Method and apparatus for managing the versioning of business objects using a state machine

A method and apparatus are disclosed for managing the versioning of business objects, such as contracts, advertisements, auction listings and RFQs. A state machine is used to represent a business process and manages the versioning of business objects associated with the business process. The present invention manages the original business object, the new version of the object, and any business objects that depend on the modified business object, if necessary. The business object remains in an active state during the modification process, until the new version of the business object is available. The new version of the business object remains in an inactive state during the modification process. The new version of the business object is transferred to an active state and the original business object is transferred to an inactive state when the modification is complete (e.g., when the modified business object is approved). If there are parent-child dependencies, the version management technique of the present invention updates a child object that is dependent on the modified business object, as appropriate.