Forrest runs Y Not Flowers, Inc. (YNF), a wholesale flower distributor with stores in several major metropolitan areas of the U.S. He is considering expanding his business, but he thinks his current accounting and financial systems are restricting that expansion. He also worries that YNF is not adequately prepared to face expected business risks. He has come to you for assistance.

Your supervisor met with Forrest and discussed his requirements in detail. At that meeting, they agreed on the following deliverables for your project.

Document process activity using BPMN. After gaining an understanding of YNF’s business processes, you will document current processes using business process modeling notation (BPMN). This involves documenting at least five current business processes. These diagrams will serve multiple purposes. YNF expects to use them to train new employees. Plus, they will provide information about potential improvements to those processes by the efficient use of information technology. Additionally, they will also highlight areas where YNF is exposed to unnecessary risks in his business.

Prepare an integrated data model using UML class diagrams and the REA framework. This data model will serve as the blueprint for YNF’s prototype database that you will also develop. Also, prepare a corresponding table listing for the prototype database. Identify where different fields/attribute names provide the same information and develop recommendations for changes in field names.

Prepare a prototype database for YNF. Forrest has agreed to provide financial data from his business for the 1st quarter of his fiscal year. That data will be in Excel format. You will move the data into Access, structure it appropriately, and set relationships consistent with your data model. Make changes as necessary in file structures to implement efficient tables and eliminate duplication.

Prepare financial reports using your database. You will prepare queries as necessary to provide the following reports and management information.

YNF income statement for the 1st quarter.

YNF balance sheet as of the end of the 1st quarter.

Income statements for each YNF store for the 1st quarter.

Other performance measures that you believe YNF should adopt.

Evaluate the financial performance of YNF for the 1st quarter. Use your Access queries to also prepare formal financial statements and compute appropriate ratios to evaluate performance against the industry and past performance. Clearly explain what those ratios mean for Mr. Z’s business.

(Instructor Optional) Assess the business case for use of information technology in the business (see chapters 13 and 14 in the text). Y Not Flowers wants to move to a cloud-based accounting system, such as Netsuite or QuickBooks Online. Your assessment should identify the costs of the change in technology, while also specifying which business processes would change and how they would change in as much detail as possible.

Recommend changes to YNF business processes to make it more effective and efficient.

Project Resources

You will need to make use of the following files as you work through the project:

Summary of Y Not Flowers interviews

Excel spreadsheet of Y Not Flowers' current data

Additional Excel spreadsheet of Y Not Flowers' historical data

Additionally, the following files have been provided for assistance:

Instructions on how to move data from Excel to Access

List of modeling software

List of project management software

Requirements

Complete the Y Not Flowers project using the instructions and resources listed above.  

Join the Orders and Sales table with the Orders and Sales Items table. Limit sales to the first quarter of 2018 beginning on January 1 and ending on March 31. How many records are there in your query?

  

Worker Trucks 0.* 0..* Orders/ 1.1 A 0..* Sales 0..* 1.1 0.* 4 10.* 1.1 1.1 1.1 B 0.* 0.* 1.1 1.1 6. 1.1 D Employees 1.1 1.1 7 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 0..* 0..* 0. 0.* Cash 0. E Time Cards 1.1 1.1 1..1 1.1 8 0.* 0. C/D Flowers 0.* 0.1 0.* 1..* 0.* 0. 1.I F 1.1 Growers 0..* A/P clerk 0.* 1.1 0.* Purchases 0.* G 0.* Misc. Items 11 10