4Spires Product Differentiation

Managed Conversations

4Spires solutions have capabilities found in task and project management applications (e.g. tasks with due dates, email notices, etc.). The key distinction, however, is that our solutions facilitate and enforce a “managed conversation” between a requester and a performer including:

The two parties are guided to negotiate an explicit agreement the performer has committed to deliver. There is a very big difference between assigning a task and forging an agreement.
All of the actions related to the flow of that conversation (e.g. counter-offers, progress reports, changes in project status, cancelations, comments, deliveries, etc.) are captured and noted.
The conversation loop is explicitly closed when the requester accepts and acknowledges the delivery.
Requests that spawn subordinate requests are visible to the project manager; enabling a more granular view of project execution.
The conversation history is recorded for analysis and later review.

In addition to capturing a more rigorous set of actions and dates, our solutions provide an extensive set of actionable reports that provide new workflow visibility as well as individual-group performance metrics.

The Negotiated Commitment

Most existing workflow management products are built on a one-to-many collaboration paradigm with individuals posting comments for all to see (and comment upon). Though this approach has widespread acceptance, our applications are built on a one-to-one commitment paradigm. We believe the real lever for significantly improving personal and enterprise-wide performance is elevating and illuminating these one-to-one conversations between a requester and a performer. Our solutions aim to enhance the nature and quality of this dialog. Because our applications work on an entirely different level, 4Spires offers tools that are complimentary add-ons, rather than competitors, to other task/project management solutions.

The key distinction is a negotiated commitment. To achieve a negotiated commitment the requester is obliged to make a clear and specific request describing their desired outcome(s) and expected due date. Then the performer must provide an explicit response by agreeing to the request, proposing a counter-offer, or declining. The dialog progresses with more precision and more energy, and it is documented until a real commitment is made. Commitments drive actions that lead to results.

Product Comparison to Email and Task/Project Management Tools

Achieving collaborative action with another person requires a conversation. One party makes a request, the two parties reach an agreement, a deliverable is produced, a delivery is made, and the conversation is concluded. Simple and obvious, yes… but, traditional work management applications do not support and record this dialog. 4 Spires’ solutions fill this gap. The following chart shows how.

Stages and features in a complete conversation for collaborative action between a Requester and a Performer.	Commit- Keeper	Email	Task Mgmt Tools	Project Mgmt Tools
Legend: = Full Capability, = Partial Capability
1. Formulate Request
Requester makes written request of a specific performer.
Request tagged to relevant categories for later reporting.
Date the request was made and the proposed due date are captured for future reporting.
2. Negotiate Agreement
Performer explicitly agrees, declines, or makes a counter proposal along with supporting commentary.
The opportunity to negotiate due date and the requirement to make an explicit agreement shifts accountability to the performer.
Dialog between requester and performer regarding due date is captured in the record.
Requester can cancel the request, but this action is noted for future reporting.
Requester and Performer reach an explicit agreement.
3. Execute Delivery
Dashboards enable easy tracking of all agreements. All can be requestor, performer, due date, and project sorted.
Performer maintains status regarding health of the agreement; issues are easily resolved.
Progress reports and agreed due date changes are incorporated into record.
Performer may make supporting requests to others that are visible to the requester. Requester has visibility into conversations underway and can readily intervene.
Embedded workflow shows who is responsible for the next set of actions thus maintaining and enabling workflow.
All events and comments are captured in user’s email.
The performer makes an explicit delivery. The requester is guided to explicitly acknowledge the delivery and express satisfaction with the result.
4. Report Progress and Capture History
Full transcripts of all in-process and completed conversations available for retrieval and review.
Reports show status of conversations currently underway tied to corporate goals, projects, customers, etc.
Historical reports show individual performance metrics as both a requester and a performer.