Systems and method of managing an inventory of service resources

A method of managing an inventory of service resources offered for sale by a service provider and systems thereof are described. A plurality of criterions to characterize the service resources is first defined. The inventory of service resources is then divided, on the basis of the criterions, into a plurality of elements. Each element comprises an exclusive subset of the service resources sharing common criterion values. A plurality of groups is also created. Groups aggregate those of the elements that have at least one criterion value in common. Groups and elements are what are offered for sale by the service provider. Elements belong in general to several groups. Service resources are, e.g., travel service or leisure resources such as airplane seats and hotel rooms. Customers or travel agents book in an element or in a group. The invention allows maximizing inventory availability while bookings are done by customers, either on the basis of a specific request (in an element) or on the basis of a more indefinite request (in a group). A specific inventory item is attributed later, i.e., at check-in.