steps, an estimate data search unit that searches for estimate amounts included in the estimate data stored in the estimate data storage unit based on the required steps generated by the step generation unit, and an approximate estimate creation unit that creates an approximate estimate for system development based on the estimate amounts searched by the estimate data search unit, and the information provision unit may provide the approximate estimate created by the approximate estimate creation unit.

[0009] In the information processing device, the estimate data search section may search for an estimated amount based on a correlation between the necessary steps generated by the step generation section and the development steps included in the estimate data.

[0010] In the information processing device, the requirements may include information on a budget for system development, and the rough estimate creating unit may create a rough estimate according to the budget.

[0011] In the above information processing device, the estimate data search unit may search for multiple estimated amounts based on the required steps generated by the step generation unit, and the approximate estimate creation unit may create an approximate estimate using the average value of the multiple estimated amounts searched for the required steps by the estimate data search unit as the estimated amount of the required step.

[0012] In the above information processing device, the estimate data search unit may search for multiple estimated amounts based on the required steps generated by the step generation unit, and the approximate estimate creation unit may create an approximate estimate using the lowest estimated amount of the multiple estimated amounts searched for the required steps by the estimate data search unit as the estimated amount for the required step.

[0013] In the above information processing device, the estimate data search unit may search for multiple estimated amounts based on the required steps generated by the step generation unit, and the approximate estimate creation unit may create an approximate estimate using the highest value of the multiple estimated amounts searched for the required steps by the estimate data search unit as the estimated amount for the required step.

[0014] The above information processing device may include an acquisition unit that acquires vendor information regarding vendors involved in system development, and a vendor selection unit that selects a vendor based on the required steps generated by the step generation unit and the vendor information acquired by the acquisition unit, and the information provision unit may provide selected vendor information indicating the vendor selected by the vendor selection unit.

[0015] In the above-mentioned information processing device, the acquisition unit may acquire vendor information from web information that describes information related to vendors and a vendor database that stores information related to vendors, and the vendor selection unit may select a vendor based on the correlation between the required steps and the information contained in the vendor database.

[0016] In the information processing device, the vendor selection unit may select a vendor based on the necessary steps and requirements for system development other than the necessary steps.

[0017] In the information processing device, the vendor information may include information on development content that the vendor can implement, and the vendor selection unit may select a vendor with a relatively high correlation between the required steps and the information on the development content.

[0018] In the above-mentioned information processing device, the vendor information may include information on characteristics related to the vendor's system development, and the vendor selection unit may select a vendor that has a relatively high correlation between the requirements required for system development other than the required steps and the characteristic information.

[0019] In addition, in order to solve the above problem, an information processing method according to one aspect of the present invention executes the following steps: a requirements input screen providing step in which a computer provides a requirements input screen for inputting user requirements for a system to be developed in system development; a step generation step in which, based on the requirements input on the requirements input screen, required steps are generated as development steps necessary for system development; and an information provision step in which, based on the required steps generated in the step generation step, a rough estimate for the system development or selected vendor information indicating the vendor for system development is provided.

[0020] In addition, in order to solve the above problem, an information processing program according to one aspect of the present invention enables a computer to realize a requirements input screen providing function that provides a requirements input screen for inputting user requirements for a system to be developed in system development, a step generation function that generates necessary steps, which are development steps necessary for system development, based on the requirements input on the requirements input screen, and an information provision function that provides a rough estimate for system development or selected vendor information indicating the vendor for system development, based on the necessary steps generated by the step generation function.

[0021] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a user can simply input their system requirements and be provided with a rough estimate for system development or information on vendors suitable for system development, thereby eliminating the need for users developing systems to search for vendors and enabling them to quickly determine the costs required for system development.

[0022] 7 is a schematic diagram showing an overview of the invention. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing device. FIG. 9 is a data conceptual diagram showing an example of the configuration of quotation data. (a) and (b) are diagrams showing an example of vendor information. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the information processing device when creating a quotation. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the information processing device when estimating a vendor. FIG. 12 is a screen diagram showing an example of an input screen, which is an example of input. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a quotation created when the input shown in FIG. 7 is made. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing example selected vendor information. FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the information processing device after vendor selection shown in the first embodiment. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen for confirming various input information. FIG. 17 is a screen diagram showing an example of an evaluation screen for proposals from vendors. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing examples of evaluation and negotiation policies for vendors. FIG. 19 is a chat screen showing examples of negotiations with each vendor. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of a development schedule. FIG. 19 is an example of modifying the development schedule based on the results of negotiations with artificial intelligence. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of an evaluation screen for development output by the information processing device. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of a vendor selection screen of the information processing device.

[0023] An information processing device, an information processing method, and an information processing program according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0024] <Embodiment> <Overview>

[0025] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an overview of the present invention. An information processing device 100 according to this embodiment accepts input of requirements 21, which are system requirements, from a terminal 200 of a user, such as a company or user, who is developing a system, and transmits a rough estimate 11 for the system development to the terminal 200. It also identifies vendors capable of developing the system specified by the requirements 21 based on vendor information 31 obtained from a vendor database 132 storing pre-prepared vendor information or the vendor's homepage on the terminal 300, and transmits selected vendor information 11 indicating the selected vendor to the terminal 200. Conventionally, system development requires the company or user developing the system to collect vendor information, contact vendors from the vast amount of collected information, and request estimates for the system development, which requires a significant amount of effort even from the very first step of starting system development. However, with the information processing device 100 according to this embodiment, simply by inputting the requirements for the system to be developed from the terminal 200 of the company or user, it is possible to provide a rough estimate of the system development costs and even information on vendors that are presumed to be suitable for the system development, thereby reducing the aforementioned labor. The information processing device 100 will be described in detail below.

[0026] First Embodiment Configuration

[0027] 2 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of the information processing device 100. The information processing device 100 is, for example, a computer system (web server) realized by a server device, a PC, a tablet terminal, or the like, but is not limited to these.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing device 100 includes a communication unit 110 , an input unit 120 , a storage unit 130 , an output unit 140 , and a control unit 150 .

[0029] The communication unit 110 communicates with other information processing devices via the network 400. For example, the communication unit 110 may receive requirements for a system to be developed from the terminal 200 of a company or user that is developing, introducing, or updating a system, and transmit the information to the control unit 150. The communication unit 110 may also transmit to the terminal 200 a rough estimate of the costs required for system development transmitted from the control unit 150. The communication unit 110 may also transmit to the user's terminal 200 selected vendor information indicating vendors deemed suitable for system development. The communication unit 110 may also acquire (crawl) vendor information related to vendors on the web in accordance with instructions from the control unit 150 and transmit the vendor information to the control unit 150.

[0030] The input unit 120 accepts input from a user of the information processing device 100 and transmits the accepted input content to the control unit 150. For example, the input unit 120 may accept input of information similar to information transmitted from the user's terminal 200 by communication via the communication unit 110 (e.g., input of requirements for a system to be developed) and transmit the information to the control unit 150. The input unit 120 may be realized by an input device such as a mouse, keyboard, or touch panel, but is not limited to these.

[0031] The storage unit 130 stores various programs and data required for the operation of the information processing device 100. The storage unit 130 may be realized by, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a flash memory, etc., but is not limited to these. The storage unit 130 may also be realized by cloud storage.

