Need help with numbering scheme (LONG)

["wes2 -at- erols -dot- com" <wes2 -at- erols -dot- com>]

Hi listers -

I am contracting at a large company and have been asked a question that I
have no idea how to solve.  I was hoping you fine folks could share some
insight and make me look like a star when I come up with a viable solution
(or two?).

I have been involved with a document originally generated by the Risk
department (not my department).  This document is a listing of the
procedures and controls for a particular business unit (of which my
department is one).  The document is handed to auditors to describe the
controls in place in this organization.  I originally got involved because
the document was in need of a Maggie (among other things like a TOC!).  But
I digress?

The document has a pretty simple structure:

Heading 1 = Highest Function
	Heading 2 = Sub Function of Highest Function
	Process Overview 
	Procedure and Controls 
		Heading 3 = Sub Function of Heading 2 Function
		Process Overview
		Procedures and Controls

Each Process Overview section presents the process within the function in
narrative form.  The Procedures and Controls section is a linear
description of the process.  Each process step is followed by one or more
controls.  This section (and sub sections - there are headers in this
section too) uses a two-cell table:  the first cell contains the process or
control number and the second contains the text of the item.  For example:

CLP.1P	The line of business submits requests for changes to the XYZ 
        department through e-mail.  The XYZ department reviews the request
	and assesses the development level of effort and the impact to 
	resources. If there is an impact to the software system, the
	requestor is referred the Process Manager to evaluate 
	prioritization and availability of  development resources.

CLP.2C	The requestor is required to have Compliance approval that is
	communicated to the XYZ team prior to the ABC team taking action to
	fulfill the request. A record of the communication with the 
	Compliance signoff is maintained electronically by the XYZ team.

CLP.3C	more text

[NOTE:  I am not responsible for writing the text, just helping with the
management of the document :)]

What I need your help with is the numbering scheme.  The number is
developed by using a Heading-specific acronym (this text was hoisted from
the Heading 3 section called  Churlish Line Printer, for example), and
appending a consecutive number and a P or C to delineate a procedure or
control.

Prior to an upcoming revision (more on that later), if a text changed or
was added in the Churlish Line Printer function, then all the CLP numbers
were renumbered consecutively.  That means something that used to be CLP.7C
could, in the next revision be CLP.22C.  The risk department is not happy
with this numbering scheme because other documents are now using the data
from this document, and they are also developing a database to warehouse
this P&C information.  They would like to have a numbering scheme that
allows the numbers to stay the same so that any document that refers to
control CLP.3C doesn't have to be updated when the next revision of the
document occurs.  This also means creating a system flexible enough to
allow insertions into a section, and allow obsoleting old text when new
procedures and controls replace the current ones.

Complicating this request is the fact that this company re-engineers
constantly.  Processes are re-worked continually and the company
reorganizes frequently.  In fact, just recently they announced that the
company is going from a function-centric organization to a
line-of-business-centric organization.  So in this one document could be
split into a volume for each LOB, say with its own CLP section, or it could
remain one volume and the Heading 1 could be LOB-specific and that would
mean multiple CLP sections in one document (one for each LOB).  There would
need to be multiple CLP sections since, in each LOB, the process may differ
slightly.

Anyone have any suggestions for a flexible numbering system? What has
worked for you in the past in similar situations (or hasn't worked)?

Beth 


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