Caulfield School of IT
IMS1805 Systems Analysis
Tute 4
Analysing a Business System
Aim: To give you practice at analyzing the information elements of a typical business
system.
Tasks: Supermarkets are large and complex business systems which depend on efficient
management of information. The following is a simple summary of some of the main
information-related tasks which have to be done in a supermarket.
Working in groups, you will be allocated one of the supermarket’s main functions. You
must analyse your part of this system and identify:
(i) Data focus:
 The things which you need to store information about, and the specific details of
the information you need to store about each thing;
 The connections/relationships between these things;
(ii) Process focus
 The information processing which you need to do to carry out your function;
 The hierarchy in which these information processes sit;
 The data/information flows which are needed to make these processes work
Note: You may find it easy to start by doing a non-information-based model of the
system (for example, using people’s roles/actions) and then examine each role/action to
try to identify data and process elements
Business Description
The supermarket business can be divided up into five main functions, each of which
performs its own group of tasks, as follows:
Stock Control: The Stock Control Department is responsible for the following tasks:
•
Take delivery of new stock
All stock items are delivered with a supplier invoice. Stock control staff record the
delivery on the relevant purchase orders, and send the supplier invoices to the Finance
Department to arrange payment.
•
Dispose of unsold stock
All stock items have a use-by date. Stock control staff must monitor all goods from their
time of delivery, and ensure that out-of-date stock is disposed of, and not left on the
shelves. They try to ensure that there is minimum wastage of stock, which means they
must monitor sales carefully and advise Marketing and Pricing on the need for
discounting to encourage purchase of stock which is approaching its use-by date.
•
Monitor stock levels
Stock levels are monitored daily from the Stock Level Changes Reports provided by the
Sales Department so that the Purchasing Department can be informed of the need to order
new stock.
•
Provide management reports
A Weekly Stock Level Progress Report detailing the stock levels of all stock items is sent
to Management to enable them to make better marketing and discount decisions.
Finance: The Finance Department is responsible for the following tasks:
•
Make supplier payments
Invoices from suppliers for goods which have been delivered are received from the Stock
Control Department. Payments are sent to suppliers according to their payment
guidelines.
•
Accept customer payments
Details of the daily cash sales provided by the Sales Department are recorded. The cash
is sent to the bank.
•
Manage customer accounts
Account sales details are used daily to update customer accounts. Invoices are sent to
customers at the end of each month and must be paid in 14 days. Problem customers are
followed up and are placed on the cancelled accounts list if necessary.
•
Prepare financial reports
A monthly Financial Report based on sales and invoices paid during the month is
prepared for Management.
Purchasing: The Purchasing Department is responsible for the following tasks:
•
Order new stock items
When the Stock Control Department sends details of the need to purchase additional
stock, the Purchasing Department sends a purchase order to one of the suppliers of the
specified stock items. Before a purchase order is placed, Item/Supplier details are
checked to get the best possible deal for the current purchasing requirements. Sometimes
a quick delivery is more important than the best price.
•
Up-date stock item/supplier details
Information kept on each stock item is updated whenever a supplier provides the
supermarket with new or changed information. Purchasing use this information to help
them decide which supplier can offer them the best deal on each stock item.
•
Monitor deliveries
The Stock Control Department update purchase orders with delivery information as
deliveries are made. At the end of each day the Purchasing Department check the
relevant purchase orders to see if expected deliveries have been made. Suppliers are
contacted and asked about overdue items.
•
Management reporting
The Department provides Finance with Daily Purchasing Summary Reports and
Management with Fortnightly Purchasing Summary Reports.
Sales: The Sales Department is responsible for the following tasks:
•
Record cash sales
When a customer purchases goods for cash, details of the sale are recorded using the cash
register, and the customer is provided with a receipt giving the details of the sale and the
payment.
•
Record account sales
When a customer with an account at the store purchases goods and charges it to their
account, details of the sale together with the customer account number are recorded using
the cash register. The customer account card and a list of cancelled accounts must be
checked before the sale can be made.
•
Record orders and make deliveries
The Sales Department provides a service where customers can order goods by filling out
an order form on the store web site. Sales staff monitor orders submitted this way, the
order, which is then collected by the customer and paid for either by cash or account.
•
Sales reporting
On a daily basis a Sales Summary Report is provided to Management, a Stock Level
Changes Report is provided to Stock Control, and a Cash and Accounts Sales summary
report is provided to the Finance Department together with customers’ cash payments.
Marketing/Pricing: The Marketing/Pricing (M/P) Department carries out these tasks:
•
Decide what stock to sell
On a regular basis, M/P make long-term decisions about which goods to stock in the
supermarket. These decisions involve deciding what products are available and what the
market is likely to want. They are based on the following information:
- marketing information about new stock items from product suppliers;
- sales information about patterns and seasonal variations in product demand;
- stock control information about slow-moving stock
•
Setting prices
M/P sets the normal price of all products. The supermarket’s price is based on the
original purchase price from the supplier, the cost of transport and storage, the volume
and rate of sales, and the desired profit margin for that product. M/P monitors all these
and adjusts product prices accordingly
•
Discounting prices
On a daily/weekly basis, M/P make decisions about offering discounted prices on
particular stock items. Existing stock levels and rates of sales are key factors in these
decisions. M/P must keep Sales informed of which items need to be discounted.
•
Advertising campaigns
On a fortnightly basis, M/P advise the supermarket’s advertising agency of the desired
focus for the next set of radio, TV and newspaper advertisements. This focus may be on
product groups (eg dairy, meat, fresh fruit, etc) or specific products (this week’s
discounted specials). Decisions about which products or product groups will be based on
stock availability, current sales levels and external factors which are likely to affect
demand (eg ice cream in hot weather)