[0032] The storage unit 130 may store a program for generating necessary steps required for system development and creating a rough estimate based on the system development requirements transmitted from the communication unit 110. The storage unit 130 may also store a program for generating necessary steps required for system development based on the system development requirements transmitted from the communication unit 110 and selecting a vendor that is deemed suitable for the system development.

[0033] The storage unit 130 may store quotation data 131 that the information processing device 100 references when creating a rough quotation. The quotation data 131 may be quotation data or invoice data for a previously developed system, or data defining an estimated amount for a certain process (development step) of system development by an operator of the information processing device 100, etc. Furthermore, if the information processing device 100 receives a quotation for a previous system development project from a partner vendor (if permission is obtained), this quotation may be used as quotation data. Details of the quotation data 131 will be described later using FIG. 3. The storage unit 130 may also store a vendor database 132 that the information processing device 100 references when selecting a vendor. The vendor database 132 holds information about vendors and may include information such as the names of categories of development content that the vendor has developed and the names of systems that the vendor has developed. In addition, the vendor database 132 may also store information such as the development content in which the vendor specializes, the estimated time required for each development content for the vendor to carry out the development, the vendor's development policy, the industry and company name of the support recipient (provider) of the developed system, and the sales amount of the support recipient company. The vendor database 132 may include any information related to vendors as long as it is information necessary for selecting a vendor.

[0034] The output unit 140 outputs specified information in accordance with instructions from the control unit 150. The output by the output unit 140 may be realized, for example, by outputting text or images on a monitor connected to the information processing device 100, outputting audio through a speaker connected to the information processing device 100, or outputting to an external device by communication via the communication unit 110. As an example, the output unit 140 may output a rough estimate or selected vendor information.

[0035] The control unit 150 is a processor having the function of controlling each unit of the information processing device 100. The control unit 150 uses various data stored in the storage unit 130 and executes various programs to perform the functions that the information processing device 100 should perform (providing a rough estimate and providing vendor information).

[0036] The control unit 150 functions as a screen providing unit 151 , a generating unit 152 , a searching unit 153 , an information providing unit 154 , a creating unit 155 , and a selecting unit 156 .

[0037] The screen providing unit 151 provides a requirements input screen for inputting user requirements for a system to be developed in system development. The requirements input screen may be stored in advance in the storage unit 130, and the screen providing unit 151 provides it to the terminal 200 via the communication unit 110. The requirements may be any information related to system development, and may be input by selecting from options pre-prepared on the requirements input screen, or may be input as free text by the user of the terminal 200. The requirements may include a variety of information, such as whether a rough estimate and / or selected vendor information is required, the development period for the system development, the development classification, the details of the outsourced work to be outsourced to the vendor, information indicating the target system, the work content to be the subject of system development, the functional requirements of the system for realizing the work content, non-functional operational requirements, the communication environment for operating the system, the requirements for the terminals of users who will use the system, and the expected number of users who will use the system. The screen providing unit 151 transmits the requirements input on the provided requirements input screen to the generating unit 152 , the searching unit 153 , the information providing unit 154 , the creating unit 155 , and the selecting unit 156 .

[0038] The generation unit 152 generates necessary steps, which are development steps required for system development, based on the transmitted requirements. Specifically, based on the input requirements, the generation unit 152 identifies which functional requirements of the system for realizing each of the outsourced business contents to be outsourced to the selected vendor belong to, and generates necessary steps based on each functional requirement. The necessary steps are subdivided into different functions using, for example, morphological analysis, from the free text input as the necessary functional requirements, and names are determined for each of these functions as necessary steps. Furthermore, for example, names of the necessary steps may be generated by using AI such as an LLM (large-scale language model) to generate prompts that request the input free text to be output in a predetermined format and input the prompts into the LLM. The generation unit 152 transmits the generated necessary steps to the search unit 153 and the selection unit 156.

[0039] The search unit 153 compares the names of each necessary step generated by the generation unit 152 with the development step names (development step names 302 in FIG. 3 ) registered in the estimate data 131 stored in the storage unit 130, and searches for estimated amounts (or information for calculating estimated amounts) associated with development step names that have a high degree of correlation in terms. The search unit 153 transmits the estimated amounts or information for calculating estimated amounts found for each necessary step to the creation unit 155.

[0040] The creation unit 155 determines the estimated cost for each required step based on the transmitted estimated cost for each required step or the information for calculating the estimated cost, and creates a rough estimate that integrates the estimated cost. When creating the rough estimate, the creation unit 155 may include prerequisites and explanations for each item. The creation unit 155 transmits the created rough estimate to the information providing unit 154.

[0041] The selection unit 156 selects a vendor deemed suitable for developing a system based on the requirements transmitted from the screen providing unit 151 and the required steps transmitted from the generation unit 152. Based on the names of the required steps, the selection unit 156 refers to the vendor database 132 to calculate a correlation (first correlation) between the content entered in the requirements and the names of the required steps, and selects a vendor for which the correlation is higher than a predetermined threshold. The correlation may be calculated, for example, by converting the content entered in the requirements and the names of the required steps into multidimensional vectors (for example, using Word2vec, but not limited to this), generating multidimensional vectors with the same items based on the names of related information in the vendor database 132, and calculating the vector distance between the two vectors. The closer the vector distance, the higher the correlation, and the farther the vector distance, the lower the correlation. The correlation may be calculated as the degree of correspondence between each item entered in the required steps or requirements and the development system that the vendor can develop and its development content (the degree to which the vendor has a corresponding item when the total number of items entered in the required steps or requirements is set to 1). The selection unit 156 may be configured to select a vendor using a learning model trained using the content entered in the requirements or the name indicated by the required steps as a causal variable and the vendor to be selected in that case as an explanatory variable. The learning model may be configured to select a single vendor, or may be configured to select vendors by ranking the vendors to be selected from all vendors stored in the vendor database 132 (the ranking is based on the highest correlation). For example, the selection unit 156 may be configured to calculate the degree of correspondence between each required step and each item entered in the requirements and the corresponding information stored in the vendor database 132, and select a predetermined number of vendors with a high average value of the calculated degrees of correspondence, or select vendors with an average degree of correspondence exceeding a predetermined threshold. Although the average value is used here, it may be the median value or the like.The selection unit 156 transmits information about the selected vendor (selected vendor information) to the information providing unit 154 .

[0042] The information providing unit 154 provides (transmits) the rough estimate transmitted from the creation unit 155 to the user terminal 200 via the communication unit 110. The information providing unit 154 also provides (transmits) the selected vendor information transmitted from the selection unit 156 to the user terminal 200 via the communication unit 110. The information providing unit 154 provides only the information specified by the user terminal 200, but may provide both if both are selected.

[0043] The above is an example of the configuration of the information processing device 100.

[0044] <Data> Hereinafter, information used by the information processing device 100 will be described.

[0045] FIG. 3 is a conceptual data diagram showing an example of the structure of the estimate data 131 stored in the storage unit 130. As shown in FIG.

[0046] 3, the estimate data 131 is information in which a management number 301, a development step name 302, the number of items 303, the number of people 304, a unit price 305, and a subtotal 306 are associated with each other.

[0047] The management number 301 is identification information that allows the information processing device 100 to distinguish and manage each piece of quotation data for convenience.

[0048] The development step name 302 is information indicating the name of the development content in the system development of the estimate data managed by the corresponding management number 301.

