Manager Software Products
| Private | |
| ISIN | 🆔 |
| Industry | Software, Knowledge Management |
| Founded 📆 | 1970s |
| Founder 👔 | David Gomes da Costa |
| Defunct | 1998 (acquired by Allen Systems Group) |
| Headquarters 🏙️ | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
Number of locations | London, UK; Leicester, UK; Lexington, MA, USA |
Area served 🗺️ | |
Key people | David Gomes da Costa (Founder), Eric Hassel (Managing Director, UK), Michael Dexter Smith (COO, US), Graham Thompson (National Sales Manager, US), Brian Spence (General Manager, Development Laboratories), Stephen Michael (CTO), Allan Hall (Product Manager) |
| Products 📟 | DataManager, DesignManager, MethodManager, ManagerView, ControlManager, SourceManager |
| Members | |
Number of employees | |
| 🌐 Website | [Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 665: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). ] |
| 📇 Address | |
| 📞 telephone | |
Manager Software Products (MSP) was a pioneering software company specializing in data dictionary and repository solutions for enterprise knowledge management, founded by David Gomes da Costa in the 1970s. Headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands, with major operations at 26-28 Dorset Square, London, and a development centre in Lexington, Massachusetts, MSP developed tools such as DataManager, DesignManager, MethodManager, and ManagerView. A key partner in IBM’s Repository Manager/MVS (RM/MVS) for the AD/Cycle initiative, MSP advanced Entity-Relationship (ER) modelling and business modelling for the Repository Information Model (RIM) and metaschema, influencing modern enterprise content management (ECM). The company was acquired by Allen Systems Group (ASG) in 1998.[1]
History
Founded in the 1970s in Amsterdam under MSP International Shareholdings (MSPISH), MSP operated its primary UK development arm, Management and Systems Programming Ltd, at 26-28 Dorset Square, London, with additional offices in Leicester under Managing Director Eric Hassel (later possibly succeeded by Paul Redfearn). Key personnel included Brian Spence (General Manager, Development Laboratories, worldwide), Stephen Michael (CTO), Allan Hall (Product Manager, possibly for MethodManager), and Barry Jenkins (Systems Administrator), all based in London. Its US Western Hemisphere Development Centre (WHDC) in Lexington, Massachusetts, was led by COO Michael Dexter Smith and National Sales Manager Graham Thompson. MSP maintained a global distributor network, including MSP Holland (Jan Nagel) and a German operation in Pinneberg (Ernst Kelting). In August 1998, MSP was acquired by ASG, integrating its repository tools into ASG’s mainframe portfolio, contributing to ASG’s $175 million revenue by 2000.[1][2]
Products
MSP’s suite focused on mainframe-based knowledge management for VSE/ESA and MVS environments, generating over £100 million in sales:[3]
- DataManager: A data dictionary for metadata management, coded in IBM assembler by Mike Carter.
- ControlManager: A process automation tool, likely developed in Fortran by Linda Fowler.
- DesignManager: A database design suite, enhanced by MSP’s development team with ER modelling to support Meta Member Types as Relationship Types with attributes, coded in IBM assembler and Fortran, competing with tools like ERwin (Cullinet/CA).[4][5]
- MethodManager: A methodology management tool for automated development workflows, developed with contributions from senior developer Debbie Birch.[4]
- ManagerView: A PC portal to DataManager, developed at WHDC by Gareth Morphil and team.
- SourceManager: A code management tool for development workflows.
IBM Partnership
MSP was a key partner in IBM’s AD/Cycle initiative, supporting RM/MVS under project lead Ed Downing at IBM’s Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, development centre. MSP focused on business modelling for the Repository Information Model (RIM) and metaschema, enabling complex entity and relationship structures. DesignManager’s ER modelling enhancements, led by MSP’s development team, allowed instantiation of Meta Member Types as Relationship Types with attributes, aligning with RM/MVS requirements. Trials were conducted on a mainframe terminal in MSP’s Dorset Square basement, with visits from IBM’s Bob Lord (AD/Cycle Program Manager) and Ed Downing to London, and MSP staff travelling to Raleigh-Durham.[4][5] MSP’s contributions were showcased at MidWeek 11 (May 12–15, 1992, Omni Royal Orleans, New Orleans), with presentations including:
- "MSP's Repository Manager/MVS Interface and Model Mapping" by Tony Machin, Project Leader, MSP - London, UK (Section 15, listed in proceedings).
- "MSP - The 'Leading Edge' Repository Vendor" and "METHODMANAGER in Practice" by Graham Thompson, National Sales Manager. (Section 10)
- "MSP's System Development Methodology" by Brian Spence, General Manager, Development Laboratories, MSP - London. (Section 15)
- "MSP's Future Product Architecture" by Stephen Michael, CTO, MSP - London. (Section 23)
Attendees included representatives from Dun & Bradstreet, Bank of America, Texaco, UPS, British Airways, Coca-Cola, Japan Airlines, Xerox, and Ernst & Young. AD/Cycle’s billion-dollar scope declined by 1994 due to the shift to client/server architectures.[4][6]
Awards and Recognition
MSP received multiple International Computer Programs (ICP) awards for sales milestones (£10M–£100M), displayed at Dorset Square and Gomes da Costa’s office at 41 Gloucester Place, London.[3] It was recognized as the “oldest and largest” repository vendor before its acquisition.[1]
Legacy
MSP’s innovations in ER modelling, RIM/metaschema support, and methodology automation influenced modern ECM and metadata systems, including IBM InfoSphere, Oracle MDM, and Erwin Data Modeler. Post-acquisition, its tools were rebranded under ASG, contributing to significant revenue growth.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "ASG Acquires Manager Software Products". PR Newswire. August 1998.
- ↑ "Companies House Records for Management and Systems Programming Ltd". UK Companies House.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "ICP Software Catalog". ICP Quarterly. 1983–1986.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 MidWeek 11 Proceedings. MidWeek 11. Omni Royal Orleans, New Orleans, LA. May 12–15, 1992. Unknown parameter
|note=ignored (help) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Internal MSP employment records". 1987–1990s. Unknown parameter
|note=ignored (help) - ↑ IBM AD/Cycle Documentation. IBM. 1990–1992. Search this book on
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