Summary of Interview with Paul, Supervisor, Portland OR Store

Paul is the supervisor for the Portland store, and his duties are similar to supervisor duties at all the stores. Being supervisor is only a part-time responsibility. Most of the time, Paul is just another employee at the Portland store, buying flowers, preparing flowers for delivery to customers, making deliveries, etc. Customers call to place orders for future flowers deliveries. Usually, they order about one week in advance. One order can (and typically does) involve several types of flowers. The store employees know most of the customers by name and the types of flowers they prefer. They also know what types of flowers may not be available, so they try to steer the orders to other flowers. They record customer orders in our Excel-based order log. Around 4:30 AM each morning, Paul reviews the log to determine what they need to purchase for the day. Store employees then use YNF trucks to pick up flowers from the local growers. They carefully select the freshest flowers, load the truck, and return to the store. They usually give the grower a purchase document that identifies the purchase number (sequential), the grower number, the purchasing employee, the truck VIN (to track mileage), the type of flowers, the quantity purchased, and the purchase price. The price can fluctuate depending on the time of year and demand for that particular type of flower. On occasion, one purchase can involve multiple types of flowers, although typically one purchase is for one type of flowers. Occasionally, the employees forget to take the purchase documents with them. In that case, they mail the document to the flower vendor after they return to the store. When the truck(s) returns to the store, there is a flurry of activity. Paul collects the purchase documents to check them for any errors. Then, he scans them and emails them to Eli for payment. While he does that, an employee unloads the truck, inspect the flowers, cull out the less desirable flowers, and package them for delivery to customers in the afternoon. Paul then prepares the delivery documents. Those documents list the customers’ original order number, the order date, the delivery (sale) date, the truck VIN used to deliver the flowers (to track mileage), the types and quantities of flowers to be delivered, and the sale price. YNF sets flower prices for all stores. Those prices are updated periodically based on expected purchase prices. Sometimes, because of weather or other factors, the wholesale prices spike, and Forrest does not get information in time to raise prices. Paul did not come out and say it, but he seemed a little frustrated. When Forrest was not available, it was sometimes hard to check policy and get a quick decision. Nevertheless, Paul was happy working for YNF. After the flowers are packaged, employees load them into the truck(s) for delivery, normally early each afternoon. Customers receive the flowers and the corresponding delivery document. Customers pay for all their deliveries at the end of the month, sending payments to the address listed on the delivery document (currently the address of the San Diego store). After delivery, Paul updates the order log with the delivery information. Then each week, he emails copies of the updated order log to Mia. For routine administrative purchases, Paul places orders over the phone. Then, the vendor supplies the products or services and sends an invoice (or a monthly bill in the case of utility charges). Paul stamps the invoice as received, scans the document, and emails it to Eli. YNF is considering getting some business credit cards for the store supervisors. That might allow them more flexibility in purchasing minor items. Paul thinks that would be a great improvement.

1. 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). Prepare the Delivery BPMN