[0049] The number of people 304 is information indicating the number of people who will realize the development content indicated by the corresponding development step name 302 .

[0050] The unit cost 305 is information indicating the cost per person per day to realize the development content indicated in the corresponding development step name 302 .

[0051] The subtotal 306 is information on the total amount required to realize the development content indicated in the corresponding development step name 302 .

[0052] 3 may include data based on estimates for systems developed in the past or data based on standards set in the information processing device 100. Furthermore, the estimate data 131 may include information other than that shown in FIG. 3 as long as it is information related to the estimate or the system to be developed. For example, the estimate data 131 may correspond to information about people (engineers (and their technical level), consultants, etc.) suitable for developing the corresponding system, or information about which process (major item described below) of the overall system development the step indicated by the development step name 302 belongs to. Furthermore, the estimate data 131 only needs to know the estimated amount (subtotal 306) for the development step name 302, and information such as the number of people 304 and unit price 305 may be omitted.

[0053] Fig. 4(a) is a conceptual data diagram showing an example of the configuration of the vendor database 132. As shown in Fig. 4(a), the vendor database 132 contains information in which a management number 401, a vendor name 402, a development system 403, and a development content 404 are associated with each other. The vendor database 132 may contain information other than that shown in Fig. 4(a) as long as it is information about a vendor, and may optionally include information such as address, number of employees, sales, profit margin, and the name of a supported company that provides a system developed by the vendor.

[0054] The management number 401 is identification information that allows the information processing apparatus 100 to distinguish and manage each vendor data for convenience.

[0055] The vendor name 402 is information indicating the name of the vendor managed by the corresponding management number 401, and is information that identifies which vendor it is.

[0056] The development system 403 is information indicating the name of a system that can be developed by the vendor indicated by the corresponding vendor name 402. The development system 403 may be a system that the vendor has actually created in the past, or may be a system that is considered to have the ability (skill) to develop that system. A plurality of pieces of information may be registered in the development system 403.

[0057] The development content 404 is information indicating the detailed system content to be actually created among the systems that the vendor indicated by the corresponding vendor name 402 can develop, and indicates the names of functions to be incorporated into the development system 403. A plurality of pieces of information may be registered in the development content 404. Furthermore, the development content 404 may be stored for each development system registered in the development system 403, in association with the functions of that development system.

[0058] The existence of the vendor database 132 enables the selection unit 156 to select a vendor. The vendor database 132 may be created by an operator of the information processing device 100, or the information processing device 100 may collect information from each vendor in accordance with the data format shown in FIG. 4 , or may analyze and register the information using AI from past quotations and invoices from each vendor, specifications of developed systems, etc. Before registering information in the vendor database 132, the information processing device 100 may output information to the operator of the information processing device 100, etc., requesting permission to register the information, and may register the information only if permission is obtained.

[0059] <Operation> Next, the operation of the information processing device 100 will be described.

[0060] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a rough estimate creation process by the information processing device 100, and shows an example of a process when a user desires a rough estimate.

[0061] 5, the information processing device 100 receives access from the terminal 200 of a user who uses the information processing device 100 via the communication unit 110. Then, the screen providing unit 151 of the control unit 150 provides a requirements input screen for inputting requirements for the system to be developed, that is, transmits the requirements input screen to the user terminal 200 via the communication unit 110 (step S501). The requirements input screen will be described later with reference to FIG. 7.

[0062] The communication unit 110 receives, from the user's terminal 200, information indicating requirements, including a request for a rough estimate for the system to be developed, input to the provided requirements input screen, and transmits the information to the control unit 150. The generation unit 152 of the control unit 150 generates the necessary steps required for system development based on the transmitted requirements (step S502). Specifically, the generation unit 152 divides system development broadly into six categories: "requirements definition," "design," "development," "testing," "release," and "management," and generates the necessary steps for each item in the requirements that the user wants the vendor to process based on the functional requirements entered as the requirements. Generating the necessary steps may involve determining names for the steps to be executed that succinctly describe what must be done in each step.

[0063] The search unit 153 searches for corresponding estimate data for each required step generated by the generation unit 152 by referring to the estimate data 131 in the storage unit 130 (step S503). For example, the search unit 153 calculates the degree of correlation between the name of the required step and the development step name 302 in the estimate data 131, and searches for the development step name 302 with the highest calculated degree of correlation. The search unit 153 may convert the name of the required step into a vector using Word2vec or the like, and also convert the development step name 302 into a vector, and calculate the distance between the two vectors as the degree of correlation. In this case, the search unit 153 searches for the development step name with the highest degree of correlation, but if the degree of correlation does not exceed a predetermined threshold, the estimated amount may be generated without using the searched development step name. When the search unit 153 generates an estimated amount, it may, for example, search the web for development step names that have wording similar to the required step names and use the estimated amount required to carry out those steps, or it may identify a process whose content is similar to the required step names and use the estimated amount associated with that identified process, or it may input a sentence as a prompt to the generation AI, etc., asking for the estimated amount for carrying out development that indicates the required step names, and obtain the estimated amount.

[0064] The creation unit 155 creates a rough estimate in which each required step generated by the generation unit 152 is associated with each estimated amount searched by the search unit 153 (step S504).

[0065] Then, the information providing unit 154 provides the rough estimate created by the creation unit 155 by transmitting it to the user's terminal 200 via the communication unit 110 (step S505), and the process ends.

[0066] This allows the user of terminal 200 to get a rough idea of ​​the costs involved in developing, purchasing, or updating a system that they wish to outsource, without having to search for and request a vendor, etc. As a result, the user of terminal 200 can raise the necessary funds, review the system requirements, and the scope of the requests they make to the vendor.

[0067] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a vendor selection process performed by the information processing device 100, and shows an example of a process performed when a user desires a vendor introduction (vendor selection).

[0068] 6, the information processing device 100 receives access from the terminal 200 of a user who uses the information processing device 100 via the communication unit 110. Then, the screen providing unit 151 of the control unit 150 provides a requirements input screen for inputting requirements for a system to be developed, that is, transmits the screen to the user terminal 200 via the communication unit 110 (step S601).

[0069] The communication unit 110 receives, from the user terminal 200, information indicating requirements, including a request for a rough estimate for the system to be developed, input to the provided requirements input screen, and transmits the information to the control unit 150. The generation unit 152 of the control unit 150 generates the necessary steps required for system development based on the transmitted requirements (step S602). The processing of step S602 is the same as the processing of step S502.

[0070] The selection unit 156 acquires vendor information of related vendors based on the system to be developed from the vendor database 132 stored in the storage unit 130 (step S603). The selection unit 156 may refer to the development system 403 and development content 404 in the vendor database 132 based on the vendor performing the development indicated in the required steps generated by the generation unit 152, the system requirements included in the requirements, the name of the system to be developed, and the like, to identify the vendor developing the system and acquire the vendor information.

[0071] The selection unit 156 selects a vendor having a high degree of correlation between the required steps generated by the generation unit 152 and other requirements (step S604). As an example, the selection unit 156 calculates the degree of correlation between each of the required steps generated by the generation unit 152 and other requirements and the vendor information registered in the vendor database 132, and selects a vendor having a high overall degree of correlation.

[0072] The selection unit 156 creates selected vendor information for the selected vendor based on the vendor information acquired in step S603 (step S605).

