Process mining is an exciting technology that can help businesses in many different ways. To fully understand process mining, first review the EYARC introduction to process mining case, Innovation_mindset_case_studies_Process_mining_Introduction.pdf. To successfully use process mining, professionals must first understand the business process. A common way to understand business processes is to document the process using techniques like flowcharting. To build flowcharts, professionals often rely on instruction manuals which describe typical business practices or on interviews with those involved in the business process. Professionals use the flowcharts they create to identify and gather relevant information stored in the companys databases. With that data and the appropriate process mining software, professionals can create process mining visualizations, which illustrate how the companys transactions actually flow within their business processes. Comparing process mining visualizations with business process documentation provides valuable insights professionals can see how the company actually processes transactions relative to what the company has documented or says it does. Order-to-cash process at BW Fishing Inc. BW Fishing Inc. (BWF) sells fishing supplies mainly to other businesses across the country. The company has grown steadily over the last 10 years. BWF found a niche in taking orders and immediately fulfilling them around the clock. BWFs customers work at unusual hours and it has been able to build loyalty with its always open mantra. This practice, along with competitive pricing, has allowed BWF to build a loyal network of customers. BWF processes most sales digitally; yet, employees still perform a valuable role in the process. The sales process at BWF involves employees working in four different roles: sales clerks, sales managers, inventory clerks and accounting clerks. There are multiple employees who function in each of these roles, and all employees in a role can perform the activities related to their role. Because the process is highly digitized, it is common to have many different employees perform the tasks related to one transaction. The process begins when BWF receives an order from a customer via phone or online. For a phone order, the sales clerk enters the customer information into the computer system and then the system automatically creates a purchase order and logs the information in the sales database. For an online order, the customers information is digitally captured in the computer system, then the system automatically creates a purchase order and logs the information in the sales database. Most of BWFs customers are businesses, so it does not collect payment at the time of the order. Instead, BWF bills them after the customer receives the inventory they have ordered. The sales clerk reviews the order and determines whether the customers credit should be approved by the sales manager to make the sale. The credit approval process requires judgment. All sales more than

$3,000 must be approved by the manager. Sales less than this threshold may require approval, depending on the sales clerks judgment. If the order needs sales manager approval, the sales clerk digitally sends the order to the sales manager. The sales manager reviews information in the sales database and uses their professional judgment to decide if the customers credit is sufficient. If the customer does not have sufficient credit, the sales manager updates the digital purchase order to show that the order is rejected (which is logged in the sales database). The sales manager then notifies the customer that the credit is not approved and the process is ended. If the customers credit is approved, the sales manager digitally signs the purchase order in the sales database. The system then creates a digital picking ticket. If the customer did not need credit approval, the system automatically creates the digital picking ticket upon the approval of the sales clerk. Once the picking ticket is created, the sales database is automatically updated. Inventory clerks in the warehouse receive notification of the digital picking ticket and use the digital picking ticket to pick and package the inventory. The inventory clerks open the digital bill of lading and print a copy of the digital bill of lading and packing slip, which are included with the inventory sent to the customer. The inventory clerk digitally signs off that they performed the task. If the warehouse does not have all of the ordered inventory, the company ships the goods it does have and the system creates a new digital picking ticket for the non-shipped items. The company then fills the new digital picking ticket once the inventory is in stock. Once the inventory clerk has finished entering their information into the sales database, the system automatically creates a digital sales invoice. An accounting clerk reviews the digital sales invoice for completeness and accuracy by comparing the sales invoice to the purchase order and the picking ticket. If the information does not match, the accounting clerk notifies the sales manager, who investigates and corrects the problem. If the sales invoice is accurate and complete, the accounting clerk digitally signs that the review is complete. The system automatically sends the customer the approved sales invoice via email. The process continues when the customer pays for their order. Customers can make an electronic payment (automated clearinghouse or wire transfer) or pay with a check. When the customer pays with a check, two accounting clerks open the mail and immediately endorse the check as for deposit only and then enter the check details and the information from the remittance advice into a digital cash receipts pre-list, which is stored in the sales database. Two clerks open the mail together to prevent one clerk from misappropriating assets, creating a kiting scheme or other fraudulent activities. If the customer pays electronically, the system automatically enters the information into the sales database. The accounting clerks also scan any remittance information, which is stored in the sales database, and the physical remittance document is shredded. Scanning and shredding are noted in the database when they are completed. All endorsed checks are sent to the sales manager. The sales manager prints a deposit slip and takes the deposit slip and endorsed checks to the bank on the same day the cash is received. Daily, the bank sends an email acknowledging all deposits for the day. The sales clerks verify that the bank deposit amount (excluding electronic deposits) matches the amount on the cash pre-list. If it does, the sales clerk adds their digital signature that they reviewed the match. If it does not, the sales clerk immediately notifies the controller for further investigation and follow-up

Create a flowchart that documents the order-to-cash process for BWF. Your flowchart should identify the activities performed and the role that performs each activity. You should produce a pdf file that contains your final flowchart. As a hint, create a different column for sales clerks, sales managers, accounting clerks and the computer system. Treating the computer system as a distinct person makes it easier to diagram the process. In selecting a suitable program for creating your flowchart, you can use a general program like Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word, or a dedicated flowcharting program like Lucidchart (https://www.lucidchart.com/pages/) or Microsoft Visio (https://products.office.com/en- us/visio/flowchart-software). While there are many standard flowcharting symbols, some programs use variations. Check with your instructor to use the flowcharting symbols that are preferred for the assignment.