[0073] The information providing unit 154 provides the selected vendor information created by the selection unit 156 by transmitting it to the user terminal 200 via the communication unit 110 (step S606), and the process ends.

[0074] The information processing device 100 searches for a vendor suitable for system development based on the user's requirements, so the user does not have to search for a vendor himself, and the information processing device 100 can reduce the user's effort and shorten the time required to find a vendor.

[0075] If the user desires both the creation of a rough estimate and the selection of a vendor as requirements, both of the processes shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 may be executed. In this case, the processes of steps S502 and S602 may be shared processes, and the results of a single process may be used for both.

[0076] <Specific examples>

[0077] Here, we will explain the requirements and examples of the rough estimate and selected vendor information that are provided to the terminals of companies and users who are planning to develop a system based on those requirements.

[0078] 7 shows an example of a requirements input screen 700 for inputting requirements provided to the user's terminal 200 by the screen providing unit 151. The requirements may include options as system requirements originally required by the information processing device 100 and free text that can be freely input by the user of the terminal 200, or only one of these may be included, but generally many items are input, and if the system contents desired by the user can be accurately expressed, a more accurate estimate can be calculated and a suitable vendor can be selected.

[0079] As shown in FIG. 7 , the requirements input screen 700 includes a pull-down menu for specifying whether the user of the terminal 200 is seeking a rough estimate, vendor selection, or both; a field for entering the project duration, which is the time it takes to complete the system to be developed; a development classification, which selects whether the system to be developed is a new system, an implementation of an existing system, or a renewal of an existing system; a development scope, which selects whether the system to be developed is software, middleware, or hardware; and a field for entering the outsourcing tasks, which specify the content of the system to be developed that will be outsourced to the vendor: requirements definition, design, development, testing, release, or management. These items are essential for system development and are always included in any system, so they are accepted as input in a pre-defined selection format. Requirements definition refers to the task of defining the requirements for the system to be developed. Design refers to the task of designing the system to be developed. Development refers to the development of the actual system based on the design of the system to be developed. Testing refers to the actual operation of the developed system, testing whether it operates as desired, and discovering any defects. Release refers to the task of releasing the developed system. Management refers to the task of managing the developed system after its release.

[0080] The requirements input screen also includes fields for entering the target system, i.e., the type of system to be developed, the target work to be requested of the vendor, the functional requirements of the system, and non-functional requirements that the user desires for the system but that do not appear as system functions.The user enters the respective content in free text into these fields.

[0081] In addition to the above, if an existing OS is to be used to operate the system, information such as what OS will be used, the expected number of users who will use the system to be developed, and the usage environment as information about the system to be developed, such as communication interfaces and communication protocols, may be entered, and this information may be used when creating a rough estimate or selecting a vendor.

[0082] In the example shown in FIG. 7 , the user requests a rough estimate from the information processing device 100, with a system development period of 12 months, a development category of new development, a development scope of software and hardware, and tasks to be outsourced to the vendor including requirements definition, design, development, and management. The system to be developed is a production management system, and the target tasks include production management, production planning, inventory management, quality control, and facility management. The functions desired by the user for this task include real-time production progress tracking, automated production based on demand forecasts, inventory quantity calculation and order proposals, defective product tracking and cause analysis traceability, and so on. As can be seen from the example in FIG. 7 , the user also requests non-functional requirements, such as a system response time of within 2 seconds, 99% uptime (24-hour operation), and mandatory encryption for communications during system operation.

[0083] The information processing device 100 analyzes the input contents, recognizes the necessary items, and creates a rough estimate.

[0084] 8 shows an example of a rough estimate created by the information processing device 100 and provided to the user. The rough estimate presents information such as predetermined assumptions for making the estimate and the content of the work to be outsourced to the vendor based on the items entered by the user. The rough estimate also shows information that associates estimated amounts with each step (necessary step) required for system development.

[0085] As shown in FIG. 8, the rough estimate corresponds major items with sub-items included in each major item, as well as the man-hours, number of people, unit price, and subtotal for each sub-item, and also indicates information on the reason for calculation.

[0086] The major items correspond to the work content to be outsourced to the vendor selected by the user on the requirements input screen 700 in Fig. 7. Therefore, the major items on the rough estimate include the items selected by the user from the six contents of the outsourced work. In other words, in the input example of Fig. 7, the rough estimate shows four selected major items: requirements definition, design, development, and management.

[0087] The minor items are items input by the user as functional requirements in FIG. 7, and are information indicating necessary steps generated by the generating unit 152 based on these.

[0088] For the man-hours, number of people, and unit cost, information associated with the development step name 302 searched based on the minor item, that is, the required steps, is used.

[0089] The reason for calculation is a statement explaining why the corresponding subitem is included in the estimate as an item on the estimate. The statement of the reason for calculation is generated by using morphological analysis, semantic analysis, etc. to identify the functions to be realized in the development step indicated by the subitem (required step), and explaining that the function is necessary as one function of the system to be developed based on the identified content. For example, the statement of the reason for calculation can be generated using a large-scale language model or generative AI that generates sentences. In addition, the statement of the reason for calculation may include a statement about how many people and how many days (hours) it will take to realize the corresponding subitem based on information such as labor hours and number of people.

[0090] As shown in the lower part of FIG. 8, the rough estimate also includes the total amount for each major item, as well as the estimated amount for the entire system development.

[0091] In this way, the information processing device 100 can accept input of requirements such as those shown in Figure 7, analyze the contents of the system to be developed from the contents of those requirements, and create a rough estimate such as that shown in Figure 8 by referring to estimate data from past system developments, and provide it to the user.

[0092] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of selected vendor information that the information processing device 100 provides to the user terminal 200. As shown in FIG.

[0093] As shown in FIG. 9 , the selected vendor information 900 indicates information about the vendor selected by the selection unit 156. The items described in the selected vendor information 900 may be fixed in advance, and may include information that can be obtained by searching the web. As shown in FIG. 9 , the selected vendor information 900 may include information such as sales revenue, operating profit margin, number of employees, characteristics, and development track record. The sales revenue, operating profit margin, number of employees, and development track record can be obtained from the vendor's website or the like. The characteristics are information about the vendor's temperament, and can be obtained from the vendor's website as well as evaluation information from users who have used the vendor.

[0094] The selected vendor information 900 shown in Figure 9 shows an example of providing information on three vendors, Company A, Company B, and Company C, but the vendor information provided by the information processing device 100 may be arbitrary or may be specified as a requirement.

[0095] By providing the selected vendor information as shown in FIG. 9, the user can obtain information on vendors that are deemed suitable for system development without having to search for vendors by himself.

[0096] <Summary>

[0097] According to the information processing device 100 described in the above embodiment, a user can recognize the costs involved in system development and obtain information on vendors suitable for system development simply by inputting the requirements for the system to be developed. Therefore, the user can reduce the time and effort required to search for a vendor on his / her own and request a system estimate from the vendor, and can start system development earlier than before.

[0098] Second Example

[0099] In the first embodiment, it has been described that a vendor is selected by the information processing device 100. From here, a second embodiment of the information processing device 100 after a vendor has been selected will be described using Figures 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17.

[0100] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation performed by the information processing apparatus 100 after selecting a vendor.

[0101] 10 , the information processing device 100 receives proposals from selected vendors and recruited vendors via the communication unit 110 (step S1001). Specifically, the selected vendors are vendors selected by the selection unit 156 of the control unit 150 based on the requirements input by the user and the required steps generated by the generation unit 152. The recruited vendors are vendors who applied in response to the recruitment in accordance with the requirements input by the user.

[0102] 11 shows an example of an operation screen 1100 on which a user can check various information entered by a vendor. The operation screen 1100 displays a list of proposals, reference materials, recorded videos, minutes, etc. (hereinafter collectively referred to as "proposal information") uploaded by the user. The information processing device 100 stores the proposal information entered and uploaded by the vendor in the storage unit 130. The proposal includes information such as how the vendor plans to address the requirements entered by the user, the estimated budget, and the estimated schedule, and may also include information such as suggestions for improving the user's requirements. In addition to proposals, the information processing device 100 may also accept minutes of meetings held at the vendor in response to the requirements entered by the user, videos of the vendor's proposals to the user, and videos of the vendor's self-promotion.

[0103] The communication unit 110 receives various information received from the terminals of the selected vendor and the recruiting vendor, and transmits it to the control unit 150. The control unit 150 also analyzes various information, including proposals received from the selected vendor and the recruiting vendor (hereinafter referred to as proposals), and evaluates each vendor for each evaluation item based on the analysis results (step S1002). As an example, the control unit 150 uses AI such as a large-scale language model to evaluate how well the content of the various information, including the proposals from the selected vendor and the recruiting vendor, matches the user's input items, and how good the development proposal is.

[0104] 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of an evaluation screen 1200 showing evaluations by the information processing device 100 of proposals from selected and recruited vendors. The evaluation items on the evaluation screen 1200 are used to evaluate the vendors' proposals. Specifically, the evaluation items in the present disclosure are divided into six categories: "validity of proposal content," "project management," "cost," "track record / reliability," "maintenance / operation system," and "quality of proposal / presentation." Each category is weighted differently depending on its importance in the vendors' proposals. Furthermore, each evaluation item may be quantified based on predetermined evaluation criteria, allowing for objective and quantitative comparisons.

[0105] For example, the "validity of proposal content" section may verify whether the submitted proposal meets the required specifications and whether scalability and future potential are taken into consideration. Regarding "project management," evaluation targets may include the feasibility of the development schedule described in the proposal, the presence or absence of a risk management plan, and the clarity of the progress management system. Regarding "cost," the content described in the proposal may be evaluated by comprehensively comparing the initial implementation costs and running costs. Regarding "track record and reliability," items may refer to the vendor's past success stories of similar projects and their market reputation. Regarding "maintenance and operation system," evaluation criteria may include the promptness of troubleshooting, the comprehensiveness of the support system, and the possibility of reducing future operating costs. Furthermore, regarding "proposal and presentation quality," evaluation criteria may include the clarity, consistency, and understandability of the explanations in the proposal. By calculating an overall evaluation using weights assigned to each of these six evaluation items, the most appropriate vendor can be selected. As an example, the control unit 150 may use AI to evaluate each item by inputting user input items and proposals from vendors (selected vendor and recruiting vendor) into a large-scale language model in which evaluation criteria for each item are specified. In this embodiment, based on the overall evaluation of each vendor shown in FIG. 12, the control unit 150 selects the three vendors with the highest overall evaluations, Company A (7.4), Company C (7.9), and Company E (7.1), as final vendor candidates and proceeds with negotiations with the user, but this is not limited to this. The control unit 150 may limit the number of vendors to one or two, or may proceed with negotiations with the user with all vendors.

[0106] The control unit 150 extracts the vendors with the highest overall evaluations (i.e., Company A, Company C, and Company E) from the selected and solicited vendors based on the calculated overall evaluations of the proposals received from each vendor, and then outputs a negotiation information screen 1200 that displays information about the extracted vendors in a list format and includes evaluations and negotiation policy information based on each proposal (step S1003). The output is performed by transmitting image information to the user terminal 200 via the communication unit 110 in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 150.

[0107] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a negotiation information screen 1300 in the second embodiment. The negotiation information screen 1300 displays the "strengths," "weaknesses," "negotiation policy," and "negotiation goals" of each vendor's proposal for the three vendors with the highest overall evaluations. In the illustrated example, a screen displaying evaluation and negotiation policy information based on Company A's proposal may be referred to as a first screen 1301a, a screen displaying evaluation and negotiation policy information based on Company C's proposal may be referred to as a second screen 1301c, and a screen displaying evaluation and negotiation policy information based on Company E's proposal may be referred to as a third screen 1301e. As illustrated in FIG. 13, the information processing device 100 can display the first screen 1301a, the second screen 1301c, and the third screen 1301e to support the consideration of negotiation policies for each vendor and the formulation of specific negotiation strategies. Furthermore, after the control unit 150 generates information for each item, the information may be stored in the storage unit 130.

[0108] In FIG. 13 , “Strengths” indicates the items described in each vendor's proposal that have advantages in terms of the required specifications and evaluation items, and specifically may include advantages compared to other proposals, high cost efficiency, past project performance, technical uniqueness, scalability, and ease of future operation. Furthermore, “Weaknesses” indicates the items described in each vendor's proposal that have deficiencies or issues in terms of the required specifications and evaluation items, and specifically may include deficiencies compared to other proposals, excessive implementation and operation costs, delivery date risks, technical constraints, and insufficient maintenance and support systems. This information may be used as basic information when a user requests improvements or adjusts conditions during negotiations.

[0109] Using the first screen 1301a as an example, the information processing device 100 first analyzes the contents of the proposal from vendor A to understand the contents of the proposal. Next, the information processing device 100 compares the requirements entered by the user with the contents of the proposal. If the contents of the proposal are relatively highly related to the requirements entered by the user, the information processing device 100 may assign scores and weights according to the evaluation items, extract the contents, and set them as "strengths." Conversely, if the contents of the proposal are relatively less related to the requirements entered by the user, the information processing device 100 may assign scores and weights according to the evaluation items, extract the contents, and set them as "weaknesses." Note that the contents of "strengths" and "weaknesses" do not have to be limited to the contents entered in the proposal; the information processing device 100 may use its built-in generation AI to determine and summarize the "strengths" and "weaknesses" of the proposal. The generated AI may be generated AI that has learned what the strengths and weaknesses are in relation to the requirements during past development by the vendor.

[0110] Furthermore, the "negotiation policy" indicates the strategy and priorities that the user should adopt when negotiating with each vendor, and may specifically include price negotiations, requests for shorter delivery times, points of differentiation, and proposal optimization. The negotiation policy is generated based on the overall evaluation and information on "strengths" and "weaknesses," and serves as a guide for the user to effectively proceed with negotiations. The "negotiation goal" indicates specific results or conditions to be achieved at the end of negotiations, and may include, for example, target implementation costs, shortened delivery times, additional implementation of specific functions, and improved operating conditions. This information is set as a specific outcome target based on the negotiation policy and may be used as an indicator for managing the entire negotiation process and for decision-making.

[0111] The control unit 150 outputs the generated information, i.e., information regarding each vendor's "strengths," "weaknesses," "negotiation policy," and "negotiation goals," to provide a user with a state that can be easily referenced. Furthermore, when the user selects a vendor with which to negotiate, the information processing device 100 can display information about that vendor in a focused manner and, if necessary, update and re-present the negotiation policy and goals for that vendor. Meanwhile, the information processing device 100 may reconsider the negotiation policy generated for each vendor based on the information entered by the user by pressing a policy reconsideration button at the bottom of each screen (1301a, 1301c, 1301e). The updated negotiation policy and strategy based on the results of the reconsideration may be reflected in the first screen 1301a, the second screen 1301c, and the third screen 1301e. Pressing the cancel button cancels any future transactions with that vendor.

[0112] When the user checks the information such as the negotiation policy generated by the information processing device 100 for each vendor and starts a chat, the control unit 150 outputs a negotiation chat screen 1400 with each vendor (step S1004). The chat may be started by pressing the chat start button shown in Fig. 13. Fig. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the negotiation chat screen 1400 in the second embodiment. The negotiation chat screen 1400 will be described in detail below.

[0113] The negotiation chat screen 1400 includes chat fields (e.g., a first chat field 1401a, a second chat field 1401c, and a third chat field 1401e) for the user to chat with each vendor. Each chat field displays and allows the user to enter details of negotiations with the corresponding vendor. The first chat field 1401a is a field for the user to chat with Company A. The second chat field 1401c is a field for the user to chat with Company C. The third chat field 1401e is a field for the user to chat with Company E. Displaying each chat field in parallel provides a user-friendly interface that allows the user to easily compare vendors. In each chat field, the information processing device 100 can automatically generate proposals to each vendor using artificial intelligence by referencing the content of the chat and display the proposals in the illustrated AI proposal field. The AI ​​proposal field may be a screen that is visible only to the user and not to the vendor. Specifically, the control unit 150 analyzes each vendor's past proposals, comprehensive evaluation results, information on "strengths" and "weaknesses," and requirements entered by the user, and uses artificial intelligence to create an optimal proposal. The proposal may be organized in accordance with the negotiation policy and negotiation goals and displayed on screens such as AI proposal fields 1402a, 1402c, and 1402e via the output unit 140. The AI ​​proposal field 1402a displays a proposal from the AI ​​for Company A. The AI ​​proposal field 1402c displays a proposal from the AI ​​for Company C. The AI ​​proposal field 1402e displays a proposal from the AI ​​for Company E. This enables the information processing device 100 to support efficient negotiation preparations while allowing the user to refer to and compare proposal contents. The generated proposal is stored in the storage unit 130 and can be used for subsequent negotiation history management and evaluation analysis. The AI ​​proposal field may also allow users to input questions or requests to the AI.

[0114] When the user inputs or confirms the details of negotiations with each vendor, the information processing device 100 determines the target vendor for development based on the negotiation results and the overall evaluation of each vendor, based on the user's vendor selection input (step S1005). Specifically, the user analyzes the content of the exchanges in each chat field on the negotiation chat screen 1400, the negotiation policy, the negotiation goals, and the user's instructions, and based on the analysis results, identifies the vendor that can execute a development contract under the most appropriate terms and determines it as the development target. Furthermore, the information processing device 100 can store information about the selected target vendor in the storage unit 130 and explicitly notify the user of the selection result of the target vendor on their screen. In the illustrated example, chats have been started with Company A and Company C, but a chat with Company E has not yet been started.

[0115] The information processing device 100 then determines a development schedule for the target vendor (step S1006). The development schedule may be generated by AI by referencing development schedules for past developments of a similar scale. FIG. 15 illustrates an example of a development schedule screen 1500. Specifically, the development schedule screen 1500 may display information divided into a "Task" column, a "Status" column, a "Start Date" column, and a "Deadline" column. The control unit 150 organizes corresponding information based on the type and content of each development task and displays it in association with the relevant columns, thereby visualizing the development progress and schedule management. As an example, the "Task" column displays the name of the development process and the work content (e.g., planning and requirements gathering, vendor selection and project, requirements definition and design policy formulation, etc.), and the "Status" column displays the progress status (not started, in progress, completed, issues remaining, etc.). The "Start Date" column and "Deadline" column display the planned start date and completion deadline for each task. The information processing device 100 stores this information in the storage unit 130 and displays it to the user, enabling the user to manage the progress of the development schedule and assist in plan revisions. The initial schedule generated by the information processing device 100 may be revised by the user and the vendor, and such revisions may be made based on consultation between the user and the vendor.

[0116] Meanwhile, the information processing device 100 further includes a function that allows the user to consult with the AI ​​regarding the development content, schedule, etc., and the development schedule can be revised based on the results of the negotiation with the AI. FIG. 16 illustrates an example of revising a development schedule through negotiation between the user and the AI. After the information processing device 100 generates a development schedule, the user consults with the AI ​​installed in the information processing device 100 regarding various information described in the development schedule, and the information processing device 100 may revise the development schedule while referring to the history information of various proposals (or cases) stored in the storage unit 130. As shown in the example of FIG. 16 , on the negotiation screen 1602 with the AI, if the AI ​​installed in the information processing device 100 determines that the reservation function design support in the task column of the development schedule is likely to be delayed due to the instruction input by the user, the user determines whether to revise the deadline listed in that item based on the determination result of the information processing device 100.

[0117] If the user determines that the deadline for reservation function design support needs to be revised, the information processing device 100 generates a revised schedule by revising the deadline listed in that field while referencing the proposal history information stored in the storage unit 130. At this time, the development schedule screen 1500 may be switched to a revised schedule screen 1601, and the revised schedule may be reflected within the deadline frame for reservation function design support on the revised schedule screen 1601. However, the items that can be revised in the development schedule are not limited, and the artificial intelligence installed in the information processing device 100 may generate a revised schedule by revising other items in the development schedule in response to commands input by the user.

[0118] Once the development schedule is determined, the vendor executes the development according to the development schedule (step S1007). The development progress and consultations with the user may be uploaded to the information processing device 100 as needed, and the information may be stored in the storage unit 130. Specifically, the control unit 150 may sequentially monitor each task registered in the schedule and its corresponding status information to determine the completion status of the entire schedule. For example, if "Complete" is registered in the status column of all tasks, the control unit 150 may determine that all tasks in the development have been completed according to the specified schedule. On the other hand, if at least one status column of each task is registered as a status other than "Complete," such as "Not Started" or "In Progress," the control unit 150 may determine that the development is not yet complete. Furthermore, the control unit 150 may generate a list of incomplete tasks based on the determination result and display it on the output unit 140 to clearly indicate the progress to the user. The control unit 150 may also have a function to analyze the number of uncompleted tasks, their progress, and the degree of deviation from the scheduled deadline, predict the risk of delays in the overall development and the need for additional resources, and notify the user.

[0119] The information processing apparatus 100 evaluates the vendor after all development is completed (step S1008). That is, the information processing apparatus 100 may perform the evaluation when all status fields in the development schedule are marked "Complete." A vendor evaluation screen 1700 will be described with reference to FIG. 17 . FIG. 17 shows an example of the evaluation screen 1700 output by the information processing apparatus 100. The evaluation screen 1700 includes a radar chart 1701 for reflecting the quality of the vendor's proposal from multiple perspectives, a profile 1702 showing the qualitative characteristics of the vendor's proposal, a vendor evaluation comment field 1703 in which the user can enter comments in free text, and an AI evaluation comment field 1704 that is automatically generated using artificial intelligence.

[0120] Specifically, the radar chart 1701 has multiple axes corresponding to evaluation items such as "quality," "delivery time," "cost," "ability to propose," and "support," and by mapping the evaluation score for the vendor on each axis, it intuitively and visually represents the quality of development by the vendor. Also, the profile 1702 is presented in a form that the user can easily understand based on the numerical results calculated by the control unit 150 in accordance with the content of negotiations between the user and the vendor.

[0121] As an example, as shown in Figure 17, the evaluation results for the vendor's proposal are visually represented on a radar chart 1701. Specifically, the evaluation score for "quality" is relatively high, reflecting the technical completeness of the proposal and the expected level of the deliverables. On the other hand, the evaluation scores for "cost" and "delivery date" are both evaluated as being achievable with ample margin, demonstrating superiority in the cost-effectiveness and progress plan for the entire development. In contrast, the evaluations for "proposal ability" and "support" are plotted as relatively low scores, indicating that the vendor's proposal lacks originality and specificity, or that its support capabilities for post-development operations are limited.

[0122] The information processing device 100 also has a function of accepting business operator evaluation comments from a business operator terminal in accordance with the profile 1702 represented in the radar chart 1701, and automatically generating evaluation comments using artificial intelligence. Specifically, the business operator evaluation comments of the present disclosure are entered by the business operator (i.e., the user) in a free-form format based on the negotiation process with the vendor, the contents of the proposal, and the track record of development progress. The user can specifically enter impressions gained in discussions with the vendor, points to note, future improvements, etc., while referring to the profile 1702. Furthermore, the input contents may be stored in the storage unit 130 and used as reference data or evaluation history when selecting a vendor in the future.

[0123] On the other hand, the evaluation comments generated by artificial intelligence are generated by the control unit 150 of the information processing device 100 by comprehensively analyzing the numerical data of the radar chart 1701, the strengths and weaknesses analysis based on the profile 1702, and the past evaluation history data. The information processing device 100 automatically generates feedback on the content of the vendor's proposal, dividing it into "good points" and "bad points," based on various information acquired when analyzing the negotiation content.

[0124] Furthermore, the information processing device 100 displays the business evaluation comments entered by the business alongside the business evaluation comments, allowing the user to compare and refer to the two, thereby enabling the user to confirm the consistency between the subjective judgment and objective analysis of the vendor evaluation. The evaluation comments generated by the AI ​​are also stored in the storage unit 130, along with the business evaluation comments, and may be reused in the future as reference data for comparative evaluations with other vendors or for new projects. This enables the information processing device 100 to realize continuous and systematic vendor management, rather than simply providing temporary evaluations.

[0125] Finally, the information processing device 100 integrates the evaluation data of the radar chart 1701, the analysis results based on the profile 1702, the business evaluation comments, and the AI ​​evaluation comments, and organizes them into a comprehensive evaluation of the vendor. The information processing device 100 reflects the organized evaluation information in the corresponding vendor data and stores it in the storage unit 130 (step S1009). As a result, the storage unit 130 systematically accumulates an evaluation history for each vendor, which can be referenced in future vendor selection, negotiation, and development project management. Furthermore, the information processing device 100 can automatically reference or use the stored vendor data in subsequent evaluation processes and negotiation policy generation, and can utilize it for comparative analysis with past evaluations and for identifying areas for improvement.

[0126] <Summary> The information processing device 100 described in the above embodiment allows a user to select several optimal vendors from multiple vendors based on requirements input by the user, and then centrally evaluate proposals for the selected vendors, formulate negotiation policies, and manage development schedules. Therefore, the user can efficiently and systematically consider negotiation strategies and manage development plans simply by referring to the information on the screen provided by the information processing device 100, without having to check the evaluation details, negotiation policies, and development schedules of each individual vendor. Furthermore, the evaluation of the vendor that carried out the development is reflected in the vendor data each time development is performed, so that the vendor's track record is updated and the feedback information can be referenced when the information processing device 100 selects a vendor for the next time.

[0127] <Supplementary Note> The information processing device 100 according to the above embodiment is not limited to the aspects shown in the above embodiment. Various modifications will be described below.

[0128] (1) In the above embodiment, the information processing device 100 selects a vendor by referencing the vendor database 132. However, this is not limited to this. Alternatively, the configuration may be such that vendor information is searched for on the web each time a user inputs requirements. Specifically, the selection unit 156 may be configured to acquire vendor information from web information rather than the vendor database 132 and select a vendor. In this case, the selection unit 156 crawls the web to search for vendors developing systems that match the content entered in the requirements and the names of required steps. For example, the selection unit 156 calculates the degree of correlation (first correlation) between the system development language described on the vendor's website, etc., that the vendor can undertake and the content entered in the requirements and the names of required steps, and identifies vendors with a correlation higher than a predetermined threshold. Then, based on the name of the identified vendor, information about other vendors is searched for on the web. The selection unit 156 may calculate a correlation (second correlation) between the searched information and the requirements and necessary steps based on information such as the vendor's homepage or the vendor's name obtained by the search, and select a vendor suitable for system development based on the correlation. The selection unit 156 may select a vendor whose correlation is higher than a predetermined threshold, or may select vendors with the highest correlation up to a predetermined rank (e.g., first to third). Examples of collecting vendor information from web information in this way are shown in Figures 4(b) and (c).

[0129] 4B and 4C are diagrams showing an example of vendor information collected from web information when selecting a vendor according to requirements.

[0130] FIG. 4B shows an example of vendor information, such as information introducing the vendor on their website.

[0131] Vendor websites contain a variety of information about the vendor, including the number of employees, motto, capital, and past development track record.

[0132] FIG. 4C shows another example of vendor information, such as a message board where vendors are evaluated.

[0133] On online bulletin boards and other similar sites, there may be posts about vendors from users who have used the vendor, and it may be possible to obtain objective information from the viewpoint of the vendor's users. For example, it may be possible to obtain information that can identify the vendor's work performance and temperament.

[0134] 4B, 4C, and the like can be acquired by searching using the vendor name, for example. In this way, the selection unit 156 may select a vendor using the vendor information collected from web information.

[0135] (2) In the above embodiment, an example was shown in which estimate data 131 based on a previously developed system was stored and used to create and provide a rough estimate in accordance with the user's requirements. However, the method for creating a rough estimate is not limited to the method described in the above embodiment. For example, if a learning model is prepared that learns training data in which requirements are used as causal variables and rough estimates to be provided for those requirements are used as explanatory variables, the information processing device 100 can provide a rough estimate by inputting the user's requirements into the learning model. For example, a random forest, a neural network, or the like can be used to create the learning model, but the method is not limited to these.

[0136] Furthermore, for example, the information processing device 100 may additionally train a large-scale language model (LLM) or a generation AI, etc., to create a rough estimate in accordance with various requirements, and may create a rough estimate or selected vendor information by inputting a request statement as a prompt requesting the creation of a rough estimate or selected vendor information based on the user's requirements.

[0137] (3) In the above embodiment, not all of the information in the rough estimate shown in Fig. 8 is required. It is sufficient for the user to understand each item and its amount, and information such as man-hours and number of people may be omitted. Note that including this information can make the rough estimate generated by the information processing device 100 more persuasive.

[0138] (4) In the above embodiment, the information processing device 100 may accept user registrations from users and vendors and create accounts for each of them. The information processing device 100 may then perform the processes described in the first and second examples after accepting logins from users and vendors after performing account authentication.

[0139] FIG. 18 is an example of a screen provided to a user by the information processing device 100 after login. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of a vendor ranking screen 1800 provided by the information processing device 100. The ranking screen 1800 displays information about each company ranked based on its evaluation history or evaluation score stored in the storage unit 130 in order of ranking. In the illustrated example, the information processing device 100 displays the top three companies in the ranking on the ranking screen 1800, but lower-ranked vendors may also be displayed by scrolling. As shown in the example of FIG. 18 , the information processing device 100 displays Company N, with a score of 4.8, Company F, with a score of 4.5, and Company S, with a score of 4.2, on the vendor selection screen 1800. Keywords indicating the characteristics of each vendor are also displayed to the user. This allows the user to select a vendor appropriate for the proposal based on the content displayed on the ranking screen 1800.

[0140] The information processing device 100 may rank vendors according to other criteria and display them on the ranking screen 1800. As an example, the information processing device 100 may calculate the score of each candidate vendor from the perspective of MVP (Minimum Viable Product) development and display them in descending order of score. In this case, keywords for each candidate vendor may also be displayed, indicating the vendor's characteristics in line with MVP development. The user can select a vendor by referring to the keywords. When the user presses the vendor selection button 1801 shown in FIG. 18, the process described in the first embodiment may be initiated.

[0141] (5) When each functional unit of the information processing device 100 is implemented by software, the information processing device 100 includes a CPU that executes instructions from a program, which is software that implements each function; a ROM (Read Only Memory) or storage device (these are referred to as "recording media") on which the program and various information are recorded so as to be readable by a computer (or CPU); and a RAM (Random Access Memory) on which the program is deployed. The object of the present invention is achieved when the computer (or CPU) reads and executes the program from the recording media. That is, the information processing device 100 according to the present invention functions as each of the above-mentioned components by the CPU executing the program loaded onto the RAM. The recording media can be "non-transitory tangible media," such as semiconductor memory or programmable logic circuits. The program can also be supplied to the computer via any transmission medium capable of transmitting the program (such as a communication network or broadcast waves). The present invention can also be realized in the form of an information signal embedded in a carrier wave, in which the program is embodied by electronic transmission.

[0142] The program may be implemented using, for example, a scripting language such as ActionScript, JavaScript (registered trademark), Python, or Ruby; an object-oriented programming language such as C, C++, C#, Objective-C, Swift, or Java (registered trademark); or a markup language such as HTML5. Furthermore, the term "section, module, or unit" in the claims may be read as "means" or "circuit." For example, a communication unit may be read as communication means or a communication circuit.

[0143] Furthermore, the program of the present disclosure may be provided to the information processing device 100 via any transmission medium (such as a communication network or broadcast waves) capable of transmitting the program.

[0144] (6) The order and timing of the processes described in the above embodiments can be changed as appropriate, provided that the same effects as those described in the above embodiments can be achieved.

[0145] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 Information processing device 110 Communication unit 120 Input unit 130 Storage unit 140 Output unit 150 Control unit 151 Screen providing unit 152 Generation unit 153 Search unit 154 Information providing unit 155 Creation unit 156 Selection unit

Claims

1. An information processing device comprising: a requirements input screen providing unit that provides a requirements input screen for inputting user requirements for a system to be developed in system development; a step generation unit that generates necessary steps, which are development steps necessary for system development, based on the requirements input on the requirements input screen; and an information providing unit that provides a rough estimate for the system development or selected vendor information indicating the vendor for the system development, based on the necessary steps generated by the step generation unit.

2. An information processing device as described in claim 1, comprising: an estimate data storage unit that stores estimate data including at least past estimated amounts for each development step related to system development including multiple development steps; an estimate data search unit that searches for the estimated amounts included in the estimate data stored in the estimate data storage unit based on the necessary steps generated by the step generation unit; and an approximate estimate creation unit that creates an approximate estimate for system development based on the estimated amounts searched by the estimate data search unit, wherein the information providing unit provides the approximate estimate created by the approximate estimate creation unit.

3. The information processing device according to claim 2, wherein the quotation data search unit searches for the estimated amount based on the correlation between the necessary steps generated by the step generation unit and the development steps included in the quotation data.

4. The information processing device according to claim 3, characterized in that the requirements include budget information for system development, and the rough estimate creation unit creates a rough estimate according to the budget.

5. The information processing device described in claim 3, characterized in that the estimate data search unit searches for multiple estimated amounts based on the necessary steps generated by the step generation unit, and the rough estimate creation unit creates the rough estimate by using the average value of the multiple estimated amounts searched for the necessary steps by the estimate data search unit as the estimated amount for the necessary steps.

6. The information processing device described in claim 3, characterized in that the quotation data search unit searches for multiple quotation amounts based on the required steps generated by the step generation unit, and the rough estimate creation unit creates the rough estimate using the lowest of the multiple quotation amounts searched for the required steps by the quotation data search unit as the quotation amount for the required step.

7. The information processing device described in claim 3, characterized in that the estimate data search unit searches for multiple estimated amounts based on the necessary steps generated by the step generation unit, and the rough estimate creation unit creates the rough estimate using the highest value of the multiple estimated amounts searched for the necessary steps by the estimate data search unit as the estimated amount for the necessary step.

8. An information processing device as described in claim 1, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires vendor information regarding vendors involved in system development; and a vendor selection unit that selects a vendor based on the required steps generated by the step generation unit and the vendor information acquired by the acquisition unit, wherein the information provision unit provides the selected vendor information indicating the vendor selected by the vendor selection unit.

9. The information processing device described in claim 8, characterized in that the acquisition unit acquires the vendor information from web information containing information related to the vendor and a vendor database storing information related to the vendor, and the vendor selection unit selects a vendor based on the correlation between the required steps and the information contained in the vendor database.

10. The information processing device according to claim 9, wherein the vendor selection unit selects a vendor based on the necessary steps and the requirements for system development other than the necessary steps.

11. The information processing device described in claim 9, characterized in that the vendor information includes information on development content that the vendor can carry out, and the vendor selection unit selects a vendor with a relatively high correlation between the required steps and the information on the development content.

12. The information processing device described in claim 10, characterized in that the vendor information includes information on characteristics related to the vendor's system development, and the vendor selection unit selects a vendor with a relatively high correlation between the requirements required for system development other than the necessary steps and the characteristic information.

13. An information processing method in which a computer executes the following steps: a requirements input screen providing step of providing a requirements input screen for inputting user requirements for a system to be developed in system development; a step generation step of generating necessary steps, which are development steps necessary for system development, based on the requirements input on the requirements input screen; and an information provision step of providing a rough estimate for the system development or selected vendor information indicating the vendor for the system development, based on the necessary steps generated in the step generation step.

14. An information processing program that causes a computer to realize the following: a requirements input screen providing function that provides a requirements input screen for inputting user requirements for a system to be developed in system development; a step generation function that generates necessary steps, which are development steps necessary for system development, based on the requirements input on the requirements input screen; and an information provision function that provides a rough estimate for the system development or selected vendor information indicating the vendor for the system development, based on the necessary steps generated by the step generation function.

Images